Historic Structures and Grounds Report, Historical Data: U.S. Arsenal Square, Block A, Shenandoah Street, U.S. Armory at Harpers Ferry, 1859-61

Snell CW. 1981. Historic Structures and Grounds Report, Historical Data: U.S. Arsenal Square, Block A, Shenandoah Street, U.S. Armory at Harpers Ferry, 1859-61. Combined Historic Structure Report and Cultural Landscape Report. U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park preserves historic resources and commemorates the historic events that occurred at and around Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. The park consists of portions of the Lower Town, the former Storer College campus, landscapes associated with the national historical park’s Civil War significance, and lands preserving the historic viewshed down the Potomac River. This historic structure and grounds report concerns the Richards U.S. Arsenal Square, Block A, Shenandoah Street, U.S. Armory at Harpers Ferry, 1859-61. Old Arsenal Square is a historic site of the first order of significance. It was because of the some 20,000 muskets and rifles stored in the brick arsenals situated on Arsenal Square, that John Brown and his men attacked the Harper's Ferry Armory in October 1859, planning to use the weapons to arm the slaves who they hoped would revolt and join them. Brown's men held the Arsenals and engaged in a fire fight from the Square. Old Arsenal Square thus formed an very important part of the 1859 scene, directly related to Brown's attack.

Type

Published Report

Authors

Snell, Charles

Date of Issue

1981-05

Publisher

U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service

Units

HAFE , NCR

Keywords

Armory, Arsenal Square, Civil War, Lower Town, restoration, Shenandoah Street, Wager Lot

Subjects

CRIS-HS: 000607: Arsenal Square; Bldg. #63, John Brown's Fort , CRIS-HS: 045491: Arsenal Square; Paymaster's House Retaining Wall , CRIS-HS: 000571: Lower Town; Potomac Street , CRIS-HS: 101362: Lower Town; Retaining Wall #19 , CRIS-HS: 000570: Lower Town; Shenandoah Street

Series

• Combined Historic Structure Report and Cultural Landscape Report

See also

• A Physical History of the Plant of the United States Armory at Harper's Ferry, Virginia, 1794-1885, Volumes I-III
• Preliminary Report on the Buildings of the Arsenal Tract in 1835 of the U.S. Armory at Harpers Ferry, VA

Collections

• Harpers Ferry National Historical Park: Historic Structure and Cultural Landscape Reports

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