Portions of Harpers Ferry still look much like how they did during the 1860s. The town’s capture in 1862 by Confederates under “Stonewall” Jackson resulted in the largest surrender of American troops until World War II. Over the course of the Civil War, Harpers Ferry changed hands eight times and was severely damaged.
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His trial and execution focused the nation's attention on the moral issue of slavery and inflamed passions that pushed the country toward civil war.Īn important railroad junction at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, Harpers Ferry is surrounded by high bluffs that make it easy to capture and difficult to hold. Brown was found guilty of treason, conspiracy and murder and was hanged on December 2, 1859. In 1859, Abolitionist John Brown and 21 followers launched a raid to seize weapons from a federal armory at Harpers Ferry in the hope of starting a rebellion that would bring about the end of slavery.
The history here is multi-layered - involving a diverse number of people and events that influenced the course of our nation's history. The park is about much more than just one event, one date or one individual. Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in West Virginia is a place every student of the Civil War should visit.
Photo of the sunrise from Maryland Heights courtesy of Buddy Secor. Harpers Ferry National Historical Park in West Virginia The history of Harpers Ferry is only matched by it natural beauty. Every year, millions of visitors - many of them descendants of Civil War soldiers - come to these now peaceful battlefields to learn more about this defining chapter of our nation’s history.īy no means a complete list, below are a few of the many places that help tell the story of the Civil War from beginning to end. Fulfilling its role as America’s storyteller, the National Park Service preserves over 75 of these locations. To better understand the people and events of that terrible time, it’s helpful to visit the battlefields, homes and historic places where the war unfolded. Four years of tragic bloodshed resulted in over 700,000 deaths and forever changed the course of our nation. The election of President Abraham Lincoln in 1860 triggered the secession of most slave-holding states and propelled the country into civil war. Political and cultural differences centering around slavery and its expansion incited passions and led to sharp divisions across the country. The Civil War was one of the darkest periods in American history.
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