Lewis Washington retired to his bedchamber on a quiet Sunday evening, October 16, 1859, with no idea he was about to become John Brown’s first hostage. Brown wanted Washington. The honorary “colonel” represented revolutionary blood—a useful symbol for Brown’s own revolution against slavery. The great-grandnephew of general and President George Washington was a tempting target. Himself an enslaver, Washington resided at his Jefferson County estate Beallair, conveniently located four miles west of Harpers Ferry, Brown’s origin of war.  

Invaders shattered Washington’s slumbers about 90 minutes after midnight on Monday (October 17, 1859). A flaming torch blinded Washington. Four armed men, each with a rifle and two revolvers, confronted him with guns drawn. “You are our prisoner!” they announced. Startled, Washington struggled to make sense of the moment. “I looked around, and the only thing that astonished me particularly was the presence of this man Cook.”

John E. Cook had cased Lewis Washington. Disguised as a literary agent and writer, he functioned as Brown’s frontman, living undercover in Harpers Ferry for the previous 18 months. A guerilla war veteran with Brown in “Bleeding Kansas,” no one knew that Cook was Brown’s antenna, collecting intelligence on the area’s enslaved population and monitoring daily routines at Harpers Ferry. No one knew that John Cook was a precursor of war.

A month before this night’s rude awakening, Cook had been a guest of Washington. “I believe you have a great many interesting relics at your house,” Cook innocently inquired. The colonel then showed him two remarkable artifacts presented to General Washington—a pistol from Lafayette and a sword from Frederick the Great, used by the general as his personal dress sword. The night the raid began, Cook seized the pistol and sword to present to Brown at Harpers Ferry.

The captors permitted Washington to dress in gentlemen’s attire, and then escorted him to his own freight wagon and four-horse team, ready for transport, and occupied by Jim, Sam, and Mason—three of Washington’s enslaved.

“Possibly you will have the courtesy to tell me what this means?” inquired Washington. The retort was jarring: “We have come here for the purpose of liberating all of the slaves of the South.”

En route to Harpers Ferry, Cook staged a raid against another enslaver. “They bursted the door open with a rail,” recalled John Allstadt Sr. Quickly Allstadt and his son were crammed into Washington’s freight wagon, along with seven of Allstadt’s slaves (Henry, Levi, Ben, Jerry, Phil, George, and Bill).

Cook’s detachment returned to Harpers Ferry just before Monday dawn, proud of its accomplishments. Three enslavers had been seized, and 10 enslaved delivered to Captain Brown for liberation. The coveted pistol and sword—now symbols of a new American revolution—were presented as prizes of war to Brown. Brown strapped the sword to his belt. He awarded Lafayette’s pistol to Shields Green, one of five Blacks now serving in Brown’s guerilla army. Brown distributed spear-like pikes to the enslaved, instructing them to watch over the hostages, including their “owners.”

Meanwhile, Washington was hustled to the U.S. Armory’s fire-engine house, Brown’s temporary headquarters. “I wanted you particularly for the moral effect it would give our cause,” Brown said, “having one of your name as a prisoner.”

Washington soon had ample company. Armory workers, unaware their workplace had been seized, became captives as they strolled in. More than 40 were crammed into the fire-engine house, creating undo logistical problems for Brown. Without food or water, and guarding them difficult, Brown eventually released most. But he retained 11 prominent citizens, including Washington and Allstadt, along with high-ranking armory officials.

Brown needed them—no longer as symbols of war, but as his only hope for escape. Trapped and surrounded by local militia and U.S. Marines, Brown held the hostages within his firehouse “Fort” for bargaining. Robert E. Lee, commanding the force against Brown, rejected negotiation but ordered the Marines to attack with bayonets only, ensuring that no stray bullets harmed any hostages. Lee’s ploy worked. No hostages were injured during the final Marine assault (Tuesday morning, October 18), at the hands of either the attackers or Brown’s defenders.

Brown certainly had opportunities to harm his hostages but hurt none. This became a self-defense during Brown’s subsequent trial. Several hostages, including Washington and Allstadt, testified to their good treatment.

What about the enslaved that Cook brought to Harpers Ferry with him? Debate exists. Did they come as volunteers? Or were they compelled to join Brown’s war effort? “No [slave] from this neighborhood appeared to take up arms voluntarily,” testified Washington. But no evidence exists—from the enslaved perspective—that confirms or counters this traditional notion.

According to contemporary accounts, nine of the ten Washington and Allstadt enslaved returned to their homes. One became sickened, dying in jail. History does not record what became of the others.