John Brown: The Flame that Ignited Civil War

Q: Who is John Brown?

John Brown was an American abolitionist known for his uncompromising commitment to ending slavery in the USA.

Q: Why is John Brown so controversial?

John Brown was controversial during his lifetime for his militancy and advocacy for violence in ending slavery. Many abolitionists agreed with Brown's beliefs but not his methods. After his death, the debate began whether he was a hero or a terrorist - a debate that continues to this day.

Q: What is John Brown best known for?

John Brown is best known for the raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia) in October 1859, which he hoped would inspire a large-scale slave revolt. The revolt never happened, and Brown was captured.

Q: How did John Brown die?

John Brown was publicly hanged on 2 December 1859 for treason to the State of Virginia and attempting to foment a slave revolt.

Joshua J. Mark

Definition

John Brown (1800-1859) was a militant abolitionist best known for the part he played in the violence of Bleeding Kansas (1854-1859) and his raid on Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now in West Virginia) in October 1859. Brown developed an intense hatred for slavery as a child, and this, coupled with his evangelical Christian upbringing, convinced him that God had called him to end slavery in the United States.

More about: John Brown

Timeline

1800 - 1859
Life of the American abolitionist John Brown.
c. 1812
John Brown witnesses a slave boy beaten and commits himself to abolition.
1817 - 1826
John Brown is active in the Underground Railroad in Ohio.
1820
John Brown marries Dianthe Lusk.
1826 - 1835
John Brown is active in the Underground Railroad in Pennsylvania.
1832
John Brown's first wife, Dianthe, dies.
1833
John Brown marries Mary Ann Day.
1835 - 1846
John Brown opposes slavery in Ohio.
1846 - 1850
John Brown is a popular abolitionist speaker in Springfield, Massachusetts.
1850
John Brown establishes a farm in North Elba, New York.
1855 - 1859
John Brown leads "free-state" abolitionist forces in Kansas.
1859
John Brown leads the raid on Harpers Ferry.
16 Oct 1859
Abolitionist John Brown begins his famous Raid on Harpers Ferry when he seizes the US armory in Harpers Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia) with the goal of raising a slave revolt that would spread and end slavery in the United States. The revolt never happened, and Brown was arrested on 18 October and later hanged, becoming a martyr for the abolitionist cause.
2 Dec 1859
John Brown is hanged for treason and trying to foment a slave insurrection.