“I consecrate my life to the destruction of slavery.”

John Brown was a prominent leader of the abolitionist movement in the years before the American Civil War. An evangelical Christian, Brown believed that he was an instrument of God sent to strike a “death blow” to slavery. He rose to prominence for his role in the Bleeding Kansas crisis, a state level civil war over whether or not Kansas should join the Union as a free or slave state.

In October 1859, John Brown led a raid at the federal armory at Harper’s Ferry in Virginia (now West Virginia) with the intent of starting a liberation movement among enslaved people. Brown was captured along with his sons and co-conspirators. Brown was tried for treason, murder, and insurrection. He was found guilty of all charges and hanged on December 2, 1859.

This icon is part of new series: A People’s History of American Religion. It is printed on 80lb card stock and 11x17 inches.