ST. LOUIS
Thousands of tourists, journalists and academicians converged on St. Louis over the weekend to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to deny a Missouri slave the right to sue for his freedom.
In 1847, Dred Scott sued his owner in state court “on behalf of himself, his wife and his two daughters” to win his freedom. The circuit court ruled in favor of Scott’s owners, but allowed him to refile his lawsuit. Three years later, a jury decided in a St. Louis courtroom that Scott deserved to be free since his owners took him to live for several years in the non-slave territories of Wisconsin and Illinois. However, the Missouri Supreme Court reversed the decision in 1852. Two years later, a persistent Scott filed a new lawsuit in an attempt to secure his freedom, claiming that he was a citizen, not a slave, and had the right to sue in federal court. The case eventually made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1857, but the court ruled that Scott was not a citizen. As a slave, Scott was considered personal property and did not have the right to bring a lawsuit in a federal court.
It was against this historical backdrop that the state kicked off dozens of festivities on March 1st, including tours of the historic courthouse where Scott tried to obtain his freedom and a reenactment of the 1852 Missouri Supreme Court arguments by students at the Grace Hill Settlement House.
Lynne M. Jackson, Scott’s great-great granddaughter, criss-crossed the city over the weekend participating in various events honoring the legacy of her heroic forebear.
“Growing up, it was very important for us to know that we were descendants of Dred Scott,” says Jackson, who currently is the general services manager for the St. Louis-based law firm Bryan Cave. “Ten years ago, I realized that I needed to know so much more about this history.” Jackson has since started the Dred Scott Heritage Foundation, aimed at educating young people about the sacrifice and struggles of her famous relative.
While tourism has always played an important role in Missouri’s economy, in recent years, more visitors have journeyed to St. Louis to learn more about the Dred Scott case.
