On Sunday evening, October 16, 1859, John Brown (1800-1859) raided the federal armory at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, with his 21-man “army of liberation,” hoping to spark an insurrection by enslaved people. A day and a half later Brown was captured and most of his men were killed or wounded. He was brought to trial in nearby Charles Town and was found guilty of treason, conspiring with the enslaved to rebel, and murder. He was hanged on December 2, 1859. This ode to Brown was written by Phoebe Cary (1824-1871), an American poet who, along with her sister Alice, was active in the women’s rights movement. The Gazette & Courier was the newspaper in Greenfield, Massachusetts, from July 20, 1841, until June 24, 1932. Before 1841, the newspaper’s name changed quite frequently, with “Gazette” a frequent part of the title.
Cary, Phoebe. “John Brown.” Greenfield Gazette and Courier, January 6, 1868. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/l05-093/. Accessed on December 21, 2024.
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