The 116 is the definitive account of the Frontier Guards who defended President Lincoln from a kidnapping and assassination plot in the opening days of the Civil War. Based on original sources discovered at the Library of Congress, The 116 delves into the lives of these 116 men and their charismatic leader -- Kansas "free state" advocate and lawyer Jim Lane. The 116 paints a provocative portrait of the "civil war" between Free-State and Pro-Slavery forces that tore Missouri and the Kansas Territory apart in the 1850s and provides a vivid portrayal of the battles pertaining to the protection and abolition of slavery that riled Congress on both a federal and state level, eventually leading to the eruption of war in 1861. For Civil War buffs or anyone fascinated by the rich and violent tapestry of this particular era of United States history, The 116 is an exhilarating account of a little known chapter, painted on a canvas as broad as the Kansas prairie.
Jim Muehlberger is a Kansas City-based lawyer and author. His first book, The Lost Cause: The Trials of Frank and Jesse James , was favorably reviewed in the New York Times Book Review. The Kansas City Star named it one of the top 100 books of 2013.