In 1859, Iowa brothers Edwin and Barclay Coppock participated in John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry. The brothers were raised in Springdale, Iowa, and met Brown while he was recruiting for his anti-slavery raids in Kansas. The Coppock's were Quakers, a religious group that opposed slavery, so they decided to follow Brown. The raid on Harper's Ferry, Virginia, occurred in October 1859. John Brown's goal was to take control of an Army armory and then start a slave revolt by arming slaves. The raid was unsuccessful, and Brown's men were defeated by a company of United States Marines led by Robert E. Lee. Brown and most of his men, including Edwin Coppock, were either captured or killed. Coppock was captured and later executed on December 16, 1859. Barclay Coppock escaped Harper's Ferry and made his way back to Iowa. He then traveled to Canada and was never caught. He later returned to the United States and joined the Union Army during the Civil War. Coppock was killed in action when Confederate sabotage derailed his train as it crossed over the Platte River in Missouri. Content can be used with the following standards: SS-US 9-12.23 Iowans Influence US History in a lesson on Iowans involvement in the Civil War. For more information on the Coppocks, use the followng links: https://www.friendsjournal.org/right-side-harpers-ferry/ For any use other than instructional resources, please check with the organization that owns this item regarding copyright restrictions.
