mar 6, 1857 - Dred Scott v. Sanford is Decided

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During the 1830s, a slave named Dred Scott was brought from the slave state of Missouri to the Wisconson territory, in which slavery was outlawed. His owner then proceeded to lease Scott out to the military, effectively bringing the institution of slavery into a free territory, in clear violation of the Missouri Compromise.Upon his return to Missouri, Scott sued for his freedom, arguing that his temporary removal to free soil made him legally free. The case would reach the Supreme Court, where Chief Justice Taney and the majority would rule that Scott was still enslaved and not a citizen, and thus no right to sue. Taney argued that the Court had no constitutional right to deprive a person of their right to property, even when a slave is brought to a free state. The ruling also declared the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional, as it declared that all territories were open to slavery until they became states and decided for themselves. This was a definitive victory for the institution of slavery, and it infuriated Northern abolitionists, thus deepening sectional conflict rather than settling the issue like Taney hoped it would. (Continuity: escalating sectional divisions in U.S. society) (Effect of this event: contributing factor to the outbreak of the Civil War)

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