11oz 15oz “Dred Scott: His Fight Changed a Nation.”

Dred Scott was an enslaved African American man who became the center of one of the most infamous Supreme Court cases in U.S. history—Dred Scott v. Sandford (1857). His case challenged the legal status of enslaved people and ultimately deepened the divide between the North and South, pushing the country closer to the Civil War.

Early Life & Enslavement

Scott was born into slavery around 1799 in Southampton County, Virginia. He was later taken to Missouri, a slave state, by his owner, Peter Blow. After Blow’s death, Scott was sold to Dr. John Emerson, a U.S. Army surgeon, who moved him to Illinois and Wisconsin Territory, both free regions where slavery was illegal.

Legal Battle for Freedom

Scott argued that because he had lived in free territories, he should be granted freedom. In 1846, he and his wife, Harriet Scott, sued for their freedom in St. Louis, Missouri. The case went through multiple courts before reaching the U.S. Supreme Court in 1857.

The Supreme Court Decision

The court ruled against Scott, stating that:

• African Americans, enslaved or free, were not U.S. citizens and had no right to sue in federal court.
• Congress had no authority to prohibit slavery in U.S. territories, making the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional.
• Enslaved people were property, and living in a free state did not grant them freedom.

This decision outraged abolitionists, strengthened the anti-slavery movement, and fueled tensions leading to the Civil War.

Freedom & Legacy

Despite the ruling, Scott and his family were formally freed just months later by their former owner’s family. Sadly, Scott died of tuberculosis in 1858, but his case remains a turning point in American history.

His story is a reminder of the struggles for justice and the fight against oppression