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	The Dred Scott Decision Introduction In 1820, the Missouri Compromise permitted the admission of Missouri to the Union as a slave state. Admitted along with the free state of Maine, the Missouri Compromise maintained the balance between the number and free and slave states admitted to the Union. Dred Scott, born in 1799 as a slave to the Peter Blow family of Virginia, moved to St. Louis with the Blow family and was eventually sold to Dr. John Emerson, a military surgeon stationed at Jefferson Barracks. For the next twelve years, Scott accompanied Dr. Emerson to Illinois and the Wisconsin Territory where slavery has been prohibited by Congress. During this time, Scott married Harriet Robinson, a slave, and they had two children. After Dr. Emerson's death, Dred Scott and his wife sued Mrs. Emerson for their freedom based on their years of residence in non-slave states. Although the case was dismissed, the Scotts are permitted to refile the case where the jury ruled in their favor. The case was appealed to the Missouri Supreme Court which overruled the circuit court and and Dred Scott and his family returned to slavery. In 1856, Scott's lawyers appealed the case to the U.S. Supreme Court, filing suit against John Sanford, Mrs. Emerson's brother who has taken over Dr. Emerson's estate. The Supreme Court ruled that not only was Dred Scott a slave, but as such, he was not a citizen of the United States with rights to bring suit in federal court. In addition, the Supreme Court ruled as unconstitutional the provision in the Missouri Compromise that prohibited the expansion of slavery into the territories. In 1857, Mrs. Emerson remarried and her new husband, opposed to slavery, returned Dred Scott and his family to the Blow family, who granted Scott his freedom. The following year, Dred Scott died of tuberculosis and was buried in Wesleyan Cemetery in St. Louis. National History Standards Materials compiled in this document can be used by educators to fulfill the following National History Standards for Grades 5-12: Era 5: Civil War and Reconstruction (1850-1877) STANDARD 1: The causes of the Civil War Standard 1A: The student understands how the North and South differed and how politics and ideologies led to the Civil War. 5-12: Explain the causes of the Civil War and evaluate the importance of slavery as a principal cause of the conflict. [Compare competing historical narratives] 7-12: Explain how events after the Compromise of 1850 and the Dred Scott decision in 1857 contributed to increasing sectional polarization. [Analyze cause-and-effect relationships] 7-12: Analyze the importance of the "free labor" ideology in the North and its appeal in preventing the further extension of slavery in the new territories. [Examine the influence of ideas] Primary Resources See: The Dred Scott Case, an exhibit by Washington University Libraries, which provides electronic images of 85 documents from the Dred Scott Collection arranged and described by the Missouri State Archives. The original Dred Scott case file is located in the Office of the St. Louis Circuit Clerk. TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: 15 January 1857 NOTES: "The Washington correspondent of the New York Herald states that the United States Supreme Court have come to a decision upon the important questions presented in the case of Dred Scott recently argued before the tribunal." SOURCE: The St. Mary's Beacon Collection, MSA SC 5360, M 1022 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 7, 1857 NOTES: "Power to acquire territory carries power to govern it." SOURCE: The Daily Baltimore Republican Collection, MSA SC 2894, M 2043-2 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: Mr. Buchanan's Cabinet -- Judge Black, the Attorney General -- Decision on the Missouri Slave Case -- The Missouri Compromise Declared Unconstitutional DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 7, 1857 NOTES: "The opinion...was listened to with profound interest, and will be everywhere respected for its wisdom, and acquiesced in as the decision of the constitutional tribunal." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: Opinions of the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 7, 1857 SOURCE: Evening Journal (Albany, New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Decision in the Case of Dred Scott. DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 7, 1857 SOURCE: Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: [No Title] DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 7, 1857 SOURCE: Gazette (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Important Decision of the Supreme Court of the United States on the Slavery Question DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 8, 1857 SOURCE: Daily Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 9, 1857 NOTES: "The delivery of the this opinion...whether as a decision of the Supreme Court, or for the constitutional arguments on which it stands, will exert the most powerful and salutary influence throughout the United States." SOURCE: The Daily Baltimore Republican Collection, MSA SC 2894, M 2043-2 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: U.S. Supreme Court -- The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 9, 1857 NOTES: "Judge McLean delivered his views in the Dred Scott case to-day..." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Decision in the Supreme Court DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 9, 1857 NOTES: "The decision, we are glad to say, seems to be welcomed in most quarters." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Issue Forced Upon Us DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 9, 1857 SOURCE: Evening Journal (Albany, New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University TITLE: Decision of the Supreme Court in the Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 10, 1857 NOTES: "...The Chief-Justice said, from the best consideration, we have come to the conclusion that the African race who came to this country, whether free or slave, were not intended to be included in the constitution for the enjoyment of any personal rights or benefits; and the two provisions which point to them treat them as property..." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Dred Scott Decision DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 10, 1857 NOTES: "The opinions will be read with interest, and therefore, in view of the importance of the questions decided and thus set at rest, we willingly give up so much space to their insertion." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 10, 1857 NOTES: "In short, the court sustains the Democratic doctrine throughout..." SOURCE: The Easton Star Collection, MSA SC 3596, M 11316 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: Court and Constitution DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 10, 1857 SOURCE: Evening Journal (Albany, New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 10, 1857 SOURCE: Enquirer (Richmond, Virginia). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: Half a Million Citizens Disfranchised DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 10, 1857 SOURCE: Evening Journal (Albany, New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Opinion of Chief Justice Taney DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 10, 1857 SOURCE: Evening Journal (Albany, New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 11, 1857 NOTES: "...we can foresee that this decision will create, everywhere, a profound sensation." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Dred Scott Case. The Dissenting Opinions of Judges McLean and Curtis DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 11, 1857 NOTES: "Dissenting Opinions of Judges McLean and Curtis: ...It had never been held necessary that to constitute a citizen a man should have the qualification of an elector." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Conspiracy Against Freedom DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 11, 1857 SOURCE: Evening Journal (Albany, New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: [No Title] DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 11, 1857 SOURCE: Tribune (New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The "Dred Scott Case" DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 12, 1857 NOTES: "The Supreme Court has given a decision in this case, of great interest to all sections of our Union, and one that will go very far towards allaying sectional excitement on the subject of slavery." SOURCE: The Annapolis Gazette Collection, MSA SC 3322, M 8825 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: Dred Scott's Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 12, 1857 SOURCE: Illinois State Register (Springfield, Illinois). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: [No Title] DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 12, 1857 SOURCE: Tribune (New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: SUPREME COURT vs. THE ABOLITIONISTS DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 12, 1857 SOURCE: Enquirer (Richmond, Virginia). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 14, 1857 NOTES: "The decision of the Supreme Court of the United States, in the case of Dred Scott, is of the utmost importance, not only at the present time, but for generations to come." SOURCE: The Baltimore County Advocate Collection, MSA SC 2932, M 3337 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 14, 1857 NOTES: "We hope now that the agitation of the slavery question may be set at rest by this decision. It is, we have no doubt, the death knell of the democratic party..." SOURCE: The Easton Gazette Collection, MSA SC 2940, M 11033 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 14, 1857 NOTES: "The moral of the opinion is that the United States government cannot exercise any power over persons and property in the territories that they cannot do in the States." SOURCE: The Kent News Collection, MSA SC 2901, M 2355 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Dred Scott Case and the Missouri Compromise DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 14, 1857 SOURCE: Courier (Natchez, Mississippi). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Decision in the Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 16, 1857 SOURCE: Journal (Louisville, Kentucky). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Past and the Future DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 17, 1857 SOURCE: Mercury (Charleston, South Carolina). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: AGITATION OF THE SLAVERY QUESTION DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 17, 1857 SOURCE: Enquirer (Richmond, Virginia). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: "Dred Scott" in the Pulpit... DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 17, 1857 NOTES: "'Dred Scott' has already got into the pulpit, and for the future will be a great hobby, no doubt, for many of our clergymen who love to mingle in politics to the detriment of religion." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Question Settled. -- Black Republicanism vs. the Constitution DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 18, 1857 SOURCE: New Hampshire Patriot (Concord, New Hampshire). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: The Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 19, 1857 NOTES: "The opinion of the Supreme Court...decides that...Negroes, whether slaves or free--that is, men of the African race--are not citizens of the United States by the Constitution." SOURCE: The Montgomery County Sentinel Collection, MSA SC 2813, M 475-02 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Supreme Court DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 19, 1857 SOURCE: Evening Journal (Albany, New York). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: [The Dred Scott Case] DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 21, 1857 NOTES: "The late decision in the case of Dred Scott has very much displeased the people of that fanatical State [Massachusetts]..." SOURCE: The Easton Gazette Collection, MSA SC 2940, M 11033 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: History of the Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 27, 1857 NOTES: "...It is evident that Scott's name has been used by a class of slavery agitators for political effect." SOURCE: The Montgomery County Sentinel Collection, MSA SC 2813, M 475-02 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Millennium at Last DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 27, 1857 SOURCE: Mercury (Charleston, South Carolina). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: Supreme Court Decision in the Dred Scott Case DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 30, 1857 NOTES: "A confident expectation is entertained here that the mission of Mr. Walker and Mr. Stanton to Kansas will prevent any further difficulty in Kansas..." SOURCE: The Sun Collection REPOSITORY: Maryland State Law Library microfilm TITLE: The Issue Must be Met DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 31, 1857 SOURCE: Federal Union (Milledgeville, Georgia). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: [No title] DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: March 31, 1857 SOURCE: Republican Journal (Columbus, Wisconsin). From Secession Era Editorials Project, Furman University. TITLE: A Legal Question Under the Dred Scott Decision DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: April 16, 1857 NOTES: "Democratic canvassers in the town of Gloucester (R.I.) struck the names of colored voters in that town from the lists before the election Wednesday, alleging that they were justified in this action by the decision in the case of Dred Scott." SOURCE: The St. Mary's Beacon Collection, MSA SC 4360, M 1022 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: Transcript, Lincoln's Speech at Springfield, Illinois on the Dred Scott Decision DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: June 26, 1857 SOURCE: TeachingAmericanHistory.org TITLE: The Dred Scott Decision DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: April 29, 1858 NOTES: "We, therefore, rejoice to find that the Hon. Rev. Johnson (who was a counsel in case) has so effectually exposed the injustice of the criticisms of the Court's action in the case to which we refer, as well as the sweeping impropriety of the personalities to which the maligners of the highest legal tribunal in the land, in and out of Congress, see fit to resort, in the premises." The argument of Reverdy Johnson then follows. SOURCE: The St. Mary's Beacon Collection, MSA SC 4360, M 1022 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Decision of the Supreme Court DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: December 2, 1858 NOTES: This article discusses misrepresentations and interpretations of the Dred Scott Decision by politicians, including Jefferson Davis, and prints a portion of the actual decision. SOURCE: The St. Mary's Beacon Collection, MSA SC 4360, M 1022 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives TITLE: The Dred Scott Decision DATE CREATED/PUBLISHED: May 26, 1859 NOTES: "The Court decided that there is no difference between property in a slave and any other property." SOURCE: The St. Mary's Beacon Collection, MSA SC 4360, M 1022 REPOSITORY: Maryland State Archives Additional Media Resource Scott v. Sandford, 60 U.S. 393 (1856) (USSC+). Syllabus, decision, and opinions of the U.S. Supreme Court. Additional Instructional Resources Before Dred Scott: Freedom Suits in Antebellum Missouri. From the Office of the Missouri Secretary of State. The Dred Scott Case. From Washington University in St. Louis Secondary Resources Ehrlich, Walter. "The Origins of the Dred Scott Case." The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 59, No. 2. (Apr., 1974), pp. 132-142. Ehrlich, Walter. "Was the Dred Scott Case Valid?" The Journal of American History, Vol. 55, No. 2. (Sep., 1968), pp. 256-265. Fehrenbacher, Don E. "Roger B. Taney and the Sectional Crisis." The Journal of Southern History, Vol. 43, No. 4. (Nov., 1977), pp. 555-566. Wiecek, William M. "Slavery and Abolition Before the United States Supreme Court, 1820-1860." The Journal of American History, Vol. 65, No. 1. (Jun., 1978), pp. 34-59. Copyright and Other Restrictions Access to materials linked within these document packets is intended for educational and research purposes. The written permission of the copyright owners and/or holders of other rights (such as publicity and privacy rights) is required for distribution, reproduction, or other use beyond that allowed by fair use or other statutory exemptions. The responsibility for making an independent legal assessment and independently securing any necessary rights rests with persons desiring to use particular items in the context of the intended use. Password Access to Materials The use of any user name and password to access materials on this web site constitutes an agreement by the user to abide by any and all copyright restrictions and is an acknowledgement that these materials will be used for personal and educational use only. In most instances, the username aaco and password aaco# will work. Contact ref@mdsa.net if you have any questions or have difficulty accessing files. Credits Teaching American History in Maryland is a collaborative partnership of the Maryland State Archives and the Center for History Education (CHE), University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC), and the following sponsoring school systems: Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Baltimore City Public School System, Baltimore County Public Schools, and Howard County Public Schools. Other program partners include the Martha Ross Center for Oral History, Maryland Historical Society, State Library Resource Center/Enoch Pratt Free Library, with assistance from the National Archives and Records Administration and the Library of Congress. The program is funded through grants from the U.S. Department of Education. This document packet was researched and developed by Nancy Bramucci.
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