John Brown's Fort

A visit to John Brown's Fort is more than seeing the building where John Brown and several of his followers barricaded themselves in 1859. The building has a complex history that begins in 1848, continues through to today, and includes four locations in Harpers Ferry and one in Chicago. We invite you to visit this famous Harpers Ferry building and discover what it means to you. Visit John Brown's Fort To access John Brown's Fort from the Lower Town shuttle bus stop, walk along the sidewalks of Shenandoah Street toward The Point. John Brown's Fort is the last building on the right side of the street. It is open to the public during park hours. History of John Brown's Fort The structure we now call John Brown’s Fort was erected in 1848 as the Armory’s fire engine and guard house. The building was described in a June 30, 1848, Armory report as “an engine and guard-house, 35½ x 24 feet, one story brick, covered with slate, and having copper gutters and down spouts, has been constructed, and is now occupied.” It was in this building that John Brown and several of his followers barricaded themselves during the final hours of their ill-fated raid of October 16, 17, and 18, 1859. During the Civil War, the John Brown Fort was used as a prison, a powder magazine, and perhaps a quartermaster supply house. Union troops admired the fort as they passed while Confederate troops cursed it. Many troops broke pieces of brick and wood off the fort as souvenirs. It was the only Armory building to escape destruction during the Civil War. In 1891, the fort was sold, dismantled and transported to Chicago where it was displayed a short distance from The World’s Columbian Exposition. The building, attracting only 11 visitors in ten days, was closed, dismantled again and left on a vacant lot. How did the building return from Chicago? In 1894, Washington, D.C. journalist Kate Field, who had a keen interest in preserving memorabilia of John Brown, spearheaded a campaign to return the fort to Harpers Ferry. Local resident Alexander Murphy made five acres available to Miss Field for the cost of $1, and the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad offered to ship the disassembled fort to Harpers Ferry free of charge. In 1895, John Brown’s Fort was rebuilt on the Murphy Farm about three miles outside of town on a bluff overlooking the Shenandoah River.