John Brown (1800-1959), born on May 9, 1800, in Torrington, Connecticut, was a militant abolitionist. On October 16, 1859, Brown led twenty-one men on a raid of the federal arsenal at Harper’s Ferry, Virginia (now in West Virginia), with the intent to arm slaves with the seized weapons. However, Brown’s plans were thwarted by local farmers, militia, and marines led by Robert E. Lee and within thirty-six hours of his attack, most of his men were either killed or captured. Brown was captured and moved to Charlestown, Virginia (now in West Virginia), where he was tried and convicted of treason. John Brown was hanged on December 2, 1859.
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This collection is owned by the Redwood Library and Athenaeum. Permission to publish materials must be obtained in writing from the Special Collections Librarian of the Redwood Library and Athenaeum.
John Brown letter , RLC.Ms.550, Redwood Library and Athenaeum.
This collection consists of a facsimile letter of John Brown to his cousin, Reverend Luther Humphrey in Charlestown, Virginia, on November 19, 1859, in which he reflects upon his imprisonment and upcoming death sentence as a result of his raid on Harper’s Ferry. A typewritten transcription is also included.
This collection is arranged in chronological order.
This letter was found amount the old letters of Professor Francis Lieber of Columbia College, New York, by his granddaughter and the donor, Mary Lieber.
Gift of Mary Lieber in 1952 August.
This collection was initially processed by Leah Podolsky in 2009 and Aimee Saunders in 2010.
The original letter was noted as being held at Storer College in Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia, in Boyd B. Stutler’s 1947 article in the