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JOHN BROWN'S NEGRO INSURRECTION. 277
He pretended to be a farmer from New York, who desired to rent or purchase
land in that vicinity, with a view to farming and mining. Soon afterwards
he rented a small farm from Dr. Kennedy, on the Maryland side of the
Potomac, about four or five miles from Harper's Ferry, and began farming
operations in a small way. He lived in an obscure manner, and attracted but
little attention. Two or three of his friends were posted at Chambersburg,
Pennsylvania, who received and forwarded to him, arms of different kinds.
A man named Cook, whom Brown had sent to Harper's Ferry about a year
previous, to await his orders, now joined him, and on Sunday night, the 16th
•of October, 1859, between eleven and twelve o'clock, Brown and his party,
some eighteen in number, crossed the bridge, connecting the village of
Harper's Ferry with the Maryland shore, and, on reaching the Virginia side,
proceeded to take possession of the armory and arsenal of the United States.
Each was armed with a Sharp's rifled carbine, and with revolvers. The
inhabitants of the village being asleep, the presence of this party was not
known until they demanded admittance at the arsenal gate, which was
locked. The watchman refusing to admit them, they burst open the gate,
made him prisoner, and established themselves in a strong brick building,
used as an engine-house. They brought with them a wagon, containing
arms and prepared torches.
" Armed parties were then stationed at corners of the streets. Their next movement
was to take possession, by detached parties of three or four, of the arsenal of the United
States, where the public arms were chiefly deposited, a building not far from the engine-
house; and by another party, of the workshops and other buildings of the armory, about
half a mile off, on the Shenandoah River, called Hall's rifle works. These dispositions
made, an armed party was sent into the adjoining country, with a view to the seizure of
two or three of the principal inhabitants, with such of their slaves as might be found,
and to bring them to Harper's Ferry (in the language of Brown) as hostages; Cook,
wdio had become well acquainted with the country around Harper's Ferry, acting as their
guide. They thus seized Colonel Lewis W. Washington, with several of his slaves,
(negro men,) at his residence, some five or six miles distant; and, in like manner, a
gentleman named Ailstadt, who lived near the road leading from Colonel Washington's
to the Ferry, two or three miles distant from the latter, with some five or six of his slaves,
{also negro men). They brought off also from Colonel Washington's such arms as they
found in his house, with a wagon and four horses, for subsequent use. This party, with
their prisoners, arrived at the Ferry a little before day, and the latter were carried at once
to the room adjoining the engine-house, where they were kept in custody.
" Having thus far apparently perfected his plans, a party was sent, taking Washington's wagon and horses, and five or six of the captured slaves into Maryland to bring the
■arms deposited at Brown's house there to a point nearer the Ferry and more accessible.
On their way, they seized a gentleman named Byrne, who lived in Maryland, three or
four miles from Harper's Ferry, and whom they afterwards sent to the Ferry and placed
amongst the other prisoners at the engine-house. It is shown that their design was to
lake at the same time as many of the slaves of Byrne as might be found, but in this they
did not succeed. During Monday, a large portion of the arms, consisting of carbines and
pistols in boxes, and pikes, were brought off in the wagon and deposited in a school-
liouse, about a mile from the village of Harper's Ferry, on the Maryland side.
| Title | History of Maryland - 3 |
| Creator | Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas) |
| Publisher | J. B. Piet |
| Place of Publication | Baltimore |
| Date | 1879 |
| Language | eng |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Title | 00000308 |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Transcript | JOHN BROWN'S NEGRO INSURRECTION. 277 He pretended to be a farmer from New York, who desired to rent or purchase land in that vicinity, with a view to farming and mining. Soon afterwards he rented a small farm from Dr. Kennedy, on the Maryland side of the Potomac, about four or five miles from Harper's Ferry, and began farming operations in a small way. He lived in an obscure manner, and attracted but little attention. Two or three of his friends were posted at Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, who received and forwarded to him, arms of different kinds. A man named Cook, whom Brown had sent to Harper's Ferry about a year previous, to await his orders, now joined him, and on Sunday night, the 16th •of October, 1859, between eleven and twelve o'clock, Brown and his party, some eighteen in number, crossed the bridge, connecting the village of Harper's Ferry with the Maryland shore, and, on reaching the Virginia side, proceeded to take possession of the armory and arsenal of the United States. Each was armed with a Sharp's rifled carbine, and with revolvers. The inhabitants of the village being asleep, the presence of this party was not known until they demanded admittance at the arsenal gate, which was locked. The watchman refusing to admit them, they burst open the gate, made him prisoner, and established themselves in a strong brick building, used as an engine-house. They brought with them a wagon, containing arms and prepared torches. " Armed parties were then stationed at corners of the streets. Their next movement was to take possession, by detached parties of three or four, of the arsenal of the United States, where the public arms were chiefly deposited, a building not far from the engine- house; and by another party, of the workshops and other buildings of the armory, about half a mile off, on the Shenandoah River, called Hall's rifle works. These dispositions made, an armed party was sent into the adjoining country, with a view to the seizure of two or three of the principal inhabitants, with such of their slaves as might be found, and to bring them to Harper's Ferry (in the language of Brown) as hostages; Cook, wdio had become well acquainted with the country around Harper's Ferry, acting as their guide. They thus seized Colonel Lewis W. Washington, with several of his slaves, (negro men,) at his residence, some five or six miles distant; and, in like manner, a gentleman named Ailstadt, who lived near the road leading from Colonel Washington's to the Ferry, two or three miles distant from the latter, with some five or six of his slaves, {also negro men). They brought off also from Colonel Washington's such arms as they found in his house, with a wagon and four horses, for subsequent use. This party, with their prisoners, arrived at the Ferry a little before day, and the latter were carried at once to the room adjoining the engine-house, where they were kept in custody. " Having thus far apparently perfected his plans, a party was sent, taking Washington's wagon and horses, and five or six of the captured slaves into Maryland to bring the ■arms deposited at Brown's house there to a point nearer the Ferry and more accessible. On their way, they seized a gentleman named Byrne, who lived in Maryland, three or four miles from Harper's Ferry, and whom they afterwards sent to the Ferry and placed amongst the other prisoners at the engine-house. It is shown that their design was to lake at the same time as many of the slaves of Byrne as might be found, but in this they did not succeed. During Monday, a large portion of the arms, consisting of carbines and pistols in boxes, and pikes, were brought off in the wagon and deposited in a school- liouse, about a mile from the village of Harper's Ferry, on the Maryland side. |
