The National tribune., 1889-01-17
DEATH OF OWEN BROWN.

The telegraph reports the death and fu-
neral near Pasadena Cal, of Owen Brown,
the last survivor of the attack on Harper's
Ferry by his celebrated father, which shook
slayoeracy to its very center. For many
years Owen Brown has lived hermit's life
on lonely peak of the Sierra Madre Mount
aims Although one of the most genial and
companionable of men, owen Brown had
strong disposition toward q solitary life.
When l first knew him he was keeping
bachelors hall, as he expressed it, in small
cabin of one room, which he had put on his
brothers pleasant little grape farm at Put
in Bay Island. Everything in the room was
neat and tidy, but very cheap and rude. He
had a cot for a bed, and heat was supplied
by little stove fed with dried cuttings from
the grapevines. He was prone to take up
with all the fads and isms of the day. He
had been converted to the vegetarian doc
trine among the earliest of those who fol-
lowed the somewhat celebrated Dr. Graham
in his teachings; embraced the water-cure
for all diseases when that was first promul-
gated, and when 1 met him, although he was
then nearly so years old, was laboriously
studying shorthand His joints were stiff
aud his fingers like iron rods, but this did
not prevent him from working hours at
time endeavoring to acquire the pot-hOoks
and turkey-tracks of the various stenographic
systems. At that time he resembled his
father very much, and seemed to be proud
of the resemblance, for he wore his long hair
in the same sort of queue that one sees in
picture of Old Ossawatomie." He was as
pleasant a man to meet as one could find on
a Summers day, and particularly gallant to
the ladies. His firm set lips had quite a
talent for turning pretty compliments. A
strong Roman nose and steel blue eyes that
one would not care to look at through the
sights of a rifle were the most striking feat
10 VI AAio pLJ o1OS5lOi1lJs A9hbDSiuChNAJ SN5
Cooke appointed him the custodian of his
beautiful little Summer home on Gibraltar,
a small rocky island that helps to form the
harbor of Put-in-Bay. The isolation of this
position suited him exactly, and he remained
there for number of years until the prop
erty was sold when he went to California
and made his hermitage in the mountains.
Brown was trusted assistant of his
fathers during all the bitter fighting which
the old man waged against the border ruff
ans in Kansas, and helped largely to win
the signal victory over their leader, II. Clay
Pate, at Black Jack, Kan, which so much
encouraged the Free State men, and CORE
spondingly depressed the Missouri invaders.
When the Harper's Ferry plot was organized
Owen was made Treasurer of the proposed
new Government, and was one of the band
that was domiciled near Harper's Ferry for
some months prior to the attack upon the
Armory. At the time of the attack he with
several companions had been sent away to
bring provisions and arms up to the house
The attack took place earlier than was
planned. When Owen Brown returned to
the house he found his father and the rest
of the men gone, and FASTENED after them
He and his companions came down on the
| Virginia side of the Potomac, and when
they reached point opposite Harper's Ferry
found the engagement going on, but the
Armory SO surrounded that it was impossible
for them to get to their friends All they
could do, therefore, was to engage the be-
siegers of the Armory from across the river
They kept up their fire until they saw thai
the end was near, when they withdrew anC
made their escape. This was full of thrill
ing incident, for the whole country wa
aroused, large sums were offered for thei
capture, and their flight was a long gantle
of danger
Early in the war, Ovens elder brother
John Brown, jr., who had served in a Kansa
regiment, but was discharged on account o
disability, established himself on Putin Ba.
Island, which was then remote and littl
visited, and shortly after Owen joined him
At the time of his death he was "A year
old.