This is the first book with a full biographical scope on Brown's life, not just his controversial Harper's Ferry raid of 1859.

John Brown: A Reference Guide to His Life and Works is an overview of Brown's life and the social and political aspects of his legacy in U.S. history. It contains a chronology, an introduction, a dictionary of persons and places essential to the study of Brown's life and times, as well as a substantive bibliography, letter calendar (1859), and appendices offering a variety of sources and insights into this study. Based on nearly thirty years of biographical research, this work will be useful to new students as well as those already working in the field of John Brown and antebellum studies.