John Brown Autographs, Memorabilia & Collectibles

 John Brown, a third-generation abolitionist, lived in Akron, Ohio for several years in the early 1850s before moving to Kansas, where he was involved in the intense struggle against slavery. His obsession with freeing slaves by force led to his raid on the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia, part of his plan to establish a stronghold for fleeing slaves in the mountains of Maryland and Virginia. Although the raid failed, Brown's capture, trial and execution made him a martyr to abolitionists and helped to intensify the discord that resulted in the outbreak of the Civil War.