Two Harper's Ferry Raid Items Under Auction

The Heritage Auction Galleries are currently conducting an auction of Civil War era items, including two items pertaining to John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, [West] Virginia, in October 1859. The items are pictured and described below, based on the Heritage Auction website.

According to the Heritage Auction description:

THE ONLY KNOWN PERIOD IMAGE OF JOHN BROWN'S CARBINE [left] On the reverse of a post-Civil War carte de visite photograph, taken by R.A. Lewis of New York City, is penned the following bold browned ink inscription, which definitively proclaims a most historic declaration:

The gun taken from the hands of John Brown at Harper's Ferry, now in possession of H.T. Drowne, New York, The lad holding it is Drowne's son. Presented to me by Mr. Drowne, Oct. 4th, 1870. The well-dressed lad on the obverse of the CDV does indeed solemnly hold an example of what has come to be known as the "John Brown model" of Sharps carbine, but no other supporting evidence of the veracity of the written testimonial is offered. Additionally, at his feet on the floor of the photographer's studio there appear some mysterious folded documents or papers for which there is also given no explanation.

Then, in 1998, out a family estate in Cooperstown, New York, the identical carbine surfaced with great fanfare and is currently on display at the Harpers Ferry National Historical Park. Most amazingly, an envelope containing an 1870 dated letter of provenance was still with the firearm and provided a wonderfully unbroken chain of ownership up to that time, that letter being the exact one shown in this carte de visite.

According to the letter, which was written on behalf of the widow of Confederate General George W. Randolph by former Confederate Major Thomas G. Peyton, the "rifle used by John Brown at Harpers Ferry" was secured by General Randolph in his presence and further states that "the fact of the rifle being the one used by Brown and captured in his hands in the Engine house" can be corroborated by the Governor of Virginia H.A. Wise. The recipient of the letter, one J. Lyttleton Adams, may have been an associate of noted New York historical collector Henry Thayer Drowne, in whos appreciative hands the carbine was placed very shortly thereafter.

Correspondence with Harpers Ferry National Historical Park and a xerox copy of the actual letter and cover accompany this lot. An incredibly significant and extremely important photograph, backed with impeccable documentation. Condition: Very Fine, with great contrast Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500.

------

A JOHN BROWN CARTRIDGE...SAVED BY ONE OF HIS RAIDERS [top]. During the summer of 2006, a grouping of Civil War personal effects and ephemera attributed to a Federal officer (whose family had moved to Ohio from Boston at some point after the war ended) was sold at an estate auction held near Cincinnati. The officer, Benjamin H. Ticknor, first served as a 2nd Lieutenant in the 45th Massachusetts Infantry, but was later commissioned as a Captain in the 2nd Massachusetts Artillery.

A number of his more treasured mementos had been stored in labeled and rather colorful "PRIDE OF VIRGINIA" tin tobacco boxes made by the J. Wright Company of Richmond, actually highly collectible pieces in their own right. In the box marked "Political" was something extra special, an original wrapped .52 caliber Sharps cartridge from John Brown's Raid.

Written in old browned in on the back of one of his engraved calling cards was the true history of this singularly unique and most extraordinary relic, penned in the hand of Captain Ticknor himself:

This bullet was carried on the John Brown raid by Francis Jackson Merriam and was by him given to Dr. David Thayer by whom he was secreted after his escape. Given by Dr. T. to me today. August 31st, 1889. B.H.T.

An official solder of Brown's Provisional Army, Francis J. Merriam is described by one source as "one-eyed and mentally challenged." Born into an elite Boston abolitionist family and wielding a modest inheritance, he joined the raiders late in the game and was assigned to help guard their farmhouse stronghold and also supply weapons and distribute munitions to arriving slaves at their schoolhouse rendezvous point. Upon the failure of the Raid, Merriam escaped and eventually fled to Canada with the able assistance of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau, as well as the above mentioned Dr. David Thayer. He later returned to the U.S. and became an officer in a colored infantry regiment, where his wild and quirky behavior soon earned him a leg wound. He died mysteriously in late 1865.

An incredibly intriguing artifact with wonderful period provenance. Full details, plus additional background and particulars upon request. One of the most interesting Civil War cartridges one is ever likely to encounter.

Condition: Fine, powder is falling out Estimate: $2,500 - $3,500.

Response to a Blogger Who Calls John Brown a "Bully"

John Brown was not a bully. He was by nature an advocate for the underdog.

What happened in Kansas was pro-slavery terrorism unchecked. Brown went there to protect his family. The [Pottawatomie] killings [of May 1856] that he and others committed are famously misrepresented. They were not random attacks on pro-slavery neighbors. They were specifically aligned to remove the collaborators of pro-slavery terrorists (euphemistically known as "border ruffians") who were intent on "removing" the Browns. Brown did his homework--he always did his homework, and he knew specifically which men were working to undermine his family. Keep in mind, too, that there was a pro-slavery government in Washington D.C., Kansas was a territory overrun by pro-slavery thugs and terrorists, and there was no local constabulary or law enforcement that would provide them with immediate protection against terrorist assault; Lawrence had just been assaulted and Brown had done surveillance on the "ruffian" camp, having learned that his family were marked for attack. He made a hard choice, and he knew it was problematic; but he chose to strike first and save his sons. Note too that none of the men who were involved with him were forced; they assented and agreed, including one of the sword-wielding neighbors. This incident has been misrepresented, largely because of ignorance and prejudice, which seems to be the blight on Brown's legacy.

As a biographer of the man, I and a few others doing primary research are constantly up against the deep-seated prejudice and misinformation about Brown that saturates the thinking of people in this country--yes, mostly white males (and I say that as one myself).

Your comments on Lincoln likewise suggest you do not know the man. You speak of Douglass, but you should take the time to read what Douglass said about Lincoln and Brown, respectively, in his third and final autobiography. He says of Lincoln that he was primarily a white man's president, and that his choices and judgments as president were for whites, not blacks' advancement. In Douglass's thinking, no "white" man was closer to the cause of black people than John Brown. This was also the judgment of Harriet Tubman and the rest of Douglass's contemporaries. The "Lincoln the Great Emancipator" hype that we've all been fed is a post-1865 propaganda and it is an attempt to make the proverbial half-full glass seem full to the brim. But Lincoln was a politician, not a liberator, and if he did liberate people, he did so when it was politically expedient, or (if Lerone Bennett is correct) even unavoidable.

Lastly, as to Harper's Ferry, the conventional understanding of the raid is wrong, and that error has likewise informed historians and school book authors, where most of us have gotten our basic predisposition and understanding. You say Brown had courage but Douglass had wisdom. That's only half true.

Douglass repeatedly acknowledged afterward that he lacked courage to die for his people, but he never accused Brown of lacking wisdom. Douglass himself did not know what Brown knew about HF. If you examine Brown's strategy, you'll find it was not unreasonable at all. HF had no military guard and it was close to the mountains. Historians like myself and others have likewise found evidence that many enslaved people indeed turned out to support him, so the essence of Brown's plan was feasible at least. Douglass never objected to Brown's basic plan; what he objected to was seizing the armory. Brown failed not because his plan was foolish, but because he lingered too long "parleying" and sympathizing with his whimpering hostages--most of them slave masters. Some bully! His own man, Osborne Anderson wrote this in his memoir of the raid[A Voice from Harper's Ferry-1860]

Brown was no bully. By nature he was a very compassionate man who always fought for the downcast. As a school boy he was known to always take up for the weak guy when he was being bullied. We have that from local history. As a businessman he aligned his interests with white farmers being victimized by industrialists. Of course he was always trying to assist black people, the perennial victims of Jeffersonian democracy. You have incorrectly characterized him, but it's not your fault. It's the fault of biased historians and journalists. Brown is the most skewed and violated historical figure in U.S. history, and a lot of it has to do with race and politics in the post-civil war era leading into the civil rights era. You don't get Brown, but you think you do, and that's been the problem of the majority of bloggers, journalists, and even U.S. historians--the vast majority of them being white males who never do more than a basic reading of a few interpretations. I'm a two-time biographer of the man John Brown, and as I said, you don't get him at all, and because of that your bully notion falls flat.

Heritage NY includes John Brown Farm in Underground Railroad tour

LAKE PLACID — The John Brown Farm is participating in a new project with Heritage New York that will be in place by 2009. Many of the stops on the Underground Railroad are now private homes, and the John Brown Farm will be a central hub for visitor information in the region.

At other sites, Heritage New York is helping historic locations along the Underground Railroad driving tour make new brochures, put packages together and conduct workshops.

The Underground Railroad in New York in the mid 19th century started in Albany or Troy and went up to the Canadian border, helping slaves escape to freedom. The Emancipation Proclamation ended slavery in the U.S. in 1863. No civilized nation currently has slavery.

In the Adirondacks, the Underground Railroad wasn’t as large of a network as other places, and most of the border traffic went around the mountains. When the well-known corridors were being watched by slave catchers, however, some slaves began to go through this area.

John Brown was a towering figure in the anti-slavery movement and died after seizing the federal armory at Harper’s Ferry, W. Va. His attempt at a slave insurrection got him hung on Dec. 2, 1859.

—Erika Lorentzsen (Adirondack Daily Enterprise, Oct. 11, 2007)

Jefferson County Jail, West Virginia, Where John Brown Spent His Last Days

From his arrest his October 1859 until his execution on December 2 of the same year, John Brown the abolitionist was held prisoner in the jail at Charles Town, Virginia, now West Virginia. The original jail, pictured in this undated, colorized image, was also residence of the jailer John Avis and family. Brown and his surviving men from the Harper's Ferry raid were all incarcerated here until their executions, the last of which took place in March 1860.

Recently photographer J. J. Prats of Springfield, Virginia, has visited and photographed the Charles Town Post Office, which now stands on the site of the old jail in town. Several of his photos are posted on the Historical Markers Datebase (see link below), two of which are posted here showing the post office as the original site where Brown was held prisoner by the State of Virginia.

The inscription reads:

"On the site of this Post Office stood the Jefferson County Jail where John Brown and his fellow prisoners were confined after their raid on Harpers Ferry in October 1859. After court trial John Brown was taken from the Jail here to his death on the gallows December the Second in the year 1859. From the Post Office in Charles Town, West Virginia, was started the first Rural Free Delivery service in the United States, under Postmaster-General Wm. L. Wilson, October the First, 1896. Erected 1932 by the Jefferson County Historical Society of West Virginia."

According to the Historical Marker Database, the location is 39° 17′ 19.5″ N, 77° 51′ 36.18″ W., at the intersection of South George Street (West Virginia Route 115) and Washington Street (West Virginia Route 51), post office area Charles Town WV 25414, United States of America.

John Steuart Curry murals spread an important message about Kansas

Story by Dana Davis (49ABCnews, Topeka, Kansas)

A large, striking, portrait of controversial abolitionist John Brown, painted in all his fury.

Towering images of a Kansas frontiersman and Spanish explorers.

Vivid murals in deep rich colors of burnt orange, chocolate brown, indigo and emerald painted by John Steuart Curry in the State Capitol.

"The murals that Mr. Curry painted in the Capitol was done in the the early 1940s. Mr Curry was commissioned to paint the East Wing where we are now, the West Wing, also the rotunda," said Don Dunn, Tour Guide for the Capitol.

Perhaps the most famous and one of the most controversial paintings of Curry is that of John Brown. Dunn says critics did not like the use of John Brown, the color scheme, and the overall menacing look of the mural, including the tornado and fire.

"Mr. Curry explained any person that he painted, which he felt was important to Kansas history, he was gonna paint larger then life," Dunn said.

"The tornado, he explains, as the gathering of the storms of war. The fire as fires of war, but it's also put there so show the destruction that the Civil War caused across the Kansas territory," Dunn said. . . .

Curry was also commissioned to paint the rotunda, but it didn't happen.

"After he completed the paintings in the West Wing, Mr. Curry was basically fired by the legislators," Dunn said.

Curry left the state, never signing his artwork. He declared it unfinished because he didn't paint the scenes planned for the rotunda.

John Steuart Curry died of a heart attack in August of 1946 at the age of 48. His wife said it was of a broken heart, being rejected by his home state. But, Kansas finally did apologize to Curry in 1992 the legislature issued an official apology for its treatment of the artist.

Postscript: The Curry murals were nominated for the Eight Wonders of the World.

FYI: John Brown Sites of Interest

Jefferson County Courthouse Where John Brown Was Tried

Photo by Roger Dean Meyer, September 30, 2006

Marker is in Charles Town, West Virginia, in Jefferson County, at the intersection of North George Street and East Washington Street (U.S. 340), on the right when traveling north on North George Street.

Jonathan Roos, "Iowans Gear Up for Civil War Events," DesMoines Register On-line, July 16, 2007 (Excerpt)

[Iowa] State historians are hot on the trail of abolitionist John Brown, documenting the 15 Iowa stops he made after returning with a dozen freed slaves from raids in Kansas and Missouri. . . .

"That was a big event before the elections in 1860," when Abraham Lincoln won the presidency, said Lowell Soike, deputy state historic preservation officer.

Brown's Iowa stops included one at the Jordan House in what is now West Des Moines.

A meeting is scheduled for this week with Kansas and Nebraska officials to see whether those states would be interested in marking their portions of the route taken by Brown's raiding party. Image source: The Weekly Gazette [Davenport, Iowa], Nov. 1877.

John Brown's Great-Great-Granddaughter: A Long-Distance Phone Chat with Eleanor Clausen Blangsted

Following the news of the death of John Clausen, a descendant of John Brown the abolitionist (see this blog for July 9), I was prompted to make contact with his surviving sister, Eleanor Clausen Blangsted, a woman in her ninth decade of life and living on the west coast. I introduced myself to her over the telephone, finding her lucid, thoughtful, and highly appreciative of my passionate interest in her great forebear.

Ms. Blangsted made it clear that she and her late brother made every effort to continue their great-great-grandfather's legacy by advocating for justice and equality for all people. Indeed, she informed me, she had marched with the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and was even an invited guest for the 10th anniversary celebration of King's Southern Christian Leadership Conference. An accomplished artist, two of her works hang in the Martin Luther King Jr. Center in Atlanta.

Besides being an artist and activist, Eleanor Blangsted was also a professional dancer. According to the San Diego Visual Artist's Guild website, Eleanor Blangsted

started her professional career as a teenager under contract to Warner Brothers Studio in the late 1920’s. She had a successful stage career as an actress and dancer before she switched to fine art. She taught art for many years in both Los Angeles and San Diego. Her artwork has won several awards and she has exhibited widely in galleries, museums, and juried exhibitions throughout Southern California, New York, and overseas. These include the San Diego Museum of Art, Nehushtan Museum in Israel, Downey Art Museum, Mount Saint Mary’s College, University of Southern California, Los Angeles County Art Museum, Oceanside Art Museum, and the Hunter Gallery in New York City. Her work is featured in numerous public and private collections.

In our converstation, Ms. Blangsted acknowledged that many people hate her great-great-grandfather, and that she is glad to know that there is a growing interest in him that is positive. She was especially delighted to learn that Brown has been chosen to be inducted into the National Abolitionist Hall of Fame this October.

Ms. Blangsted's descent from John Brown is simply sketched as follows (unfortunately I do not have complete information)

1. John Brown + Mary Ann Day Brown--daughter Ruth
2. Ruth Brown + Henry Thompson--daughter Ella
3. Ella Thompson Towne by marriage--daughter Adelene
4. Adelene Towne + Carl Clausen [Danish immigrant]--daughter Eleanor Clausen Blangsted

Ms. Blangsted and her late brother, John Clausen, have long advocated along the lines of a progressive political viewpoint, earning the contempt of the lovers and protectors of the status-quo. A good example of her gentle wit is found in a 2003 letter to the editor of the North County Times [San Diego, Calif.], expressing criticism of the brash, abusive tendencies of the right-wing pop-media commentator, Rush Limbaugh, after his issues with drug addiction became known:

I am sorry Rush Limbaugh has had terrible problems with his back and ears. As he suffers with withdrawal from the drugs, will he spend time remembering the mean things he said on the radio, most important, making fun of Amy Carter and Chelsea Clinton when they were young teenagers? That could have been so hurtful. I wonder if he is sorry. How ugly he sounded calling some women femi-Nazis. Will he soften? Will he ever apologize for his cruel remarks?

ELEANOR BLANGSTED

John Brown has many children in spiritual and ideological terms, those who revere his legacy and seek to extend his work in their respective spheres of activism. But it is also the case that Brown's real descendants walk this land today, although the Brown name is no longer carried by his progeny. Eleanor Clausen Blangsted, the great-great-granddaughter of the abolitionist is a proud descendant, and makes no apology for the love she feels for him. Before our telephone conversation ended, she sent me a "hug" over the phone and thanked me "for loving her John Brown." Her John Brown indeed!--LD

John Brown's Descendant Dies at 97: John Carl Clausen
Source: The Tehachapi News [Tehachapi, Calif.] on-line, July 9, 2007

It is with a sad heart that we announce the passing of our beloved John Carl Clausen. John was born in Pasadena, Calif., in 1910 to Carl Clausen, an author, and Adelene Clausen, granddaughter of abolitionist John Brown. He has two sisters, Adelene Craig (deceased) and Eleanor Blangsted, of Alameda.

In 1938 John married his great love, Merry Waters. They were happily married for 65 years until Merry passed away in 2003. John worked for the telephone company for 40 years and in 1947 led a national strike against AT&T, founding the Communications Workers of America and serving as president for two and a half years. He also served as the president of the Los Angeles AFL-CIO in the 1950s. John and Merry settled into a house in Tujunga and raised their two children, Nancy Lomeland and John R. Clausen.

John and Merry were both very politically active. They were involved in the 1960 and 1968 presidential campaigns, and were at the Ambassador Hotel when Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated. Through the years John stayed very active and engaged in local and national politics. He was a prolific writer of letters and articles and was actively engaged to help adopt positive change in our world for all people. He was very involved with the Cesar Chavez labor union and was friends with both Cesar and his daughter, Dolores Huerta. In Tehachapi, John was a longstanding member of the Tehachapi Mountain Democratic Club and was a frequent contributor to the “liberal viewpoint” column in the Tehachapi News.

John was a lifelong dirt-bike motorcycle lover. He was a lifetime member of the Shamrock motorcycle club in southern California. He frequently took his family with him out to desert meets, and we all have amazing memories of camping in the desert and cheering on our riders. John loved the outdoors and traveling. He loved to go fishing and would take any opportunity to go to a stream or lake and catch some trout or bass. Camping trips to Yosemite were also a favorite. Once John and Merry retired, they would take their fifth-wheel and go stay at various beaches for months at a time. In 1984, they took their grandkids on a three month camping trip across the U.S. and Canada — priceless memories last of that time. John and Merry were both passionate in having fun and loving the outdoors. They passed on that passion to their kids and grandkids. John was also an avid photographer and was never happier than when he was at the controls of a slide show for friends and family. John will be deeply missed by his family and many, many friends.

John is survived by his sister Eleanor Blangsted, of Alameda; brother-in-law Clark Waters, of San Diego; daughter Nancy Lomeland, of Vacaville; son John R. Clausen, of Tujunga; grandchildren Katy Lindsay, of San Francisco; Merry Burns and her husband Bill, of Bay Point; Kelly Lomeland, of Aliso Viejo; and Robert V. Clausen, of Tujunga; great-grandchildren Mariah and Sarah Clausen, and Hailey and Ashley Burns; and many nieces, nephews and cousins in his extended family.

Independence Day Reflection
Stan Goff, a military veteran, has an essay for July 4th entitled,"'Peace is Patriotic' is the Perfect Oxymoron." It is dedicated to "three American combat veterans: John Brown, Harriet Tubman and Crazy Horse. They disobeyed." Well worth checking out, even if you're one of those folks who think that Brown was simply another "great American." (here)

Preserving John Brown’s Letters

One of the most important archives for the study of John Brown and the Brown family in Ohio is the Hudson Library and Historical Society (HL&HS) in Hudson, Ohio. Hudson was Brown’s hometown after his family migrated there from Connecticut in 1805. Brown kept close connections with family members in Hudson throughout his life, and the HL&HS contains the most extensive collection of materials on the Brown family, as well as a vast and often overlooked collection on Brown materials. This collection is largely attributable to the research of the late Rev. Clarence S. Gee, a Congregational minister who became interested in the Browns in the 1920s when serving in the pastorate in Hudson. As a biographical researcher of Brown’s life, working in HL&HS has been one of my favorite experiences, and I recommend it as a “must” for anyone with serious intentions of studying John Brown. This article from the Cleveland, Ohio, Plain Dealer, reveals some of the concerns that archives like the Hudson Library and Historical Society face in preserving their precious collections. (You can visit the website of the HL&HS here)--LD

Karen Sandstrom, “Local libraries at conference on preserving historic papers,” The Plain Dealer (June 30, 2007) [on line].

Hudson Public Library and Historical Society owns an important collection of journals and letters that belonged to abolitionist John Brown, including a letter he wrote just before he was executed. Historians from all over the country study the documents.

Cleveland Public Library has scores of old Cleveland City Directories, volumes that predate telephone books, that are packed with information about people who once lived here. At least once a day, someone visits the library to see one of the directories for genealogical studies and other research.

Leaders from both places were in Washington, D.C., this week as part of an invitation-only summit meeting aimed at helping libraries and museums save such treasures from time and the elements.

Heritage Preservation, a nonprofit group dedicated to conservation, invited representatives of 250 institutions nationwide to the conference held at the Smithsonian American Art Museum to talk about what it calls the crisis of poor storage, poor curating, bugs, moisture, sunlight and deteriorating conditions.

In 2005, Heritage Preservation and the Institute of Museum of Library Services published "A Public Trust at Risk," a report on the state of historical collections across the country. Among findings: 65 percent of collecting institutions have had items damaged because of improper storage.

Jill Collins, an event spokeswoman, said small-town institutions are of particular concern. "What a lot of people forget about is that in small towns, it's the library that becomes a repository for the history of the community," Collins said. "It is critical and pivotal to that community."

Hudson's John Brown collection - and executive director Leslie Pollot's interest in preservation issues - put that institution on the guest list, Collins said. Earlier this week, Pollot said she was excited about the summit and hoped to hear about what has worked at other places.

"Our budget is $2.65 million, but the majority of our dollars go to the public library end of things," Pollot said. She gave her institution "maybe a B-minus" for its preservation efforts, adding "and I'm happy it's a B-minus. I guess we're not as bad off as some institutions."

The John Brown documents are kept in a vault, reasonably well protected, but they become more vulnerable over time even with gentle handling by researchers.

Copying documents to digital files and film are two common preservation methods. Both are costly, but they can be crucial to preserving old and brittle objects. Part of the conference was devoted to helping institutions find ways to raise money for such projects.

Ann Olszewski, preservation librarian at Cleveland Public Library, said technology has advanced preservation methods. A machine called an ultrasonic welder can encase maps in clear polyester, extending their lives indefinitely, she said.

Even low-tech solutions, such as bathing brittle paper in water to restore moisture to fibers, can go a long way toward preserving items.

Olszewski said this year's budget includes $20,000 for custom boxes that provide protection from dust and light; $55,000 for moving documents to microfilm, digital files or creating paper facsimiles; and $100,000 for physical conservation done by outside sources. She said that sounds like a lot of money, but it goes quickly.

Last year, for instance, an 1884 Cleveland City Directory was disassembled so that each page could be washed and encapsulated in a protective covering, then re-bound. The cost: $7,220.

"But now that book is preserved for all time," she said. "It'll be usable by the public for hundreds and hundreds of years."

ksandstrom@plaind.com, 216-999-4810

Remembering Aaron Dwight Stevens: John Brown's Brave Young Lieutenant

Strong men with strong passions have been known to change the way things are to the way they think they should be. This story is about one of those men who lived locally in nearby Lisbon [Connecticut].

Aaron Dwight Stevens was born there in 1831 and lived on what is now Route 169, spending his youthful years on his father's farm. He had friends, but mostly worked the farm where he grew tall and strong. By the time he reached his early 20s, the issue of abolition was becoming a controversial one in New England and he got caught up with those anti-slavery feelings. At this time, only one out of every nine African-Americans in this country were free.

He had heard in the Kansas Territory there were others who felt the way he did and were doing something about it. He left Lisbon and joined forces with men who were against those promoting slavery there called "Border Ruffians." By 1859, young Aaron had earned a reputation as a courageous force in battling the rebels.

Denouncing slavery

This reputation had caught the attention of a fiery proponent of the anti-slavery movement, John Brown. A Torrington native born in 1800, Brown had attended the Morris Academy in Litchfield and had publicly denounced slavery.

In 1840, after being forced into bankruptcy, he was jailed in Akron, Ohio, for resisting arrest. Four of his children from his second wife died in an epidemic in 1843 and eventually he became a resident of North Elba, N.Y. It was in 1855 when he moved to the Kansas Territory and rushed to the defense of Lawrence, Kan., which had been threatened by pro-slavery forces. After fighting in Lawrence, Brown, now joined by Lisbon's Aaron Stevens, attacked a band of pro-slavery men near Osawatomie and slayed them. Brown then traveled New England, raising money and building strong associations with prominent abolitionists. In Ontario, Canada, Brown finalized his "constitution" for a provisional government in a slave-free nation and these projections lead directly to the historic and dramatic Harpers Ferry raid in Virginia (now West Virginia).

Brown and his allies, including Stevens as his second in command, convened in an abandoned farm house near Harpers Ferry. Brown made his plans to free Virginia's slave population. But first, they had to seize the arsenal at the ferry. Oct. 16, 1859, Brown and 21 other men, some black and some white, started their raid by cutting communication wires. Then they overpowered the sentries and engaged in a fierce, bloody battle finally owning the arsenal. However, Brown was wounded in a battle and taken prisoner by state and federal soldiers. A trial followed -- he was found guilty and sentenced to hang at a public hanging, which was common in those days. His hanging took place Dec. 2, 1859, at Charles Town, Va., where a thousand troops were present, as well as hundreds of spectators. Among the observers was an actor and assassin-to-be, John Wilkes Booth.

And Aaron Dwight Stevens? What had happened to him? One version of his exploits depicts him surrendering due to insurmountable odds carrying a white flag of truce. However, a saloon keeper, misinterpreting the action, intercepted Stevens' intent and fired at him, hitting him seven times, seriously wounding him. In spite of his injuries, he recovered, stood trial and a grand jury found him guilty of treason and conspiring with slaves. A sentence to be hanged March 16, 1860, also at Charles Town, just as his driven leader had, was the consequence.

Eyewitnesses at the hanging were later quoted as saying, "He was lionhearted, handsome, courageous, cheerful, a perfect specimen of man, towering over the deputies who led to his execution."

Had he lived, Stevens would have participated with those other Lisbon boys he knew in fighting for the north in the war between the states.

Historically and culturally, the songs and stories handed down speak of both Stevens and Brown and of their daring adventures.

Source: Richard Curland, "Historically speaking: Lisbon native joined fight for abolition of slavery." The Norwich Bulletin [Norwich, Conn.], on line, posted June 27, 2007.

JB-Related News

Excerpted from Michael McAuliffe, "Church's fate to be decided," The Republican [Springfield, Mass.], June 24, 2007.

Church's fate to be decided

SPRINGFIELD - Old First Church needs a miracle.

The oldest church in Western Massachusetts, founded in 1637 and located in the heart of the city at Court Square, could be shuttered by the end of the year because a dwindling congregation of barely 150 - half of whom are senior citizens and about two-thirds of whom do not live in the city - can no longer afford to keep up with badly needed maintenance and improvements to the 1,000-seat white-steepled Congregational church.

The congregation will decide the fate of the church and the adjoining parish house in September. In the meantime, a breakfast meeting is set for Thursday morning at the church to attempt to stir the community to action before it is too late. . . .

The city literally grew up around the church, which was first built in 1645 and for a time was where residents came to pay their taxes and to hold town meetings. The current building, constructed in 1819, is the fourth church and meeting house, and through its doors came the abolitionist John Brown and the statesman and orator Daniel Webster. The body of the country's sixth president, John Quincy Adams, even lay in state in Old First Church in 1848.

The church was designated a state historical landmark in 1971, and was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.

But the Rev. J. Thomas Gough, the church's 23rd senior pastor, said just the critically needed improvements - a new heating system, a new roof, drastically improved handicapped accessibility - would cost $800,000 to $1 million. At the same time, Saunders said, the church brings in only about $80,000 a year in pledges from the congregation, meaning the church has had to dip into its endowment.

"What we've been doing is eating our seed money," said Robert A. Walker, who has been attending Old First Church for 51 years and is chairman of the board of trustees. "We've been talking about that. You don't have corn if you eat your seeds." . . . Gough believes that should the end come for Old First Church, the city would suffer an important loss.

"I think what's lost is, simply by virtue of its location and the theological inclinations of the congregation, I think the city loses a prophetic voice," Gough said. "It loses a piece of its conscience."

"It loses its tie to its own history." . . .

mmcauliffe@repub.com

For more information on John Brown's life in Springfield, Massachusetts, and his relations with the church in general, see my biography, "Fire from the Midst of You": A Religious Life of John Brown.--LD

Carte-de-Visite of John Brown to be Auctioned Has Interesting Story of Its Own

Among a number of interesting items relating to John Brown that are being auctioned by Heritage Auctions (see this blog, entry for June 2), a small image--a carte-de-visite--of a beardless Brown is perhaps the most interesting. The John Brown carte-de-visite is being sold as part of a number of manuscripts that are related to various abolitionists.

In the 19th century, cartes-de-visite were all the rage. To no surprise, the abolitionist John Brown, being quite the modern man, made use of them as well. According to the American Museum of Photography, cartes-de-visite were small "albumen prints mounted on cards 2-1/2 by 4 inches." They were extremely popular, especially because they could easily be exchanged, even sent through the mail. No big deal today, but prior to this time, it was not possible to mail images without worrying about breakage, since earlier photographic images, such as daguerreotypes, were done on glass plates. The small size of the cartes-de-visite "also made them relatively inexpensive, and they became so widespread that by 1863 Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes would write, 'Card portraits, as everybody knows, have become the social currency, the "green-backs" of civilization.'"1 This John Brown carte-de-visite is all the more interesting for two reasons. First, the origin or source of the image itself, and secondly the envelope bearing the printed name of James H. Holmes which contained the carte-de-visite.

As to the image on the carte-de-visite, I consulted my friend and associate, Jean Libby, who is the undoubted expert on many aspects of John Brown documentary work, especially given her recent, authoritative research on Brown's extant daguerreotypes (see this blog, entry for June 5, 2006). Upon examining an internet image of the carte-de-visite, Jean has concluded that the image is from a daguerreotype made during a sitting in Boston, in early 1857, when Brown was touring the east to raise funds for his efforts in Kansas. The original exists as a quarter-plate daguerreotype in the Massachusetts Historical Society. The photographer was either Josiah J. Hawes or John A. Whipple; the daguerreotype has a pasted note on verso by Amos Lawrence, stating it was made in 1856. Libby points out, however, that it could not have been made until 1857, when Brown came to New England. She adds:

A cabinet card print from this daguerreotype in life perspective is inscribed "To my Beloved Daughter Mrs. Ruth Thompson from her Affectionate Father John Brown." A copy of the cabinet card, with other Brown artifacts sold to the Chicago Historical Society by Ruth Thompson [Brown's eldest daughter] and [Kansas associate] H.N. Rust was made by Crandall of Pasadena in 1894. A tintype of the M[assachusetts] H[istorical] S[ociety] daguerreotype was made by Winnie of Topeka at an unknown date. It is owned by the Kansas State Historical Society.2

Libby adds that this is the first carte-de-visite that she has seen of it, "but as there was a cabinet card made it is perfectly logical. . . . I believe it is authentic!"3

Of equal interest is the envelope that accompanies the carte-de-visite, and which evidently held the image over a century-and-a-half. As pictured on the auctioner's website, the envelope has an unidentified handwritten note that reads: "Photographs--John Brown." Also, the envelope bears the printed words: "James H. Holmes, No. 11 Vandewater St., Washington, P.O. Lock Box No. 2, New York."

James H. Holmes is no anonymous figure in the John Brown story, and it makes sense that he would have possessed a carte-de-visite of the abolitionist since they were friends in association during the Kansas conflict of the 1850s. Holmes was a free state man from upstate New York, although he seems not to have met Brown until after he went to the Kansas territory in June 1855 from New York City. Holmes studied agricultural chemistry and went to the territory, not only to support the anti-slavery settler movement but to associate himself with vegetarians and to promote the development of educational institutions. Like other free state settlers, after arriving in the territory, Holmes was forced into militant action in the face of pro-slavery terrorism and it was during his involvement in fighting near Osawatomie in the summer of 1856 that he met John Brown.4 According to Brown's biographer Villard, when he left Kansas in late 1856, he left Holmes in charge of his fighting men with orders to "carry the war into Africa"--"Africa" being Brown's reference to the South, where blacks were held as slaves in such vast numbers. Holmes effectively continued Brown's work, raiding in Missouri and earning the same status as an outlaw in the eyes of Kansas authorities.5 His militancy subsequently earned him the epithet of "John Brown's little hornet."

Among other things relating to Holmes, the Kansas State Historical Society holds two letters written by Holmes ("your constant friend") to "Dear Friend Brown" in the spring of 1857. It is not clear when Brown gave Holmes the carte-de-visite, or whether he gave it to him in person or mailed it to him. In later life (years after climbing Pike's Peak with his feminist wife, Julia Archibald), Holmes was living back in New York City and seems to have done some research and writing on Brown in the 1890s. Biographer Villard availed himself of Holmes's correspondence with Brown's surviving children and other materials when preparing his 1910 biography. That Holmes resided in New York City in later years is verified by the printed envelope citing his address on Vandewater Street, which seemingly no longer exists in the city. But the picture below in the New York Public Library's Digital Gallery portrays Vandewater Street during the Civil War. (The reference to "Washington" on the envelope is not clear, although it may have been an intersecting street close to Holmes's address on Vandewater.) Trivial perhaps, but James H. Holmes is a figure that bears further research from Brown scholars, and the carte-de-visite of Brown in his envelope strongly suggests that it was in his possession from the beginning, subsequently passing into the hands of collectors.

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Notes

1 Retrieved from "A Brief History of the Carte-de-Visite," The American Museum of Photography. Retrieved on June 16, 2007.

2. Jean Libby to Louis A. DeCaro Jr., 15 June 2007, electronic correspondence.

3. Ibid.

4. Testimony of James H. Holmes for the Journal of Investigations, Kansas, December 8, 1856 (National Kansas Committee, Thaddeus Hyatt, recorder), No. 101588, Thaddeus Hyatt Collection, No. 401 (1:5), Kansas State Historical Society.

5. Oswald Garrison Villard, John Brown: A Biography 1800-1859 (Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Doran & Company, Inc., 1910, 1929), 261.

Brown Remembered as Prophetic Character

For Werner Lange, a professor of sociology at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and an ordained minister, it’s appropriate that Saturday’s second annual Juneteenth Scholarship Walk-A-Thon leads to Richmond Township’s John Brown Museum.

While Brown’s actions are credited by many with precipitating the Civil War, Lange sees the abolitionist’s 1859 raid on the federal arsenal in Harpers Ferry, W.Va., in a very different light.

“Northwestern Pennsylvania should be forever proud that this great abolitionist leader lived, worked and worshiped here,” he told the group who gathered Thursday afternoon for a press conference detailing plans for Thursday’s walk.

“We are still in an ongoing struggle because we have fallen short — so far,” he continued. “The last five words of the Pledge of Allegiance remain an ideal. Slavery has ended but racism persists.”

Lange said during a post-press-conference interview that the pioneering book that tells the true story of John Brown was written in 1935 [actually 1909--Ed.] by W.E.B. DuBois, a civil rights leader, author and one of the founders of the organization that would become the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

“DuBois looked at the whole history of this and recognized John Brown for the prophetic character that he is,” Lange explained. “He explicitly wrote that book to get away from all those stereotypic images of him being some wild-eyed, violent fanatic.”

Brown, Lange continued, “knew exactly what he was doing. He was doing it as a committed American Christian, based on the principles of America and the principals of Christianity. So if he’s wild-eyed and radical and off-the-wall, then our country is, too. And so is Christianity.”

For Lange, “northwestern Pennsylvania, being this strong, hard-working, family-oriented, Christian-oriented community, nurtured his deep dedication to the principals of the country and Christianity,” he explained. “He was filled with righteous anger — I think he got that from here — at the treatment of brothers and sisters of a different race through the institution of slavery.”

As Lange sees it, what Brown was trying to do “was something that worked very well for liberation groups of the 20th century known as guerilla warfare. His idea was that the slave owners would not give up just because of negotiation — there had to be force-versus-force.”

Instead of sending liberated slaves to Canada, Brown envisioned them gathered on bases established in the Appalachian Mountains. “From those camps of Appalachia, he would conduct raids on various plantations and within a matter of years bring the whole system to its knees,” Lange said. To arm those camps, Brown and 21 followers raided the arsenal.

His plans, however, were thwarted by no one less than Gen. Robert E. Lee. Captured and tried, Brown was quickly sentenced to death and hanged. His conduct during the trial, however, won him sympathy in the North; after his death, many regarded him as a martyr.

In his last address to the court that sentenced him to death, “I believe that to have interfered as I have done ... in behalf of (God’s) despised poor, was not wrong, but right,” Brown said. “Now, if it be deemed necessary that I should forfeit my life for the furtherance of the ends of justice, and mingle my blood further with the blood of my children, and with the blood of millions in this slave country whose rights are disregarded by wicked, cruel and unjust enactments, I submit: so let it be done.”

Source: Mary Spicer, The Meadville Tribune [Meadville, Pa.], June 15, 2007. Retrieved on June 15, 2007 from: http://www.meadvilletribune.com/local/local_story_165234943.html

Rifle, Pike, and Portrait: Three for the Auction House

As usual, I can only make note of Brown materials that surface during historical auctions. Lord knows that I could never afford such things. But at least I can get pictures and share them with my readers. Maybe you can afford to buy them. Heritage Auction Galleries in Dallas, Texas, has recently announced the sale of a number of extremely valuable and interesting items relating to John Brown the abolitionist.

The first item for sale is a model 1853, .52 caliber Sharps Carbine rifle from the Harper’s Ferry raid. According to Heritage, the Sharps carbine is “of the lot used by abolitionist John Brown and his men as they raided the federal armory at Harper's Ferry, Virginia, an event that helped spark the fire of the United States Civil War.” It has previously been mentioned in the literature of noted firearms historian Norm Flayderman and has an excellent provenance and historical background. “This historical weapon has a 21 1/2" barrel and is stamped 'Sharp's Manufg. Co Hartford, Conn' on the top of the barrel. It has walnut stocks, an even gray patina and bears the serial number 16150. It has an attractive brass buttplate, barrel band and patchbox which is engraved as follows: Used at Harper's Ferry by John Brown's Men. On the tang by the serial number 'Sharps Patent 1848' is stamped. Provenance: The Norm Flayderman Collection; The Tharpe Collection of American Military History." Estimate: $70,000 - $80,000.Lot: 72010, Auction 663.

(Retrieved from: Heritage Auction Galleries [Dallas, Texas], http://americana.ha.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=663&Lot_No=72010&lighten=0&lighten=1#Photo, on May 30, 2007.)

The second item for sale is a pike used at the Harper's Ferry Raid (serial number 846). According to the Heritage Auction Galleries website, this 80-inch pike was one of a shipment of pikes that Brown had made in his native Connecticut. "At 80" long, they are wooden spear-like weapons tipped with a 10" blade." This pike has "a silver commemorative plaque affixed to the pike at 6" down from the blade on the wooden shaft as follows: 'One of John Brown's Pikes Used at Harpers Ferry, Made in Collinsville, Ct., 1857-1859. The metal haft on the pike itself is numbered '846' and is in very good condition as is the wood which is of a very nice grain and completely intact.'" Provenance: Norm Flayderman,The Tharpe Collection of American Military History. Exhibited: The Liberty Heritage Society Museum Estimate: $15,000 - $20,000, Lot: 72011, Auction: 663. (Retrieved from Heritage Auction Galleries [Dallas, Texas]), http://americana.ha.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=663&Lot_No=72011, May 30, 2007.)

Finally, there is an Oil Portrait of John Brown measuring 5 1/2" x 7 1/2," within the oval. This painting was completed after his death in 1859 and is matted with a thick linen mat and framed in a heavy 2" walnut frame with a plaque attached reading "John Brown 1800-1859." The artist is unknown. Despite some slight crackling of the image at the bottom right, this portrait is in excellent condition. Provenance: The Tharpe Collection of American Military History. It was previously exhibited at the Liberty Heritage Society Museum. Estimate: $20,000 - $25,000, Lot: 72012, Auction: 663.

(Retrieved from Heritage Auction Galleries [Dallas Texas], May 30, 2007, from: http://americana.ha.com/common/view_item.php?Sale_No=663&Lot_No=72012#Photo.

In Praise of Pottawatomie: Why May 24th Should Be "Anti-Terrorism Day"

Ever since the skewed, biased biography of Oswald Garrison Villard branded John Brown as a "principled" murderer in 1910, scholars and journalists (usually white) have picked and poked away at Brown's legacy, forever associating him with violent political action. In the later 19th century, Brown was upheld as a forebear of murderous anarchists; in the later 20th century, he was branded "the father of modern terrorism" in association with outbreaks of domestic terrorism in the 1990s directed at the federal government and abortion clinics. Unfortunately the prejudice and error of these assumptions are so pervasive that it is hard to speak otherwise, especially in defense of Brown and his associates, who killed five pro-slavery activists on May 24, 1856 by hacking them to death with military swords.

Ever since "9/11," however, perhaps people in this country are more open to revising their ideas about John Brown, or so one would hope. The reality is that Brown and his family were not terrorists, but targets of terrorism. Their violent strike was not an act of terrorism, but an act of counter-terrorism. Brown and his family were the good guys. The people who died were the bad guys. Sometimes good guys have to kill bad guys to preserve life and prevent the spread of cancerous criminality, injustice, and wickedness.

As one who has studied the story of Brown's activities in Kansas, it is clear to me that we have been blaming the wrong people for too long. Most of this misdirected blame can be traced back to a number of sources or reasons. The first is Brown's "friendly" biographer, Oswald Garrison Villard, who published his "definitive" biography in 1910. Villard concluded that Brown was a "principled" murderer who took the lives of pro-slavery settlers for no morally justifiable reason. In reality, Villard was biased and deliberate in his conclusions, which were far more interpretive than he portrayed them to be. Villard was the grandson of William Lloyd Garrison and evidently had an ax to grind because his own forebear's legendary anti-slavery leadership was overshadowed by Brown's epic strike at Harper's Ferry and subsequent hanging. Brown got to be the hero of the anti-slavery movement in one fell swoop, while Grandpa Garrison's lifetime of service was relegated to second place in the movement's history.

More importantly, Villard was an extreme pacifist whose zeal for that cause increasingly bordered on fanaticism. Villard could sanction no act of violence on behalf of anti-slavery, so Brown was actually guilty in his eyes before he examined the evidence. When Villard did so, he was selective. As one who has worked through his research papers at Columbia University, I would argue that Villard allowed his bias to "prove" that his beliefs were facts. As a result, his "definitive" judgment regarding the Pottawatomie killings set a precedent for scholarship in the 20th century, a precedent that grassroots scholars are still endeavoring to challenge.

Another reason why Brown has been labeled a terrorist is that he had fallen out of favor with the passing of the Civil War generation in the late 19th century. As the nation moved further and further away from advocating for black rights and closer and closer to reconstituting white supremacy for the new century, Brown appeared more as a problem than a hero to white society in general. Along with the delicate Negrophobia of the North that led many to look back on the abolitionist movement as an embarrassing extreme, the bitter, recalcitrant "lost cause" mentality of many southerners also found expression in the early 20th century. As far as John Brown is concerned, these two streams of white supremacy flowed and merged into a cynical, antagonistic biographical monstrosity.

Finally, this negative interpretation of Brown ultimately flowed into popular culture through second-rate histories (Robert Penn Warren's bio of Brown is a good example) and 20th century cinematic portrayals, particularly Santa Fe Trail (see my blog entry, Santa Fe Trail: The Film that Skewed John Brown for the 20th Century," April 23, 2007). This 1940 film presented Brown as a delusional killer and made heroes of the men who would shortly lead the anti-Union and pro-slavery Confederate cause in the Civil War. Mid-20th century historians were hard-nosed, prejudiced, and judgmental when it came to Brown. Given the socio-historical context, it is no surprise that white male intellectuals, from North and South, would presume to slander and misrepresent Brown without even realizing how perverse was their perspective. (Of course it is also no surprise that the judgment of black historians, writers, and activists has always been quite distinct from their malignant interpretations.)

In the 21st century, however, John Brown is having a comeback. Three of the four latest biographies or biographical studies published since 2002 are either sympathetic toward or (in my case) supportive of Brown's actions in Kansas. David Reynolds, whose biography has gained the most media attention, has caught a great deal of flack for posing challenging questions about the status quo portrayal of Brown, instead showing him in a very positive light. My own recent (second) book on Brown further challenges, perhaps far more deeply, the assumptions of the conventional academy and media.

In my estimation, May 24th should be remembered as "Anti-Terrorism Day" in the U.S. Instead of remembering Brown as a villain, he should be remembered as a man who chose to fight and kill terrorists rather than succumb to their murderous, racist program. Instead of a terrorist, Brown was a counter-terrorist who was forced to take action because there was neither federal nor local police protection. There was simply no guarantee of "democratic" protection from ruthless racists who hated and earmarked the Browns for assault because they were openly pro-black and militantly anti-slavery.

The people that the Browns killed along the Pottawatomie Creek on May 24, 1856 are the proto-type of domestic and foreign terrorists. They are the kind of people who are driven by evil sentiments and who resort to extreme violence and conspiracy in order to drive out good people and decimate communities devoted to justice and equality. To label Brown as a terrorist is to take the side of slave masters, murderers, fascists, and hateful fanatics against the highest principles we claim for this nation. To recognize Brown as an anti-terrorist is to place him right-side-up on the platform of history, finally recognizing that good people--when faced with desperate circumstances--must sometimes use force to set matters right, particularly when government and constabulary organizations will not or cannot do justice. From the White House down to the territorial government of Kansas, in May 1856 there was no just force to represent the Browns, let alone the enslaved and their reluctant "free state" allies. Brown was not intimidated or defeated. At the moment when evil raised its fist, Brown struck first and struck hard. The vector of terrorism along the Pottawatomie was crushed, and the blood that flowed in the Pottawatomie Creek was red with justice despite its horror. Critics may call it "murder" all they like. It was a desperately heroic act and I, for one, am glad it was taken. I would rather have the Browns alive than the likes of Sherman, Wilkinson, and the Doyles who perished at the blade of the Browns' swords. Sic semper tyrannis. Long live the memory of John Brown and men and women like him.--LD

John Brown in Wax

Source: Chris Brown, "Wax museum tells story of John Brown," The Journal [Martinsburg, WV], May 21, 2007. Photo by Jason Turner for The Journal.

HARPERS FERRY — A typical fairground haunted house can not match the eerie thrill of John Brown’s accusing eyes as he heads for the gallows, nor can it teach as much about the area’s history.

The John Brown Wax Museum in Harpers Ferry has been a popular destination for visitors to the area since it in opened in the 1950s, according to manager Freida Kidwell.

Kidwell said the grisly tableaus of Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry and subsequent execution frequently terrify as much as teach. Kidwell said she often hears from visitors about how scared they were during their childhood visits to the museum.

“I get a lot of those. People say their parents brought them through and it scared them,” Kidwell said.

Despite the horror-inducing images, the John Brown Wax Museum remains a popular destination for school-age children, who are often brought through as part of their history lessons.

The museum, which is at 168 High St. in Harpers Ferry, is advertised as an examination of “the exciting life of John Brown, from youth to the gallows,” and the three-story building delivers just that, complete with recorded narration and some other surprises.

With 87 carved wax figures, all arranged in scenes from Brown’s life, one gets a tangible sense of the path toward Brown’s violent raid on Harpers Ferry’s federal arsenal in 1859.

Visitors begin with a scene from Brown’s childhood, during which he befriended the son of a slave, only to see the boy horribly beaten by his master for some minor transgression. The displays lead the viewer through Brown’s career as an abolitionist, operator on the underground railroad that transported slaves to freedom, and as a “fanatical” opponent of slavery-sympathizers.

Some of the more grisly scenes depict Brown leading brutal attacks to avenge the killing of antislavery activists in Kansas; the ironic death of black porter Hayward Shepherd, the first person to die during Brown’s raid on Harpers Ferry; and Brown’s last stand, bloody and holed up in the Harpers Ferry Engine House where U.S. Marines led by Robert E. Lee finally captured him.

Some of the scenes are depicted with enough realism to be genuinely startling.

When the wax model of the dying Shepherd begins to “breathe” his last, the motion is achieved through hydraulics. However, it is realistic enough to be disturbing to younger or fainthearted visitors.

The final scene on the museum tour depicts Brown being led to the gallows in Charlestown, Va. — now Charles Town, W.Va., on the morning of Dec. 2, 1859, where he was executed for treason. The wax figure of Brown looks defiantly up at visitors as a recording narrates the scene, calling him “majestic” in his efforts to erase the “sin of slavery from the conscience of the United States.”

Mary Jane Vallas, an employee of the museum, said as many as 90 visitors — sometimes more — tour the attraction on any good business day. The museum had a few thousand visitors last year, Kidwell said.

Vallas said school-age children were a large part of the visitors to the museum, but such visits were usually arranged before hand by schools and teachers. She said walk-ins by teenagers were rare.

“All the kids that are here today don’t want to pay,” she said Thursday.

The John Brown Wax Museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. all week long, with slightly longer hours in the summer.

— Staff writer Chris Brown can be reached at (304) 725-6581, or at cbrown@journal-news.net