Telegram from Barbour, Superintendent of the Arsenal at Harpers Ferry to the Secretary of War; Scope and content: On October 16, 1859, John Brown and his army of some 20 men seized the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia). By the morning of October 18, Marines under the command of Bvt. Col. Robert E. Lee, stormed the building and captured Brown and the survivors of his party. Even after Brown was captured, false rumors persisted about abolitionists and slaves hiding in the mountains, preparing for a new attack on the town. It was in this atmosphere of panic, as
Telegram from Barbour, Superintendent of the Arsenal at Harpers Ferry to the Secretary of War; Scope and content: On October 16, 1859, John Brown and his army of some 20 men seized the federal arsenal at Harper's Ferry, Virginia (now West Virginia). By the morning of October 18, Marines under the command of Bvt. Col. Robert E. Lee, stormed the building and captured Brown and the survivors of his party. Even after Brown was captured, false rumors persisted about abolitionists and slaves hiding in the mountains, preparing for a new attack on the town. It was in this atmosphere of panic, as the Marines prepared to withdraw, that the Superintendent sent this plea for help to the Secretary of War. General notes: Letters Received, Main Series, File W-386. Exhibit History: American Originals, December 1996 - December 1997, National Archives Rotunda, Washington, DC, Exhibit No.
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