The Black Laws in the Old Northwest

The Northwest Territory (now the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wisconsin), under the Ordinance of 1787, was a free jurisdiction. Yet, all of the states of the territory, except Wisconsin, adopted Black Laws, legislation designed to subjugate African Americans. For the first time, this book brings together the Black Laws of the Old Northwest. The documents in the volume include statutes, legislative reports and resolutions, and petitions and memorials produced by the state legislatures, government agencies, or concerned citizens. Together, the documents provide a history of racial discrimination in this free territory.After a brief prologue, Stephen Middleton organizes the documents by state. Within each state, the documents are arranged into sets on specific topics such as immigration laws, welfare and public education laws, and jury and testimony laws. Although in general the editor lets the documents speak for themselves, he introduces each set of documents with commentary pointing to the themes in the documents. The volume will be a valuable resource for both students and scholars concerned with African-American history.

ForewordPrefaceOrdinance of 1787, Article 6IntroductionOhio, March 1, 1803Declaration of RightsEnumeration and ElectionMilitia PolicyImmigration and ResidencyColonizationKidnapping LawPublic EducationJury LawReports: The Black LawsRunaway SlavesRelief for the PoorMiscegenation of the RacesCivil RightsSummary of CasesAnnotated CasesSuggested ReadingsIndiana, December 11, 1816Declaration of RightsSlaveryIndentured Servants and LaborersSuffrage and ElectionMilitia PolicyImmigration and ResidencyMiscegenation LawsTaxation and EnumerationColonizationKidnappingFugitive SlavesTestimony and WitnessPublic EducationCivil and Legal RightsSummary of CasesAnnotated CasesSuggested ReadingsIllinois, December 3, 1818Declaration of RightsMilitia PolicySuffrage and ElectionsServants and SlavesImmigration and ResidencyKidnappingTestimony and WitnessRunaway Slaves and ServantsMiscegenation of the RaceCivil and Legal RightsSummary of CasesAnnotated CasesSuggested ReadingsMichigan, January 26, 1837Declaration of RightsKidnappingIndentured Servitude and SlaveryThe MilitiaPublic EducationMiscegenation of the RacesCivil and Legal RightsSummary of CasesAnnotated CasesSuggested ReadingsWisconsin, May 29, 1848Declaration of RightsSuffrage and ElectionsRunaway SlavesPersonal Liberty and Legal RightsSummary of CasesAnnotated CasesSuggested ReadingsIndex