Constitution Hall Topeka

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Constitution Hall Topeka

The Declaration of Independence inspired Kansas antislavery settlers writing the Topeka Constitution. No big deal. We restored Constitution Hall anyways. Cyrus K.

This new free state would end the balance of slave power and lead to abolition of slavery. The Free State or Topeka Constitution was written here in 1855. Constitution Hall is the first stone building erected in the capital of Kansas. Write to us at PO Box 2551, Topeka, 66601, or visit our website. The Topeka constitutional convention brought over forty delegates elected from Leavenworth, Lawrence

, Topeka, Manhattan and free state settlements in between, some walking 60 miles to attend. They had gathered in defiance of appointed proslavery Territorial officials and the "bogus" Territorial legislature elected by citizens of Missouri. The Free State constitution was the first written for a state to be called Kansas. It was progressive for its time. It's position on slavery was radical, to ban slavery and Negro indentures made in other states. It passed in the U.S House of Representatives but stopped by the pro-slavery Senate. Constitution Hall-Topeka is a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Program site and listed in the National Register of Historic Places. In addition to the Free State legislature and early state government, five Topeka churches were established, the first school classes held and the town government met. The administration of President Franklin Pierce permitted federal troops to disperse the Topeka Legislature on the Fourth of July in 1856. For this reason, Pierce was removed from local streets named for the presidents; instead, the name of his political rival Henry Clay was given the street between Fillmore and Buchanan. Constitution Hall was the Quartermaster's Depot on the Jim Lane Trail to freedom in the North. Holiday, signer of the Topeka Constitution, organized the first Kansas railroad convention in its assembly hall. He was later the founder of the Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad. After the six-year struggle over statehood called "Bleeding Kansas," Kansas entered the Union a free state on Jan. 29, 1861. The Civil War erupted three months later. Constitution Hall became the Kansas Statehouse from 1864-1869 while the current Statehouse was being built five blocks south. The Topeka Constitution Hall is among Kansas and Missouri sites important in preserving the stories of freedom struggles on the western frontier in the years leading up to the Civil War.

21/06/2026

Education equity has always been a struggle for people through time and place. Here at Brown v. Board of Education National Historical Park, we recognize the struggle of not just African Americans, but all Americans over time. Come join us as we explore the impacts of segregation on Mexican students here in Topeka, as well as at Blackwell School National Historic Site in Marfa, Texas. Guest lecturers include local historian Dr. Valarie Mendoza and Blackwell School alums, Dr. Frank Perez and Dr. Nancy Aguirre, who will be presenting The Struggle for Inclusivity: Blackwell School, Brown v. Board of Education, and the Legacies of School Segregation.

19/06/2026

Juneteenth marks a powerful moment in American history. On June 19, 1865, Union Major General Gordon Granger announced to enslaved people gathered in Galveston, Texas, that they were free—more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation officially ended slavery in the Confederate states. Slavery continued in Kentucky and Delaware until the 13th Amendment was ratified in December 1865.

Juneteenth, celebrated in Texas since 1865, was recognized as a federal holiday in 2021 after decades of advocacy. The designation offers all Americans the opportunity to recognize our shared history, celebrate progress, and recommit to the unfinished work of building a more just society.

At Constitution Hall, we reflect on the fact that the story of America’s founding is not just about documents and debates, but about the ongoing effort to define what freedom truly means.

History is not static. It evolves with every generation that steps into it.

Check out this video from the African American History Commission about Juneteenth - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRnIitKfDLg

Photo courtesy of Smithsonian Museum of African American History

16/06/2026

From the windows of Constitution Hall, you can see another place where history was made.

Constitution Hall played a role in Kansas's fight to enter the Union as a free state in the 1850s. Nearly a century later, just across the street, the trial that led to Brown v. Board of Education was heard.

Different eras. Different challenges. The same pursuit of freedom and equality.

14/06/2026

Happy Flag Day!

When delegates gathered at Constitution Hall in 1855 to draft the Topeka Constitution, an American flag hung in the meeting space. At the time, the nation consisted of just 31 states, and the flag reflected a country still defining its future.

Today, Flag Day offers an opportunity to reflect on the meaning behind the stars and stripes. At Constitution Hall, it also reminds us of the Kansans who gathered here to help define what freedom would mean in Kansas.

09/06/2026

A lawyer, journalist, and abolitionist, Kagi arrived in Kansas Territory during the conflict known as "Bleeding Kansas." He joined the Free-State movement, helped resist pro-slavery forces, and became known as one of the most intelligent and outspoken advocates for a free Kansas. Kagi even worked as a journalist in Topeka, reporting on the struggle that would shape the future of the territory.

He eventually joined John Brown. Brown trusted Kagi so much that he named him Secretary of War in his provisional government. At just 24, Kagi was killed during John Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry in 1859.

While Constitution Hall stands as a symbol of the fight against slavery through the Topeka Constitution, people like John Henry Kagi remind us that the battle was also fought by individuals willing to risk their lives for freedom.

02/06/2026

David Rice Atchison was an important political figure during the Kansas Territory period and a U.S. Senator from Missouri. He supported the expansion of slavery into Kansas and encouraged settlement efforts by those who shared that view.

During this time, Kansas became the center of intense national debate over whether it would enter the Union as a free or slave state. These tensions led to a period often referred to as “Bleeding Kansas,” marked by conflict and competing political efforts on both sides.

Atchison’s involvement reflects how deeply divided the country was over the future of slavery in the territories, and how those divisions played out directly in Kansas history."

Photo Courtesy of KSH

30/05/2026

Andrew Reeder was appointed in 1854 by President Franklin Pierce as the first govenor under the territorial government.

He arrived expecting to help organize order in a developing territory, but quickly found himself in the middle of escalating conflict over whether Kansas would enter the Union as a free or slave state. The territorial government was already being shaped by pro-slavery forces, including fraud and intimidation in elections.

Reeder ultimately refused to support the legitimacy of these actions and opposed the so-called “bogus legislature.” After feeling threatened he escaped Kansas in disguise, using the Underground Railroad networks.

Reeder’s time in office was brief but significant. It highlighted just how divided Kansas was during its territorial period and how unsettled its political future remained.

Photo Courtesy of KHS

26/05/2026

What does “constitution” really mean?
Here, it wasn’t simply created. It was fought over, shaped, and questioned.

23/05/2026

We’re beginning to imagine opportunities for future volunteers.

We anticipate asking for your community service when classroom students are visiting, when special events help tell about Topeka as a new town on the frontier and when the nation struggled for the abolition of slavery. Would you volunteer at the historic Free State Capitol in Topeka?

18/05/2026

This was almost lost to time.

Buildings like Constitution Hall don’t survive just because they were built well. They survive because people chose to protect them.

At different points in history, it would have been easier for this place to disappear—to tear it down, to move on. If this place didn’t exist, we would lose more than a building.

We would lose the physical space where early Kansas debates unfolded.

We would lose the setting where decisions were made before Kansas was even a state.

And we would lose a direct connection to a time when everything here was still being decided.

Preservation isn’t just about keeping structures standing.

It’s about making sure the moments that shaped a place don’t disappear with them.

Address

427-29 S. Kansas Avenue. Entry Pavilion At 425 S. Kansas Avenue. Mail To PO Box 2551
KS
66601

Opening Hours

00:00 - 16:00

Telephone

+17852607851

Website

http://ConstitutionHallTopeka.org/

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