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John Brown

Date1939

MediumSingle-color lithograph

Dimensionscomposition: 14 3/4 × 10 7/8 in. (37.5 × 27.6 cm)
sheet: 18 3/8 × 13 7/16 in. (46.7 × 34.1 cm)

Credit LineGift of Helen Farr Sloan, 1981

Object number1981-16

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Label TextJohn Brown was the subject of Curry’s mural for the Kansas State Capitol in Topeka. This print is based on that large composition, which places Brown at the center of free soil and pro-slavery forces. A militant abolitionist, John Brown (1800-1859) is best remembered for leading an unsuccessful raid on Harper’s Ferry in Virginia. After his insurrection was thwarted, Brown was quickly tried and executed. At his trial Brown made impassioned speeches that roused the sympathies of anti-slavery activists.