Harpers Ferry is in what is now West Virginia (then part of Virginia).
John Brown led a party of 22 in seizing the U.S. arsenal there in October 1859.
Brown, an abolitionist born in Torrington, Connecticut, planned to arm the local slaves and start a full-scale rebellion, but his plan was foiled by state and federal troops.
Convicted of treason and murder, Brown was hanged on December 2, 1859.
Previous handguns before the Colt revolver could fire only once before they had to be reloaded. Samuel Colt’s invention, patented in 1835, had a six-chambered cylinder that rotated with each shot, automatically readying another bullet for firing. The Colt revolver became standard equipment on America’s western frontier.
After escaping from slavery in 1838, the abolitionist and black leader Frederick Douglass (c. 1817-95) took the name “Douglass” from a character in Sir Walter Scott’s narrative poem The Lady of the Lake (1810).
The People’s (or Populist) Party nominated James Baird Weaver, a Union general from Iowa, as their presidential candidate at their first national convention on July 4, 1892. His running mate was James C. Field, a Confederate general from Virginia. The party was supported by farmers and workers discontented with the dominant parties.
The World War II anthem “Praise the Lord, and Pass the Ammunition” was written by Frank Loesser. He was the Broadway composer whose musicals include Guys and Dolls (1950) and The Most Happy Fella (1956).
During his first term (1861-65), Abraham Lincoln’s vice-president was Hannibal Hamlin of Maine. During his second term (1865), it was Andrew Johnson of North Carolina, who succeeded Lincoln upon his assassination.
Andy Warhol’s real name was Andy Warhola (1928-87). Born in Pennsylvania, the painter, graphic artist, and filmmaker was best known for incorporating images from mass culture (such as Marilyn Monroe and Coca-Cola bottles) in the style known as Pop Art. The stenciled pictures of Campbell’s soup cans brought Warhol his first brush with fame in…