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University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law

Legal History Publications

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Slavery

Articles 1 - 4 of 4

Full-Text Articles in Law

Warts And All: How The Plattsburgh Should Change The Way We Look At The Face Of Baltimore Maritime History, David Seaton Jan 2013

Warts And All: How The Plattsburgh Should Change The Way We Look At The Face Of Baltimore Maritime History, David Seaton

Legal History Publications

In 1820 the Plattsburgh was condemned for violating federal anti-slave trade legislation. This little known, rarely cited Supreme Court decision is important, because it pierces the veneer of romanticism that has been allowed to sugar over our recollection of Baltimore's maritime history. The case indicates that some of the most prominent ship owners and captains at the time, including Thomas Sheppard, John N. D'Arcy, Henry Didier, and Thomas Boyle, have links to the slave trade. This paper explores the cruel realities of the international slave trade, the ineffective federal laws aimed at prohibiting it, and the efforts by merchants to …


Baptiste V. De Volunbrun 5 H. & J. 86 (Md 1820): The Events Surrounding An Early Nineteenth-Century Freedom Petition Before The Maryland Court Of Appeals, Kurt Ellerbe Jan 2012

Baptiste V. De Volunbrun 5 H. & J. 86 (Md 1820): The Events Surrounding An Early Nineteenth-Century Freedom Petition Before The Maryland Court Of Appeals, Kurt Ellerbe

Legal History Publications

BAPTISTE V. DE VOLUNBRUN 5 H. & J. 86 (Md. 1820): In Jean Baptiste’s 1820 freedom petition we have not only a slavery case typical of the region and period, but also a compelling and informative narrative from the beginning of the end of North America’s nearly two hundred and fifty year era of slavery. This epic has its roots in the some of the earliest African arrivals to the new world and was significantly influenced by the major trends in philosophy that immediately preceded its commencement, as well as a concurrent and burgeoning American abolitionist movement. It features questionable …


The Lutheran Church During The Civil War: The Case Of Rev. Zimmerman, Jennifer H. Cornely Jan 2011

The Lutheran Church During The Civil War: The Case Of Rev. Zimmerman, Jennifer H. Cornely

Legal History Publications

In 1864 a pastor walked into the Superior Court of Baltimore and sued his Congregation. The pastor, Reverend Leonhard Frederick Zimmerman (Rev. Zimmerman), wanted to be reinstated to his position as pastor of the St. Stephen’s German Evangelical Lutheran Church (St. Stephen’s), following a close vote calling for his dismissal. The Maryland Court of Appeals affirmed the reinstatement of the Rev. Zimmerman, however neither case discussed the underlying reason for his dismissal. In this project it was necessary to explore the Lutheran Church during the Civil War by studying the history of the Lutheran Church in America, the history of …


Coston V. Coston, 25 Md. 500 (Md. 1866): The Plight Of One Family Out Of Many Fighting Apprenticeship In Reconstruction Maryland, Zachary S. Schultz Jan 2011

Coston V. Coston, 25 Md. 500 (Md. 1866): The Plight Of One Family Out Of Many Fighting Apprenticeship In Reconstruction Maryland, Zachary S. Schultz

Legal History Publications

The abolition of slavery in the State of Maryland, pursuant to the Maryland Constitution of 1864, resulted in the emancipation of thousands of black children, who, because of an unrepealed section of the Maryland Black codes, were quickly apprenticed to their former masters under the guise of a legal apprenticeship statute. Within this period of Maryland history is the story of Leah Coston and her two boys, Simon and Washington, who were apprenticed to their former master, Samuel S. Costen, on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. This paper contextualizes the case of Coston v. Coston within the times and provides …