Brown, John

Cultural  

1. An abolitionist of the nineteenth century who sought to free the slaves by military force. After leading several attacks in Kansas, he planned to start an uprising among the slaves. In 1859, he and a small band of followers took over a federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry, in Virginia. A detachment of marines reclaimed the arsenal and captured Brown, who was tried for treason, convicted, and hanged.

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Robert E. Lee, soon to be commanding general of the main Confederate army, led the marines who captured Brown.

In death, Brown became a martyr for abolitionists. “John Brown's Body,” a popular song in the North during the Civil War, had this refrain: “John Brown's body lies a-mold'ring in the grave; His soul goes marching on.”

Example Sentences

The slaves were accompanied by an associate of Brown, John Kagi, whose sister, Barbara Mayhew, lived in the cabin with her husband, Allen.

From Washington Times • Oct. 3, 2020

His account of Strang’s rise and fall is littered with thumbnail histories of 19th-century cross-dressing, John Brown, John Deere, the Brontës, bloomers, the Underground Railroad, mesmerism, newspaper exchanges, the Illuminati and much else.

From New York Times • Jul. 14, 2020

Since then, Jongbloed has helped publish more than 1,000 titles — including works by Dan Brown, John le Carré and Agatha Christie — in Flipback format in several European countries.

From Washington Post • Aug. 2, 2018

Anthony Brown, John Delaney and Jamie Raskin, sent a letter to the Department of Defense requesting all communication around the ban.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 24, 2017

Brown, John, his raid on Harper's Ferry, 96-100; author's impression of, 97; his own view of his mission, 97, 98; T. on moral and legal aspects of the raid, 98, 99; 53.

From The Life of Lyman Trumbull by White, Horace