Existing comment:
Osborne Perry Anderson
1830-1872
"willing to give my life to the cause"
Osborne Perry Anderson was born in Chester County, Pennsylvania on July 28, 1830. Educated in the public schools, he sometimes went hungry in order to purchase his books. At the age of 20, Anderson moved to Chatham, Ontario, and worked as a printer for the Provincia Freeman. Eight years later he met John Brown at a secret meeting called the Chatham Convention. Anderson voted with all of the convention delegates to approve Brown's revolutionary new government for a free black state in the southern Appalachian Mountains. A year later Anderson was the only Chatham Community member to join Brown's army. He declined Brown's offer of a captain's commission, declaring the rank "better suited to those more experienced." Osborne Anderson left Canada on September 15, 1859, and joined John Brown's forces twelve years later, "ready for war."
[I was curious that he survived the raid so I checked Wikipedia which disagreed about the date he died.]
Osborne Perry Anderson
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Osborne Perry Anderson (1830–1871) was an African-American abolitionist and the only surviving African-American member of John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, and later a soldier in the Union army of the American Civil War.
Early life
In 1830 Anderson was born a free African-American in Chester County, Pennsylvania. He completed basic schooling and later attended Oberlin College in Ohio, after which he moved to Chatham, Ontario, CANADA in 1850 and opened shop as a printer. This skill served him later as an abolitionist.
John Brown and the raid on Harper's Ferry
In the spring of 1858 Anderson met John Brown and learned of the ill-fated revolution that he was planning. Because of his writing skills Anderson was appointed as the recording secretary at several of the meetings and was eventually promoted to a member of Brown's provisional congress.
During the raid, Col. Lewis Washington, great grand-nephew of George Washington, who had been taken hostage by the raiders, surrendered Frederick the Great's sword and pistols presented by General Lafayette, to Anderson. John Brown later used these to command his men at Harpers Ferry.
During the infamous raid on Harper's Ferry Anderson was stationed with Albert Hazlett, and once it became apparent to them that the raid was a failure they both retreated to Pennsylvania. Hazlett was later captured and put to death. |