In this lesson students will investigate the reactions Northerners and Southerners had to John Brown's Raid and create a report that would inform the president about the effects of his raid & execution & recomment whether he should be seen as a hero or a villain.Overview:1. John Brown's Body - Song Analysis2. Background information on John Brown3. Primary Document Analysis4. Presentation to the President

Brown, John. Address of John Brown to the Virginia Court, when about to receive the sentence ofdeath, for his heroic attempt at Harper's Ferry to give deliverance to the captives, and to let theoppressed go free ... Boston. Printed by C. C. Mead, 91 Washin. Boston, 1859. Pdf.https://www.loc.gov/item/rbpe.06500500/Description: John Brown defends himself before his sentence is rendered

John Brown first made a name for himself as a militant abolitionist in 1854, when Brown traveled to Kansas following the Kansas-Nebraska Act, intent on defending the territory from the scourge of slavery. It was in “Bleeding Kansas,” named for violent conflicts between proslavery and antislavery settlers there, that John Brown led a guerilla warfare campaign against the territory’s proslavery settlers, including a deadly attack against residents of Pottawatomie Creek. By 1859, fueled by donations from wealthy abolitionists, Brown was again ready to strike a blow against slavery and slaveholders—this time in the South.

Thoreau, Henry David. 1906. The Writings of Henry David Thoreau (WaldenEdition) Translated by Bradley Dean (Thoreau Institute) Boston:Houghton Mifflinand Company, 1906 (https://archive.vcu.edu/english/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/thoreau/johnbrown.html)Description:A eulogy on the day of John Brown’s execution

In the Civil War and Reconstruction unit, students engage in contentious historiographic debates about the period--Was Lincoln a racist? Was Reconstruction a success or failure? Was John Brown a "misguided fanatic"? Did Lincoln free the slaves, or did the slaves free themselves? The unit includes two Structured Academic Controversy lessons, an Opening Up the Textbook lesson on sharecropping, and a look at Thomas Nast's political cartoons.

 U.S. History is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of most introductory courses. The text provides a balanced approach to U.S. history, considering the people, events, and ideas that have shaped the United States from both the top down (politics, economics, diplomacy) and bottom up (eyewitness accounts, lived experience). U.S. History covers key forces that form the American experience, with particular attention to issues of race, class, and gender.Senior Contributing AuthorsP. Scott Corbett, Ventura CollegeVolker Janssen, California State University, FullertonJohn M. Lund, Keene State CollegeTodd Pfannestiel, Clarion UniversityPaul Vickery, Oral Roberts UniversitySylvie Waskiewicz

U.S. History is designed for a two-semester American history sequence. It is traditional in coverage, following a roughly chronological outline, and using a balanced approach that includes political, economic, social, and cultural developments. At the same time, the book includes a number of innovative and interactive features designed to enhance student learning. Instructors can also customize the book, adapting it to the approach that works best in their classroom.