"I, John Brown, am now quite certain that the crimes of this guilty land will never be purged away, but with blood."
-John Brown
-John Brown
Portrait of John Brown leading the Civil War (29)
After the raid, tensions between the North and the South grew. Some abolitionists in the North thought that Brown's actions were appropriate and that he was right to stand up for what he believed in. Some pro-slavery people and plantation owners were frightened that Brown's raid might incite a slave rebellion. These different worries and beliefs caused tensions to grow and tolerance to weaken. One little "spark" could light the kindling, and set the whole nation ablaze with war. In 1860, South Carolina seceded from the Union followed by several other southern states. These actions ignited the kindling. The Civil War had begun.
Fergus Bordewich, Journalist and Author, "The Raid on Harpers Ferry"
(29) Barrett, Tracy. Harpers Ferry The Stoy of John Brown's Raid. Brookfield: Millbrook, 1993. Print.