This proposed 1842 legislation would have made it illegal for any free person of color to be in Maryland. If the law had passed, any White person could arrest any free African American in the state, no matter their status, and enslave them. That included any free Black people who came into Maryland. The same proposed law declared all Black people would be assumed to be enslaved unless they were traveling as a servant with a White person who confirmed their servant status. The law failed to pass in the Maryland senate.
Hampshire Gazette. “Laws against colored people.” March 8, 1842. Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, American Centuries. https://americancenturies.org/collection/l10-015/. Accessed on October 16, 2024.
Please note: Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.