ANNETTE: I would describe Harpers Ferry as a magical spot.

That little village in the lower town nestled around the rivers and mountains...

When you go there, it becomes a part of you and Harpers Ferry is of course surrounded by the National Park but it's more than just the National Park.

Remember, it does have the word "historical" in it.

It's Harpers Ferry National Historical Park.

It's like living history when you're down there.

DELORES: What surprised me even as a young person was how interested other folks were about the town that I loved.

John Brown and Harpers Ferry are synonymous.

Can't say Harpers Ferry without thinking of John Brown.

LAURITA: Hi.

DENNIS: Hello.

Hello.

Welcome.

Glad to have you here.

The reason you were in Harpers Ferry is not just because it's beautiful... LAUREN: Right.

DENNIS: But because it's got layers of history.

and perhaps the most famous of those layers is John Brown's war.

LAURITA: Yes.

LAUREN: Right.

DENNIS: This is known as John Brown's headquarters where John Brown launches his war against slavery.

The Civil War starts right here...

BOTH: Wow.

DENNIS: Where you're standing.

South of the Mason-Dixon Line.

Maryland is a slave state but Maryland gets very narrow as it goes to the West.

Literally, to get to freedom, you cross Maryland and come into Pennsylvania, a free state.

LAUREN: Makes sense.

DENNIS: And so Brown intended to, basically, establish an escort service.

LAUREN: Yeah.

That's really smart to do.

DENNIS: It didn't work because he got caught in Harpers Ferry.

LAUREN: Right.

LAURITA: Right.

LAUREN: He didn't make it too far, but... DENNIS: I think you actually visited the site where he was captured.

LAURITA: Yes.

DENNIS: Yeah.

LAUREN: Mm-hmm.

DENNIS: John Brown Fort.

LAURITA: Well, we were down there a little earlier today.

LAUREN: Mm-hmm.

LAURITA: So, we got to the arsenal... DENNIS: The arsenal is really an important site because his first strike is at the arsenal...

BOTH: Okay.

DENNIS: Because it's in the arsenal where there are stored 100,000 weapons.

If he's going to have a war, we've got to have weapons.

Eventually, they would become surrounded.

US marines attack.

LAURITA: Yes.

DENNIS: Brown is captured, taken to nearby Charlestown, put on trial.

DELORES: When I think about who John Brown was, he was the man who gave me the liberty that I have.

And for him to have that heart to free a group of people, I hold him in high esteem.

LAUREN: Thank you so much, Dennis for giving us all this wonderful information about Harpers Ferry and the Black history that is here that many people don't know about.

DENNIS: Oh.

You want to be inspired to be a preservationist, spend some time in Harpers Ferry.

LAURITA: I've said it before.

I'll say it again.

African American history is a part of American history.

LAUREN: Right.

LAURITA: We came to Harpers Ferry to have fun but we got so much more while we were here.

LAUREN: We did.

LAURITA: Thank you for helping us to round out our experience while we're here.

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