Harper's Ferry) was an effort by abolitionist John Brown, from October 16 to 18, 1859, to initiate a slave revolt in Southern states by taking over the United States arsenal at Harpers Ferry, Virginia. Brown was captured during the raid and later convicted of treason and hanged.
Brown's raid was at first viewed as madness, the work of a fanatic. It was his words after the raid and at his trial, Virginia v. John Brown, that turned him into a hero and icon for the Union.