John Brown was born on May 9, 1800. In his early years, he wandered in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New York and other places. He worked as a tanner, sheep dealer, wool merchant, and farmer, but he could not make a living. Although he was white, he led his family to settle in a black ghetto in 1849. He had long opposed slavery and wanted to help blacks get proper treatment. In 1855, he led his five sons to form an anti-slavery guerrilla group. In 1858, he convened a convention attended by some blacks and whites, announced the establishment of a base for fugitive slaves, and adopted the "Provisional Constitution of the People of the United States", with him as commander-in-chief. In 1859, he was captured while fighting the Regional Guard and later hanged.

Although Brown failed to establish equal black and white relations as he wished, his spirit of fighting for slaves had far-reaching implications.