John Brown Farm and Gravesite is a NY State Historic Site not far from the village of Lake Placid, NY. John Brown, the abolitionist, is buried here along with two of his sons and ten others who followed him in the cause of freedom. Plaques memorializing them and the women of the Brown family are mounted on a large boulder within the gates of the gravesite.
The farm which John Brown purchased for $1 an acre in 1849.
John Brown and his sons, Oliver and Watson, are buried in these graves.
The names of John Brown and Oliver Brown are inscribed on the
the gravestone of John Brown's grandfather which had been moved to this site.
In Memory
of
Capt. John Brown
Who died at
New York on Sep’r ye
3 1776 in the 48th
year of his age
John Brown
Born May 9, 1800
was executed at Charles
ton A.D. Dec’r 2, 1859
Oliver Brown
Born May 9, 1839
Killed at Harper’s Ferry
Oct. 17, 1859
Oliver Brown
Son of
John and Mary A.
1839 – 1859
His remains
with those of other
associates of
John Brown at Harper’s Ferry
Brought here and reburied on
Aug. 30, 1899
They all died for their
adherence
to the cause of freedom.
Watson Brown
Son of
John and Mary A.
1835 – 1859
Remains buried here
Oct. 13, 1882
He died for his adherence
to the cause of freedom.
Opposite the graves is this large boulder with two plaques:
John Brown of Osawatomie
Here Lies Buried
John Brown
Born at Torrington,
Connecticut
May 9th 1800
He emigrated to Kansas in
1855 where he took an active part in the contest against the pro-slavery party.
He gained in August 1856 a victory at Osawatomie over a superior number of
Missourians who had invaded Kansas (whence his surname “Osawatomie.”)
He conceived the idea of
becoming the liberator of the negro slaves in the south and on the night of
October 16, 1859 at the head of a devoted band of 22 followers he seized the
United States Arsenal at Harper’s Ferry, Virginia, with the view of arming the
Negroes who might come to his fortified camp. In the fight with the United
States troops and civilians which followed he was overpowered and taken
prisoner October 16, 1859, was tried by the Commonwealth of Virginia, at Charlestown,
Virginia, and was executed December 7, 1859.
Here lie buried with him twelve
of his followers:
Watson Brown (son of John
Brown) of North Elba, N.Y.
Oliver Brown (son of John
Brown) of North Elba, N.Y.
William Thompson, of North
Elba, N.Y.
Dauphin Adolphus Thompson, of
North Elba, N.Y.
John Henry Kagi, Adjutant
William H. Leeman, Lieutenant
Jeremiah G. Anderson,
Lieutenant
Steward Taylor
Dangerfield Newby, Negro
Lewis S. Leary, Negro
The above ten were killed at
the Harper’s Ferry fight.
Aaron D. Stevens, Captain
Albert Hazlett, Lieutenant
The above two were taken
prisoners and hanged March 16, 1860.
The following men of John
Brown’s band escaped but were captured and hanged December 16, 1859.
John C. Cook, Captain
Edwin Coppoc, Lieutenant
Shields Green, Negro
John A. Copeland, Negro
The following men of John
Brown’s band escaped:
Owen Brown, Captain (son of
John Brown)
Francis Jackson Merriam
Charles Plummer Tidd, Captain
Barclay Coppoc
Osborne P. Anderson, Negro
John Anderson, Negro
Sacred to the memory of the
women of the John Brown Family, and others who so gallantly aided their men
folk, in their struggles against slavery in the United States of America and
shared with them the bitter cup of sacrifice, meriting special mention among
these are:
(1) Diane Lusk Brown, 1st
wife of John Brown, and mother of their seven children;
(2) Mary Day Brown, 2nd
wife and widow, and mother of thirteen of his children;
(3) Ruth Brown Thompson,
daughter of Brown, and wife of Henry Thompson, crusader against slavery in
Kansas;
(4) Anne Brown Adams, Sarah
Brown, and Ellen Brown Fablinger, daughters of Brown, whose tender devotion to
their widowed mother, gave her great comfort;
(5) Martha Brewster Brown,
wife of Oliver, son of John, killed at Harper’s Ferry;
(6) Isabella Thompson Brown,
wife of Watson, son of John, killed at Harper’s Ferry;
(7) Mary B. Thompson, whose
husband, William, and brother-in-law, Dauphin, were both killed at Harper’s
Ferry.
These noble women, by their
hallowed devotion to the cause of freedom, and by their willingness to
sacrifice to the death for it, have enshrined themselves in the hearts of all
freedom-loving peoples: they are among the good and great women that have
contributed much to the greatness of our America.
Erected by the members and
friends of The John Brown Memorial Association in the Summer of 1940.
J.W. Shirley, Pres.
H.P. Johns, Vice Pres.
J.C.O. Temple, Sec.
R.W. Henry, Treas.
Inez Carter Pres. Lake Placid
Chapter
I'm always on the lookout for wildflowers and this field of Camphorweed (just beyond John Brown's house) was absolutely breathtaking!
