legal status of slaves in free states

Presents an overview of the "Dred Scott v. Sandford" case that led to the Supreme Court decision in 1857 that congressional regulation of slavery in the territories was unconstitutional, and that African-Americans had no rights under the Constitution, and includes a selection of related documents.

Text and accompanying black and white photographs describe the people involved on both sides of the famous Supreme Court case, regarding whether or not slaves had rights as citizens of the United States.

Details the various trials of the Dred Scott case and discusses its impact on the issue of slave rights in the context of United States politics and the Civil War.

Chronicles the life of Dred Scott and his eleven-year struggle to gain his freedom after his master brought him to the free state of Illinois, and describes the Supreme Court decision of Roger B. Taney in 1857.

Argues that antislavery Northerners should have made more accommodations for slavery than those that were laid out in the Constitution.

Traces the history of the landmark Supreme Court decision that defined the rights of slaves in the United States.

An analysis of the political and social ramifications of the Dred Scott decision.

Places the events relating to the 1857 Supreme Court decision regarding rights of slaves into the larger context of the conflict about slavery among the states.