March 6, 1857 - Dred Scott v. Sandford was
decided by the U.S. Supreme Court on this date. “Delivered by Chief Justice Roger Taney, this
opinion declared that slaves were not citizens of the United States and could
not sue in Federal courts. In addition, this decision declared that the Missouri
Compromise was unconstitutional and that Congress did not have the authority to
prohibit slavery in the territories. The Dred Scott decision was overturned by
the 13th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution.”1
Dred Scott and his wife Harriet’s lawsuit claimed that because they had
lived from 1836 to 1840 at Fort Snelling in Minn. with their owner, Dr. John Emerson, Fort
Snelling’s surgeon, and in other free
territories, they should therefore be granted their freedom.2
1http://www.loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/DredScott.html
2http://www.historicfortsnelling.org/History/slavery-fort-Snelling
Dred Scott
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:DredScott.jpg
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