| Term Paper Title | John Browns Raid On Harpers Ferry |
| # of Words | 869 |
| # of Pages (250 words per page double spaced) | 3.48 |
John Brown's Raid on Harper's Ferry
The time period from 1859 to 1863 was a complicated
time in the history of America. Slavery was becoming a
major political issue, the economy was reflecting this
dissension, and relations between the North and the South
were changing and evolving almost daily. Then came the
proverbial straw that broke the camel's back: John Brown
and several of his followers raided the defense arsenal at
Harper's Ferry, Virginia. This was yet one more issue which
had the potential to divide the nation, and divide the
nation it did. Sentiments rose up both against and in favor
of Brown and his actions. Such sentiments served as a
perfect mirror to the general feelings of Americans at the
time. Opinions about John Brown and his famed raid were not
immediately set in stone, for as relations between the North
and South changed views on the Harper's ferry raid evolved
as well.
The Harper's Ferry raid took place in 1859, and almost
immediately early opinions rose up in support- and
denouncement- of John Brown and his actions. Many people,
both southerners and northerners, used Brown's actions to
further their own purpose. The Topeka Tribune in "bloody
Kansas" accused the Republicans of "building up a reputation
of martyr for Brown and his confederates"(doc. C). Lincoln
himself accused the Democrats of seizing upon "the
unfortunate Harpers Ferry affair to influence other
elections then pending"(doc. E). This goes to further
illustrate the growing rift between northern and southern
sentiments. Even some northerners refuted Brown. The New
York Tribune published an editorial by Horace Greeley which
stated that "Of course, we regard Brown's raid as utterly
mistaken and, in its direct consequences, pernicious" (doc.
A). Some historians believe that before the Civil War, most
people (primarily northerners) were afraid to compliment
John Brown because they were racist themselves and didn't
really care about slavery. Such people were probably just
looking for a reason to indict the South for whatever reason
they could find to do so. However, not all early opinions
were anti-Brown. Henry David Thoreau became enthralled by
the incident, writing several essays on it, and stating
that, following the raid, there was even "a slight revival
of old religion." His belief that moral law, in this case,
was more important than human law, was one the first of its
kind to be generated, but would certainly not be the last.
As North/South relations and sentiments began to
escalate towards war, opinions about John Brown's Harper's
Ferry raid began to change, too. Where the North had first
(for the most part) attempted to reprimand the late John
Brown immediately following the incident, as time passed and
the War seemed eminent, more and more northerner...Read entire document
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