Slaves and the Courts, 1740-1860

Go directly to the collection, Slaves and the Court, 1740-1860, in American Memory, or view a Summary of Resources related to the collection. Critical thinking topics include:

Periodization | Case Study Method | Differentiating Between Facts and Interpretations | Identifying Missing Voices | Colonization in Liberia | Persisting Issues in History

Historical Issues Analysis and Decision Making: Colonization in Liberia

The controversy over slavery resulted in numerous ideas of varying merit being put forth as solutions to the problem. The plan to colonize former slaves in Liberia is one such idea that could be researched using the collection. A number of documents about this topic can be located by searching using the keyword colonization. Use the documents in the collection to learn about the colonization plan and the arguments for and against it. Based on what you have read, imagine that you are an acquaintance of Francis Scott Key, a founder of the colonization society (but better known as the lyricist of The Star-Spangled Banner). Write a letter to Key explaining why you support or oppose colonization of former slaves in Liberia.

Historical Issues Analysis and Decision Making: Persisting Issues in History

A document dealing with slavery in the northern colonies, "The Trial and Execution for Petit Treason, of Mark and Phillis, Slaves of Capt. John Codman," demonstrates that some contemporary issues have been under debate for many years. The document is a paper written in 1883 about a 1755 Massachusetts case in which two slaves were executed for the murder of their owner. The executions were by hanging and burning, the latter of which shocked the sensibilities of the paper's 19th-century author, who discusses the death penalty at some length. Read the author's discussion (found near the end of the document) to identify arguments that foreshadow contemporary debates on this topic. For example, the author examines the death penalty's efficacy as a deterrent, providing a 1761 quotation from Massachusetts Governor Barnard (who believed the death penalty was a deterrent) and then refuting it by drawing on the British experience that "all who considered the subject thoughtfully found that the increase of capital crimes more than kept pace with the increase of laws creating them." For each argument for or against the death penalty provided in this document, try to find a quotation from a 21st-century advocate or opponent of the death penalty making the same point. What does this exercise tell you about the persisting nature of some issues?

Consider the qualities that make an issue persist over time, rather than one that is solved or simply fades away. List some qualities (an example might be the issue affects many people). Identify other issues that emerged from your analysis of documents in Slaves and the Courts, 1740-1860 (examples might be race relations and states’ rights). Which of these issues fit your list of qualities of persistent issues? Recognizing that some issues persist across time and space and comparing how people responded to the issues at different times and in different locations can help us better understand both the past and the present.

Periodization | Case Study Method | Differentiating Between Facts and Interpretations | Identifying Missing Voices | Colonization in Liberia | Persisting Issues in History