January 21, 1842 This is a notice from the Governor, to the state Legislature, “laying before it a law of Virginia, calculated to embarrass our commerce.” The message includes the…
Category: <span>Fugitive Slave Laws</span>
June 3, 1842 Here are resolutions passed by a large gathering of colored citizens at the Infant School Room, May 28th, 1842 . The Resolutions petition the Legislature to “prohibit…
November 4, 1842 Here are long accounts of the Faneuil Hall meeting, speeches made, of strong controversy, discussion on all sides, in which the Latimer case is lifted in the…
December 23, 1842 Record of another meeting in Waltham, urging action against fugitive slave law.
March 3, 1843 A very long report, taking a large portion of the paper, concludes with an act to submit to the legislature an Act “Further to Protect Personal Liberty”. …
January 18, 1850 Notice of Mr. Mason’s bill, providing ‘for the more effective execution of the third clause of the second section of the fourth article of the Constitution of…
September 6, 1850 A N.Y. Tribune correspondent is the source of this, from Baltimore, unsigned. The article sites instances of escaping slaves, which have “added new fuel to the indignation…
September 27, 1850 An Address to The People of Massachusetts, by the Board of Managers of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society occupies the most of a full page, signed by Francis…
October 4, 1850 The meeting was held on Sept 30, at Rev. Samuel Snowden’s church. “The house was densely crowded, and at an early hour many were compelled to leave…
October 11, 1850 From the Boston Courier : “The public have been treated to some bugbear stories upon this subject, which have afforded an excellent occasion to a certain class…
October 11, 1850 “A vast concourse” met at the Belknap Street church, October 4th. Among many resolutions passed there is one which calls for a larger meeting at Faneuil Hall,…
October 18, 1850 Here is a “Call” for citizens to gather at Faneuil Hall, ” to consider the condition of the Fugitive Slaves and other colored persons of this city,…
November 8, 1850 Here is notice that the Daily Times has encouraged a petition to the Mayor and Aldermen against the use of Faneuil Hall for abolitionists who wish to…
January 3, 1851 Under the title A Contrast, from the New York Independent, there is an item about a meeting on the evening of Monday, Dec 23, held by the…
January 10, 1851 An Appeal and Remonstrance, To the Working Men of America who are invested with the Elective Franchise. A long letter, concluding with, “We call upon you, by…
January 10, 1851 The Vigilance Committee of Boston, issues a call for petitions to go to members of Congress and the State Legislature, asking for immediate repeal of the law.
January 10, 1851 Micajah T. Johnson, from Short Creek, O, calls upon non-resisters not to give in to the temptation to join those who urge violence in response to the…
March 21, 1851 Under the title Something to Do, here is a list of sixteen essays, sermons, articles, letters, called to the attention of readers, urging them to read and…
March 28, 1851 Notice of an assembly to be held in Worcester, Tuesday, April 8, signed by people from twenty-one towns, “and a great many others whose names will be…
April 4, 1851 Under the title Let Massachusetts Speak! , it is noted that the State Convention to be held in opposition to the Fugitive Slave Law, previously scheduled for…
April 25, 1951 In the Senate, March 24, the Joint Special Committee, cites arguments and the history of previous actions by the legislature, including references to the 1793 Fugitive Slave…
May 9, 1851 A report that the annual meeting of the First Congregational Society of North Brookfield has adopted resolutions which name the Fugitive Slave Law as “oppressive, unrighteous and…
May 30, 1851 A group of one hundred clergymen of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Massachusetts, in petition reported here, have communicated with the Senate of the state, indicating a…
November 7, 1851 An item from Philadelphia, signed only “J.N.”, comments on a recent Friends Meeting, at Cherry Street. A member of the Society, during his remarks, speaks against the…
March 5, 1852 A letter from Nell, from Rochester, N.Y., dated Feb 19, 1852, addressed to Esteemed Friend Garrison, is “sent by way of most grateful remembrance”. Nell yearns to…
May 14, 1852 An account of the expenses for the government in arresting, holding, trying, and restoring to his master, the fugitive, Sims. The total comes to $8, 841.05. “Mr.…
June 18, 1852 In response to a letter from F.W. Bird, Walpole, while claiming to be Sumner’s “faithful friend”, here is a strong rebuke that while Sumner has been in…
September 17, 1852 Included in the paper is a copy of half of Sumner’s speech, with which he proposed the repeal of the Fugitive Slave Law. The article appreciates the…
March 24, 1854 Here is the fourth annual call for a gathering in regard to the Fugitive Slave Act. “… deeds have been done in our midst that warn us…
June 9, 1854 The paper proudly prints a resignation of Joseph K. Hayes, because he has received an order which, “if performed, would implicate me in the execution of that…
June 16, 1854 Under the Refuge of Oppression column, from the N. Y. Journal of Commerce, there is a concern that there will be an attempt in Congress to amend…
July 7, 1854 “Mr. Garrison said he should now proceed to perform an action which would be the testimony of his own soul to all present, of the estimation in…
July 14, 1854 Notice that the State of Connecticut has passed a bill, An Act for the Defence of Liberty, ” ..that will, if strictly enforced, make slave-hunting a rather…
December 22, 1854 Here is notice of a recent session of the Methodist Conference, which has taken action to declare abhorrent the Fugitive Slave Law, and slavery. Its action urges…
February 23, 1855 A notice that George W. Meeker, Esq., has resigned his office as U. S. Commissioner, in Chicago, “owing to repugnance to acting under the Fugitive Slave Law”
February 23, 1855 Craft writes to Garrison, from London. “I was pleased to see that it required military force to return poor Burns into slavery. I think the law would…
April 27, 1855 C. Stearns writes to Garrison, with an account of what is happening in Kansas. It is an account of the price of land, and includes the story…
March 26, 1858 With Judge Loring removed, this article now calls for a decree” that no human being shall be put on trial in the State, before any tribunal, to…
April 2, 1858 Much of the first two pages is devoted to reaction to the removal of Loring, including three columns under the Refuge of Oppression, Personal Liberty Bill Defeated…
June 18, 1858 A brief note about a petition addressed to Massachusetts House and Senate. “Let everyone have a chance to sign it; and let there be a noble rivalry…
February 25, 1859 Here is an appeal from Susan B. Anthony, directed To The Readers of The Liberator in the State of New York. Anthony calls for women to sign…
March 25, 1859 Here is a list by town of the number of persons who have signed the petitions “for a law to prevent the Rendition of any fugitive slave…
April 8, 1859 An account of the action of the House of Representatives, which by a vote of 84 to 132 failed to pass the bill which was designed to…
April 15, 1859 In the Refuge of Oppression Column, from the Boston Post, a statement that the defeat of the Personal Liberty Bill, “is the first fruits of a reaction…
August 5, 1859 At the gathering celebrating West India Emancipation, Garrison, in his speech comments on a recent visit to Plymouth. “… on going down to the world-famous Rock, I…
September 9, 1859 An article urges people to circulate two petitions, one urging the legislators of Massachusetts to enact legislation which will put an end to slave-hunting in the state,…
April 13, 1860 Under the Refuge of Oppression column, an article, criticizes the enactment of Personal Liberty Laws, indicating that many in states where they have been enacted have “allowed…
November 23, 1860 An urgent appeal for “every family and every person”, to continue the two-year campaign to have the “no slave-hunting” legislation adopted in the state.
January 25, 1861 An urgent call for people to return signed petitions against Slave-hunting in Massachusetts, to then be laid before the legislature. “Now, while the concessionists are at work……
May 15, 1863 At Tremont Temple, Sims is on the platform with his wife and child, and partners in his late escape. “On arriving in Savannah, he was put in…