The Civil War

In 1965 (hundredth anniversary of Civil War’s end), I received from Blanche Swonger (Wapak teacher) the piece of pine with musket ball in it, being plece of Harper’s Ferry engine house where John Brown was captured after his raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859. The piece had been given to Blanche’s husband Herman by widow of his personal friend Walton Stowell, former mayor of Harper’s Ferry.

When Mrs Swonger presented me the artifact, she shared with me something Mr. Stowell had confessed to her husband. Mr. Stowell had said it was common Harper’s Ferry historic knowledge that the racist sheriff who conducted John Brown’s hanging, had “short roped” him, so drop not long enough to break his neck, slowly, painfully strangling John Brown to death! The reported eye witness accounts of the Brown lynching seem to agree with this.

Was John Brown doing what he believed was “God’s will” to end evil of slavery, or was he a madman? What Brown’s letters frame reveal is a mind clear about what he belleved was his “Christian duty” he was willing to die for. The bust of Brown, carved by my brother Walt with quote we’d added to its base, I’d taken to my speeches on slavery; racism had soon drawn death threats by phone, in mail from racist organizations. But I continued my antiracist speeches and realized like Brown I was willing to die for a just cause.