Faru: Philadelphia History Museum

Title: John Brown’s Musket

Year: 1850

Material: Wood and Metal

Creator: Suhl, Germany

Collection: Historical Society of Pennsylvania

This object is a musket rifle owned by Abolitionist John Brown in the 1850s. It is inscribed: John Brown's Gun, Harper's Ferry, October 16-19th, 1858, presented to Francis N. Thorpe by Rob't Purvis Dec'r 18, 1889. The inscription suggests that this gun was carried during Brown’s raid of Harper’s Ferry in 1859.

This object is important to any one interested in American history, the Civil War, slavery, military history, and people who are interested in historic weapons. This object may not be important to people that do not like guns or people that have no understanding or connection with John Brown.

This object is on display as part of The Ordinary, Extraordinary, and the Unknown: The Power of Objects exhibit. The musket is being displayed to show the meaning of the object and its connection to Philadelphia. The Historical Society of Pennsylvania as a gift from Mrs. Francis N. Thorpe acquired the gun in 1928. The object is displayed among other objects that are unusual or interesting. This includes a wampum belt received by William Penn, George Washington’s desk, and General Meade’s presentation sword. These object add to your understanding of the broad nature of Philadelphia history. They also add to your understanding of how linked Philadelphia was to important parts of American History. The musket is accompanied by a short text panel. The panel is written from the point of view of the museum. It simply describes the object, date, inscription, and collection. There is also some information about the object’s importance, as it shows Brown’s stance on violence. It also mentions that the owner of the musket after Brown’s death was a Philadelphian and abolitionist. The main point of the text is that Philadelphia played a central role in the abolitionist movement. Opposing points of view about this object might include people from Harper’s Ferry. Brown brought violence to that town and they might have a different opinion about the significance of the musket.

Field of study for this object might include; military history, Civil War, Harper’s Ferry, American history, John Brown, Slave revolts/raids, abolishment of slavery, and Pennsylvania history.

Interesting Link

To engage visitors with this object it might be interesting to do a program where there was a reading or skit of how the event at Harper’s Ferry occurred. It might also be interesting to look at images of John Brown that were created after the attack. Comparing the images and their theme of violence might offer some interesting conversations about the mindset of Brown and other abolitionists at the time.