John Brown's Raid: Harpers Ferry and the Coming of the Civil War, October 16-18, 1859 [Paperback]

The first shot of the American Civil War was not fired on April 12, 1861, in Charleston, South Carolina, but instead came on October 16, 1859, in Harpers Ferry, Virginiaor so claimed former slave turned abolitionist Frederick Douglass.The shot came like a meteor in the dark.John Brown, the infamous fighter on the Kansas plains and detester of slavery, led a band of nineteen men on a desperate nighttime raid that targeted the Federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry. There, they planned to begin a war to end slavery in the United States.But after 36 tumultuous hours, John Browns Raid failed, and Brown himself became a prisoner of the state of Virginia.Browns subsequent trial further divided north and south on the issue of slavery as Brown justified his violent actions to a national audience forced to choose sides. Ultimately, Southerners cheered Browns death at the gallows while Northerners observed it with reverence. The nations dividing line had been drawn.Herman Melville and Walt Whitman extolled Brown as a meteor of the war. Roughly one year after Brown and his men attacked slavery in Virginia, the nation split apart, fueled by Browns fiery actions.John Browns Raid tells the story of the first shots that led to disunion. Richly filled with maps and images, it includes a driving and walking tour of sites related to Browns Raid so visitors today can follow the path of Americas meteor.The first shot of the American Civil War was not fired on April 12, 1861, in Charleston, South Carolina, but instead came on October 16, 1859, in Harpers Ferry, Virginiaor so claimed former slave turned abolitionist Frederick Douglass.Gilot and Pawlak have touched all bases in explaining who John Brown was, why he came to Harpers Ferry, what happened, and what it all meant. Gilot and Pawlak have written an excellent introductory account of John Brown and his raid, and this reviewer recommends it to those who know little about the events, as well as to those more familiar with theml£w