Concord Transcendentalists and the Legacy of John Brown
 Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803-1882) Autograph letter, signed, to William Emerson, 23 October 1859. | In this letter to his brother, written just five days after Brown's capture, Emerson privately expresses his ambivalence about Brown's actions, writing, "He [Brown] is a true hero, but lost his head there." However, these private reservations are absent from Emerson's later, public rhetoric, in which he offers unqualified support for Brown. MS Am 1280H – Gift of The Ralph Waldo Emerson Memorial Association, 1991. |