Abraham Lincoln's First Freed Slave: A Review of Bailey v Cromwell, Illinois Supreme Court, 1841

Event Details

When
11/02/2010 - 6:30pm
Where
Chillicothe Public Library
430 N Bradley Ave
Chillicothe, IL, 61523-1920
United States
See map: Google Maps
County: 
Peoria
Fee: 
Free. Open to the public.
Sponsor Organization: 
Chillicothe Public Library
Where
Chillicothe Public Library
430 N Bradley Ave
Chillicothe, IL, 61523-1920
See map: Google Maps
County: 
Peoria
Fee: 
Free. Open to the public.
Sponsor Organization: 
Chillicothe Public Library
A Road Scholar Program by Carl M. Adams

In 1841, Mrs. Nance Legins (Cox-Cromwell) Costley and her first three children were the first slaves freed by then-lawyer Abraham Lincoln who argued that "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude shall exist" before the Illinois Supreme Court. Nearly thirty years later, President Lincoln would sign that Jeffersonian idea into law. Join Carl Adams as he discusses anecdotes from Nance's life, and the importance of her case as the only African-American to appeal to the Supreme Court three times.

This event is Free and Open to the public. For more information, please contact Catherine Barnett, 309.274.2719.