A “Crisis of Americanism”

Abstract

John Brown's October 16, 1859, raid at Harper's Ferry, Virginia, created a flashpoint in the United States, sparking what can be called a “Crisis of Americanism. “As this article shows, evidence of this discourse appeared frequently in extensive southern and northern newspaper coverage of his raid, trial, and subsequent hanging on December 2 as editors on both sides of the slavery issue accused one another as well as prominent Americans of disloyal, treasonous behavior. This unhealthy, often shrill, debate, which helped lead to the Civil War in 1861, hardly promoted democratic ideals or best served the nation's values and founding ideals. Instead, such incendiary rhetoric only added to the increasing division of two Americas, both of which laid valid claims to being rightful heirs to the legacy of the United States’ founding.