Frederick Douglass and John Brown met at a stone quarry here, Aug. 19-21, 1859, and discussed Brown's plans to raid the federal arsenal at Harpers Ferry. Brown urged Douglass to join an armed demonstration against slavery, but Douglass refused, warning the raid would fail. The Oct. 16, 1859 attack confirmed his fears, and Brown was captured with his surviving followers and executed Dec. 2, 1859.
