FUGITIVE SLAVE ACT OF 1850
The Fugitive Slave Act of 1850 mandated that
states to which escaped slaves fled were obligated
to return them to their masters upon their dis-
covery and subjected persons who helped run-
away slaves to criminal sanctions. The first
Fugitive Slave Act was enacted by Congress in
1793 but as the northern states abolished SLAV-
ERY, the act was rarely enforced. The southern
states bitterly resented the northern attitude
toward slavery, which was ultimately demon-
strated by the existence of the Underground
Railroad, an arrangement by which abolitionists
helped runaway slaves obtain freedom.
To placate the South, the Fugitive Slave Act
of 1850 (9 Stat. 462) was enacted by Congress as
part of the COMPROMISE OF 1850. It imposed a
duty on all citizens to assist federal marshals to
enforce the law or be prosecuted for their failure
to do so. The act also required that when a slave
was captured, he or she was to be brought before
a federal court or commissioner, but the slave
would not be tried by a jury nor would his or her
testimony be given much weight. The state-
ments of the slave’s alleged owner were the main
evidence, and the alleged owner was not even
required to appear in court.
Northern reaction against the Fugitive Slave
Act was strong, and many states enacted laws
that nullified its effect, making it worthless. In
cases where the law was enforced, threats or acts
of mob violence often required the dispatch of
federal troops. Persons convicted of violating
the act were often heavily fined, imprisoned, or
both. The refusal of northern states to enforce
the Fugitive Slave Act was alleged by South Car-
olina as one reason for its secession from the
Union prior to the onset of the Civil War.
The acts of 1793 and 1850 remained legally
operative until their repeal by Congress on June
