AMAZING !

[PaigeBooth]

Anxious to share something I discovered during my trip to Charles Town, WV, this week.

As all of you know, abolitionist John Brown was tried and executed in Charles Town, WV. (it was still considered Virginia at the time, until West Virginia broke free in June 1863)

This week, I visited the many sites related to Brown in this small town and found amazing things.

Below is a picture of me standing on the porch of the Episcopal Meeting House where John Wilkes Booth recited Shakespeare dozens of times during his stay in Charles Town leading up to the hanging of John Brown.

Amazing the terrific condition of this building; I was thrilled to have found that it is still standing and to be on the property where Booth once stood.

For More pictures of this building and other sites in Charles Town, Please touch or click the link below:
https://twitter.com/April14th1865

[RJNorton]

What a fascinating trip, Paige! Thank you for telling us about it.

[Eva Elisabeth]

Great photos, Paige, and so fascinating to see these places!!!

Re.:"Amazing the terrific condition of this building" - I have often thought this about frame houses in the US. There aren't many here, the least old ones (can't think of any). Most houses in medieval times were wooden but those didn't survive, just the stone buildings (churches etc.) So it always amazes me to see old wooden framehouses.
Thanks for sharing!

[Rsmyth]

Hi Paige,
I asked Roger to post 2 pictures. The first is a Victorian home located at 515 South Samuel St. in Charles Town…a short distance from where you were. You may have seen it during your “tour” of the town. This house was built on the former site of the scaffold from which John Brown was hung. Standing in front of the scaffold was J.W. Booth. Wilkes was no fan of the raid on Harpers Ferry but admired the old man’s convictions and how he met his fate.
The house was built in 1891 upon the open field a few blocks from the jail in which Brown was held. The owner, John Thomas Gibson commanded the Virginia Militia which was present for the execution.
When the jail was demolished, Gibson took some of the bricks and put together the small memorial pictured. It sits alongside the house (inside the fence) and marks the corner of the gallows.

[PaigeBooth]

(06-17-2016 02:05 PM)Rsmyth Wrote:  Hi Paige,
I asked Roger to post 2 pictures. The first is a Victorian home located at 515 South Samuel St. in Charles Town…a short distance from where you were. You may have seen it during your “tour” of the town. This house was built on the former site of the scaffold from which John Brown was hung. Standing in front of the scaffold was J.W. Booth. Wilkes was no fan of the raid on Harpers Ferry but admired the old man’s convictions and how he met his fate.
The house was built in 1891 upon the open field a few blocks from the jail in which Brown was held. The owner, John Thomas Gibson commanded the Virginia Militia which was present for the execution.
When the jail was demolished, Gibson took some of the bricks and put together the small memorial pictured. It sits alongside the house (inside the fence) and marks the corner of the gallows.

Hi Rsmyth,

My apologies if you missed the link included in my first post-- I did mention the Gibson-Todd House which I saw when visiting Brown's execution site. Please feel free to touch or click this link to see my entire trip with photos of these sites and many other points of interest I saw during my trip.

Touch or Click this link below to see my entire trip with photos:
https://twitter.com/April14th1865

I have also attached a picture of the Gibson-Todd House to this post.

[RJNorton]

(06-17-2016 02:05 PM)Rsmyth Wrote:  I asked Roger to post 2 pictures.

Many thanks to Rich for sending these photos:

[PaigeBooth]

Just came across some additional pictures that I took during my trip; thought some of you might enjoy seeing these-- in my pictures you can get a better view of John Brown's execution grounds.
As many of you already know, The Gibson-Todd House did not exist during the time of the hanging. On December 2, 1859, when John Brown was hanged here this land was an open field owned by Rebecca Hunter. This site ( about a half mile from the courthouse ) was chosen for security reasons. On three separate days the gallows were constructed on the high ground in this field to carry out the executions of John Brown, John E. Cook, Edwin Coppoc, John A. Copeland Jr., Shields Green (an African-American man who was with Brown during his raid) Albert Hazlett, and Aaron Stevens.
I took these pictures of the grounds where the scaffolding was constructed in 1859. These grounds are now part of the yard of the Gibson-Todd home.

The Gibson-Todd House which now stands on part of the property was originally owned by Colonel John T. Gibson, who later served as an officer in the Confederate Army during the Civil War.

Pictures coming soon!

[PaigeBooth]

Thanks Roger!

[L Verge]

Is the Gibson-Todd House still a private home?

[PaigeBooth]

(06-18-2016 09:55 AM)L Verge Wrote:  Is the Gibson-Todd House still a private home?

Laurie,

Yes, the Gibson-Todd House is still a private residence. The grounds are very well kept and the home is maintained.
The home was built by John Gibson (1825-1904) on South Samuel Street in Charles Town in 1891. Gibson was the commanding colonel of Jefferson County's contingent of the Virginia Militia. These troops, under Gibson's command, were the first to arrive at Harper's Ferry during Brown's raid. In recognition of his service, Gibson received the table on which John Brown's death warrant was signed.
After the war, Gibson returned to Jefferson County where he served as mayor of Charles Town. He died at his home in 1904.
We were told that if you see the current owner outside, he will come and talk with you if you ask him. Unfortunately, the owner was not outside during our visit. I unlatched the gate and rang the doorbell but no one answered.