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John Brown Facts

John Brown Facts
John Brown was an American abolitionist who believed that the only way to overthrow slavery was with armed forces. He was born on May 9, 1800, in Torrington, Connecticut, to Owen Brown and Ruth Mills. He was able to trace his ancestry back to the English Puritans of the 1600s. His father started a tannery in Hudson, Ohio in 1805, and had an apprentice named Jesse who was the father of Ulysses S. Grant. When John was 16 he left for Plainfield, Massachusetts to enrol in prep school. He then transferred to Litchfield to the Morris Academy to become a minister. His health and finances resulted in him having to return to Ohio where he opened his own tannery.
Interesting John Brown Facts:
John Brown married Dianthe Lusk in 1820 and their first child was born 13 months later.
In 1825 John bought 200 acres of land in New Richmond, Pennsylvania and built a cabin and barn and tannery.
John Brown had 15 employees at his tannery within one year. He also made money surveying and raising cattle.
John Brown used his resources to help establish a school and post office.
One of John and Dianthe's son's died and he became ill as well. He suffered financially.
In 1832 Dianthe gave birth to a boy, and both the baby and Dianthe soon died.
John Brown remarried to Mary Ann Day in 1833, and they had 13 more children, in addition to his previous 7.
John Brown moved his family to Franklin Mills, Ohio, in 1836. He suffered massive financial losses again in 1839 during the economic crisis.
John Brown was jailed for trying to retain ownership of land he had lost.
John Brown publicly vowed the destruction of slavery after the murder of Elijah P Lovejoy, a minister who was murdered by a pro-slave mob.
In 1842 John Brown was declared bankrupt by the federal court.
In 1843 dysentery claimed the lives of four of John Brown's children.
John Brown moved to Springfield, Massachusetts in 1846 because of the town's progressive anti-slavery attitude.
When the United States passed the Fugitive Slave Act John Brown founded a militant group to help prevent the recapture of escaped slaves.
In 1848 John Brown moved to New York, near Lake Placid, where land grants were being given to poor African Americans.
In 1855 John Brown left for Kansas to oppose the slavery supporters. He tried to bring Kansas into the union as a slave-free state. Several years of unrest and anti-slavery efforts followed.
John Brown's son was killed by pro-slavery advocates trying to destroy free settlement states.
John was joined by Harriet Tubman while gathering support for an attack.
On October 16, 1859 John Brown led an attack at Harpers Ferry.
On October 18, 1859, the engine house where John Brown and his men were staying was surrounded and demanded their surrender.
Brown refused to surrender and they were captured.
John Brown was tried and found guilty of murder, conspiracy and treason. He was hanged on December 2nd, 1859.


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