We are thrilled to feature a guest post by Judy G. Russell, The Legal Genealogist®. Judy is a genealogist with a law degree, combining her expertise to navigate the complex intersection of law and family history. As an internationally recognized lecturer and award-winning writer, Judy holds certifications as a Certified Genealogist® and Certified Genealogical Lecturer℠ from the Board for Certification of Genealogists®. You can explore more of her insights on her blog at The Legal Genealogist.
The stories of so many American families are told in the laws of the day and in the court actions resulting from those laws. Genealogists line data who add legal records to their research often find they can add depth and breadth to their family’s history. Nowhere can this be seen more profoundly and dramatically than in the intersection of genealogy and the law in the Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 and the fallout from that law.
The Compromise of 1850
It was seen by many as a last-ditch attempt to save the Union. Strained by growing disagreements over the “peculiar institution” of slavery and struggling to determine whether slavery would be allowed in the territory acquired at the end of the Mexican War, Congress was also faced with the application of California for admission as a so-called free state. That application threatened the balance in the Senate between those representing slave states and those representing free states which had existed since the Missouri Compromise of 1820.
A contentious debate stretching over months ended when Congress ratified a package of bills sponsored by Senator Stephen Douglas of Illinois that became known as the Compromise of 1850.[1] California was admitted as the 31st state, new territories were created in Utah and New Mexico, and a new law began to govern the fate of those who had fled enslavement.