National Park Service History Series Office of Publications, National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, Washington, D.C. John Brown's Fort, Harpers Ferry The text of this booklet was prepared by the staff of the Office of Publications and is based on National Park Service reports by William C. Everhart and Arthur L. Sullivan. National Park Handbooks are published to support the National Park Service’s management programs and to promote understanding and enjoyment of the more than 35

“ All through the conflict, up and down Marched Uncle Tom and Old John Brown, One ghost, one form ideal; And which was false and which was true, And which was mightier of the two, The wisest sibyl never knew. For both alike were real. ” Oliver Wendell Holmes June 14, 1882 This view of Harpers Ferry from Maryland Heights in 1859 appeared in Frank Leslie’s Illustrated Newspaper shortly after John Brown’s raid brought the town to national prominence....

Through the gloom of the night, Sunday, October 16, 1859, a small band of men tramped silently behind a horse-drawn wagon down a winding Maryland road leading to Harpers Ferry, Va. From the shoulder of each man hung loosely a Sharps rifle, hidden by long gray shawls that protected the ghostly figures against the chilling air of approaching winter. A slight drizzle of rain veiled the towering Blue Ridge Mountains with an eerie mist. Not a sound broke the stillness, save the tramping feet and the

This man who would electrify the Nation and bring it closer to civil war by his audacious attack on slavery was born at Torrington, Conn., on May 9, 1800, the son of Owen and Ruth Mills Brown. The Browns were a simple, frugal, and hard-working family. They had a deep and abiding interest in religion, and from earliest childhood John Brown was taught the value of strong religious habits. He was required, along with his brothers and sisters, to participate in daily Bible reading and prayer session

By the summer of 1859 Harpers Ferry was a quietly thriving little industrial and transportation community sitting on a narrow shelf of land at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah Rivers in the Blue Ridge Mountains of northern Virginia. Until its selection as the site for a Federal armory at the end of the 18th century, the town’s growth had been slow. What growth it did experience was due to its location on the wilderness route to the Shenandoah Valley. The land on which the town sat wa

The daylight hours of Sunday, October 16, 1859, were quiet ones at the Kennedy farm as the long period of inactivity and uncertainty neared its climax. Early in the morning John Brown held worship services, the impending attack invoking “deep solemnity” upon the gathering. After breakfast and roll call a final meeting was held and instructions were given. Then everything was in readiness. About 8 p.m. Brown turned to his followers. “Men,” he said, “get on your arms; we will proceed to the Ferry.

The Charles Town militia, consisting of the regular company of the Jefferson Guards and a specially formed volunteer company, was armed and on its way by train to Harpers Ferry by 10 a.m. The militia commander, Col. John T. Gibson, had not waited for orders from Richmond but had set out as soon as the men could be gotten ready. Arriving at Halltown, about midway between Charles Town and Harpers Ferry, Gibson, fearing the track ahead might be torn up, took the militia off the train and marched by

The somberness that permeated the fire enginehouse contrasted sharply with the din outside. Hundreds of militiamen and townspeople jammed the streets, which echoed with whoops and yells. Anxious and hysterical friends and relatives of Brown’s hostages added to the confusion. While the quasi-military operations ended at nightfall, the non-military activities continued with increasing fervor. The bars in the Wager House and Gault House Saloon were enjoying an unprecedented business. Many men were

The day after their capture, Brown and his surviving followers—Stevens, Edwin Coppoc, Shields Green, and John Copeland—were taken to Charles Town under heavy guard and lodged in the county jail. The cell doors had hardly banged shut when they learned that they were to receive speedy trials. The grand jury was then in session, and the semiannual term of the circuit court, presided over by Judge Richard Parker, had begun. The five raiders were arraigned on October 25, just one week after their cap

The war that John Brown predicted would come, and which his raid helped to precipitate, began in April 1861. When it ended almost 4 years to the day later, slavery had been destroyed along with some 600,000 lives and millions of dollars worth of property. Among the casualties of the war was Harpers Ferry. The town’s strategic position on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad at the northern end of the Shenandoah Valley made it a prime target for both Union and Confederate forces. It changed hands agai

At noon of Monday, October 18, 1859, Chief Clerk Walsh, of the Navy Department, drove rapidly into the Washington Navy-yard, and, meeting me, asked me how many marines we had stationed at the barracks available for immediate duty. I happened to be the senior officer present and in command that day. I instantly replied to Mr. Walsh that we had ninety men available, and then asked him what was the trouble. He told me that Ossawatomie Brown, of Kansas, with a number of men, had taken the arsenal at

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park: Title page, 8 -9, 16 -17, 24 (right), 26 (drawing), 28 (inset), 31 , 32 -33, 37 (drawing), 40 -41, 45 , 47 (drawing), 48 , 53 , 54 -55, 56 , 58 -59; Library of Congress: 2 , 3 , 6 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 (left & center), 24 (left), 26 (portraits), 28 , 36 , 37 (inset), 39 , 42 , 44 , 46 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 57 ; Kansas State Historical Society, Topeka: 4 , 5 , 22 (right); U.S. Marine Corps Museum: 47 (portrait); Boyd B. Stutler Collection, through the cour