John Brown Hanged

Friday, December 2, 1859

"Brown brought out for Execution," by Albert Berghaus. Courtesy of the Smithsonian Institution.

Abolitionist John Brown is hanged for his raid on the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry. His violent actions are widely repudiated in the North and South, but his execution sets the stage for him to be seen as a martyr to the Union cause later in the Civil War.