University of Central Florida STARS Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 2007 The Popular Images Of John Brown And Thomas "stonewall" Jackson Sarah Clark University of Central Florida Part of the History Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Masters Thesis (Open Access) is brought to you for free and open access by STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019 by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. STARS Citation Clark, Sarah, "The Popular Images Of John Brown And Thomas "stonewall" Jackson" (2007). Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2004-2019. 3119. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/etd/3119 THE POPULAR IMAGES OF JOHN BROWN AND THOMAS “STONEWALL” JACKSON by SARAH ELIZABETH CLARK B.S., Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, 2003 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Department of History in the College of Arts and Humanities at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Spring Term 2007 ABSTRACT This study examines the evolution of the popular images of John Brown and Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. It begins by analyzing the historiography of each man. The second and third chapters are biographies of each man. The fourth, fifth, and sixth chapters examine the popular images of the two men in print media, visual media, and monuments. This thesis concludes with appendices which contain reproductions of songs, photographs, and paintings referred to in the chapters. This study finds that the myth of the Lost Cause has kept Thomas Jackson’s popular image consistently positive and heroic since his death in 1863. At the same time, this myth has contributed to an ever-changing image of Brown, though other issues, such as race and terrorism, have played significant roles as well. Brown has at various times been considered a madman, a saint, and merely a product of his times. Because the Lost Cause continues to pervade popular memory of the Civil War, Jackson’s image is unlikely to change quickly. Because race and the fear of terrorism continue to pervade American society, Brown’s image is likely to remain controversial. ii To my mother, Patricia R. Minner, for always believing in me even when I wanted to stop believing in myself. iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS First, to my father, Richard W. Clark, for his love, support, and willingness to answer the many random theological questions that arose throughout my thesis. To my sister, Charissa C. Howe, for providing me countless hours of stress relief via the Nintendo Wi-Fi system. To my nieces, Alexis N. Tetrick and Gloria J. Howe, for helping me to remember the truly important things in life. To my fiancé, Daniel P. Hendess, for his unconditional love and support and his ability to make me smile even when I didn’t want to. To my stepfather, Julian H. Preisler, for always being excited to tromp around historical sites with me. To my turtle, Titus P. Clark, for always listening to me and never offering unsolicited advice. To my best friends, Michael A. Kilroy, Nicole M. Greenplate, and Christina D. Small, for their encouragement and friendship. A special thanks to my thesis committee: Chair and Advisor, Dr. John M. Sacher, for saving the day when my original advisor was no longer available. To Dr. Connie Lester for saving the day when yet another member of my original committee left the university. To Dr. Carole E. Adams for seeing me all the way through this process. Finally, thanks to Dr. David D. Dixon, professor of history at Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, who encouraged this poor, lost English major to pursue an interest in history. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ....................................................................................................................... vi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION............................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER TWO: HISTORIOGRAPHY....................................................................................... 8 CHAPTER THREE: JOHN BROWN .......................................................................................... 32 CHAPTER FOUR: THOMAS “STONEWALL” JACKSON...................................................... 61 CHAPTER FIVE: THE MEN IN POPULAR WRITING............................................................ 88 CHAPTER SIX: VISUAL IMAGES.......................................................................................... 108 CHAPTER SEVEN: THE MEN IN STONE.............................................................................. 128 APPENDIX A: SONGS AND POEMS...................................................................................... 150 APPENDIX B: PHOTOGRAPHS AND PAINTINGS .............................................................. 154 APPENDIX C: MONUMENTS AND PLACES........................................................................ 161 APPENDIX D: PERMISSION TO USE PHOTOGRAPHS...................................................... 166 LIST OF REFERENCES............................................................................................................ 170 v LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1: The Last Moments of John Brown, Thomas Hovenden, 1884..................................... 155 Figure 2: John Brown: The Martyr, Currier and Ives, 1870....................................................... 156 Figure 3: Tragic Prelude, John Steuart Curry, 1937-1942 ......................................................... 156 Figure 4: John Brown, photograph attributed to James Wallace Black, 1859............................ 157 Figure 5: John Brown, daguerreotype by Augustus Washington, 1847 ..................................... 158 Figure 6: Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson at Winchester, Virginia, November 1862.................... 159 Figure 7: Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson near Fredericksburg, Virginia, April 1863 .................. 159 Figure 8: The Last Meeting of Lee and Jackson, E.B.D. Julio, 1872 ......................................... 160 Figure 9: Stone Mountain Memorial Carving............................................................................. 162 Figure 10: The engine house, a.k.a. "John Brown's Fort.” ......................................................... 162 Figure 11: Informational display in front of Jefferson County Courthouse ............................... 163 Figure 12: Historical marker outside Jefferson County Courthouse .......................................... 163 Figure 13: Historical marker near the site of John Brown's gallows .......................................... 164 Figure 14: John Brown statue at Osawatomie Battlefield, Osawatomie, Kansas....................... 165 vi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION David S. Reynolds phrased it best when he said that the debate over the popular images of Civil War-era figures goes deeper than the men themselves. Rather, he observes, the debate “involves competing interpretations of the Civil War.”1 Reynolds was referring to John Brown, but his quote holds true for other figures, including Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. As this study shows, the images of John Brown and Thomas Jackson are shaped not only by competing interpretations of the Civil War, but also by Americans’ attempts to understand their world. Consequently, these emotion-charged debates have led to the mythologizing of Brown and Jackson as both their supporters and their detractors jockey for acceptance of their particular point of view. This study examines the development of the popular images of John Brown and Thomas Jackson, including how some of the myths began, how the images evolved, and where the debate currently stands regarding each man. I came to this topic by accident. For a graduate course on the Civil War that I took in the fall of 2004, I chose to complete a historiography of John Brown; having grown up in Kansas, I have always been fascinated by Brown. While I was researching the historiography, I realized how much Brown had in common with another famous Civil War figure, Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson. Both men were a bit tall for the nineteenth century; John Brown was five foot nine, and Thomas Jackson was about six feet. Both of their mothers died by the time they reached the age of eight. Both were Calvinists who at some point in their lives considered entering the ministry, and both believed that God had sanctioned their militant actions. To top it all off, both were present at John Brown’s execution: Brown as the obvious victim, and Jackson as the commander 1 David S. Reynolds, John Brown, Abolitionist: The Man Who Killed Slavery, Sparked the Civil War, and Seeded Civil Rights (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2005), 138. 1 of a contingent of Virginia Military Institute cadets assigned to keep order. But what struck me even more than the similarities between two men from opposing sides were the contradictory ways in which the two men currently are remembered. An abolitionist, John Brown fought to end slavery, which most Americans today would agree was an evil institution. Thomas Jackson, on the other hand, fought on behalf of the South, which wanted to keep slavery. Most Americans today regard this view as wrong. However, it seemed to me that these same Americans view John Brown as a crazy fanatic and wistfully revere Stonewall Jackson. In undertaking this thesis, I set out to discover how and why these contradictory images