Traveler's Rest

The Traveler's Rest house on East Main Street in West Branch, Iowa

NPS Photo

Quick Facts

OPEN TO PUBLIC:

No

MANAGED BY:

Private

Amenities

1 listed

Audio Description

James Townsend owned Traveler's Rest, an inn where abolitionist John Brown stayed when passing through West Branch in 1856. Brown later trained part of his army in nearby Springdale for their 1859 attack on Harper's Ferry, Virigina. The raiders included two young local men, brothers Barclay and Edwin Coppoc.

Today it is a private residence.

Underground Railroad

Elsewhere in Cedar County, members of the area's Quaker community turned to helping slaves fleeing from their southern masters via the Underground Railroad- part of a large network of clandestine escape routes from slavery. Herbert Hoover's uncle John Minthorn, and his legal guardian after his parents died, family friend and businessman Lawrie Tatum, both participated in helping fugitive slaves travel through Cedar County.

John Brown's Chair

A chair reportedly used by John Brown during his stay at Traveler's Rest is on display at the Cedar County Historical Society & Museum in Tipton, Iowa.