Existing comment:
African-American History:
African-American roots are deeply entrenched in the history of Harpers Ferry. Some of the people are well known, John Brown, Frederick Douglass and W.E.B. Du Bois, while others have been identified only through careful research. Beck, a black woman, arrived in 1747 with the town's founder, Robert Harper. She was his slave. While little else is known of her life, Beck was the beginning of African-American history in Harpers Ferry. There are many other stories filled with struggle and triumph reaching back more than 250 years. Slavery, the fight for freedom, education at Storer College and the Niagara Movement's struggle for equality are part of Harpers Ferry. These stories belong to all Americans. |