2. Louisiana Laws
THE NATIONAL ERA
September 16, 1847
THE LAW OF SLAVERY IN THE STATE OF LOUISIANA - 1847. Compiled for the National Era.
----- BY A MARYLANDER. ----- III. BLACK CODE OF LOUISIANA
Law of April 14, 1807.
SEC. 60. If any overseer, or other white person, representing the owner of a plantation, is threatened, insulted, or struck, by any slave of said plantation, such offence shall be punished by the judge and freeholders charged with the punishment of crimes by slaves, at their discretion, according to the gravity of the case.
SEC. 61. If any person shall conceal any slave, or receive such slave as hired without permission of the master, such person, upon conviction, shall be condemned, by the judge before whom the complaint is made, to pay two dollars per day for the time the slave is absent from his master's employ, &c., or to be imprisoned, if he cannot pay the compensation, for not more than three months, or less than fifteen days.
SEC. 62. Every master is prohibited from allowing in his negro quarter (camp) any other assemblies but those of his own slaves, and from allowing his slaves the liberty of dancing through the night.
SEC. 63. The testimony of slaves, of free negroes, mulattoes, or mustees, cannot be received against their masters, but can be received against other free negroes, &c.
Law of March 18, 1809.
SEC. 64. Any person harboring or concealing any runaway slave, or receiving the same by hiring him or otherwise, without the permission of the master, shall be condemned, on conviction before a justice of the peace, to a fine, not over three hundred dollars, nor under one hundred dollars, for the benefit of the parish where the offender may reside, and be liable to the penalties of the second section of the act of April 14, 1807.
Law of January 8, 1813.
SEC. 70. All slaves killed while runaway or in actual rebellion, or executed in consequence thereof, shall be at the loss of the owner only.
SEC. 72. All slaves executed in consequence of exciting a revolt or insurrection, or of being concerned thereof, shall be at the loss of the owner only.
SEC. 73. Any slave who shall wilfully and maliciously strike his master or mistress, or their child or children, or any white overseer appointed by the master to superintend his slaves, so as to cause a contusion or shedding of blood, shall be punished with death.
SEC. 74. Any slave sentenced to death for revolting, or for a plot to revolt, against his master, or for having wilfully struck his master, &c., or his master's child, &c., or the overseer appointed by his master, &c., shall be at the loss of the master only.
Law of December 21, 1814.
SEC. 75. Three months after the passage of this act, every owner of a plantation or worker thereof, employing slaves to cultivate the soil, shall have a white person for every thirty slaves, to oversee them, and keep a good police amongst them, &c.
Law of March 19, 1819.
SEC. 80. No slave shall be admitted as a witness, either in civil or criminal matters, for or against a white person.
SEC. 81. No slave shall be admitted as a witness, either in civil or criminal matters, against a free person of color, except in case such free individual shall be charged with having raised or attempted to raise an insurrection among the slaves of this State, or with having taken a part in their insurrection, either actively or by assisting them in any way.
SEC. 83. If a slave shall attempt to poison any person, or to set fire to a dwelling-house or other building, such slave, on conviction, shall be imprisoned in irons at hard labor for life.
SEC. 84. If a free person of color insult or assault and beat any white person, he shall, on conviction, be punished by imprisonment or fine, or both, at the discretion of the court.
SEC. 87. If any free person of color or Indian shall steal a slave, he shall suffer the same punishment, on conviction, that is or may be directed against white persons for a similar offence.
Law of February 19, 1825.
SEC. 91. The tribunal for the trial of slaves for offences, whether capital or not, hereafter to be composed of the parish judge and six inhabitant freeholders in the parish; and, in the absence of the judge, a justice of the peace shall act in his place.
SEC. 92. Accused slaves must be tried as soon as possible after being arrested.
Law of March 16, 1830.
SEC. 96. It shall not be lawful for any slave in this State to sell, barter, exchange, given or deposite or offer to sell, &c., to any free person, any species of property whatsoever, without authority of the said slave's master, &c., specially setting forth the article to be sold, &c., under the penalty of corporal punishment, not exceeding twenty stripes for the first offence, and forty for the second, &c.
SEC. 97. If any free person in this State shall purchase from any slave any species of property whatever, or receive in exchange, or acquire by barter or gift, or receive on deposite, any species of property whatever, from any slave, such slave not being authorized in writing to sell, barter, &c., such free person, for every such offence, shall incur the penalty of fifty dollars, &c.
The National Era, published from January 7, 1847 - March 22, 1860, provided special attention on the “question of slavery.” In September of 1847, the paper published an installment in a series that the Black Codes
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3. Intro to New Orleans Account of Creole
The Liberator
December 31, 1841
From the New-Orleans Advertiser, of Dec. 8. Protest
Of the officers and crew of the American brig Creole, bound from Richmond to New-Orleans, whose cargo of slaves mutinied on the 7th of Nov. 1841, of the Hole-in-the-Wall, murdered a passenger wounded the Captain and others, and put into Nassau, N.P., where the authorities confined nineteen of the mutineers, and forcibly liberated nearly all the slaves. By this public instrument of protest be it known that, on the second day of December, eighteen hundred and forty one, before me, William Young Lewis, notary public in and for the city of New-Orleans, duly commissioned and sworn: Personally came and appeared Zephaniah C. Gifford, acting master of the American brig called the Creole, of Richmond, who declared that the said vessel sailed from the port of Norfolk, in the State of Virginia, on the thirteenth day of October last past, laden with manufactured tobacco in boxes and slaves, then under command of Captain Robert Ensor, bound for the port of New-Orleans, in the State of Louisiana.
That when about 130 miles to the North North-East of the Hole-in-the-Wall, the slaves, or part thereof on board said vessel, rose on the officers, crew and passengers, killed one passenger, severely wounded the captain, this appearer, and a part of the crew: compelled said appearer, then first mate, to navigate said vessel to Nassau, in the Island of New-Providence, where she arrived, and a portion of the ringleaders of said insurrection were confined in prison, and the remainder of said slaves liberated by the British authorities of said Island; and required me, notary, to make record of the same, intending more at leisure to detail particulars. And this day again appeared the said acting master, together with Lucius Stevens, acting mate; William Devereux, cook and steward; Henry Speck, John Silvy, Jaques Lecomte, Francis Foxwell, and Blair Curtiss, seamen— all of, and belonging to said vessel, who, being severally sworn according to law, to declare the truth, did depose and say—
That said vessel started as aforesaid, she was tight and strong, well manned, and provided in every respect, and equipped for carrying slaves: That said vessel left Richmond on the 25th day of October, 1841, with about 102 slaves on board: That about 90 of said slaves were shipped on board on the 20th of said month, of which 41 were shipped by Robert Lumkin, about 39 by John R. Howell, 9 by Nathaniel Mathews, and 1 by Wm. Robinson; that from that time, about one or two per day were put onboard by John R. Howell, until about the said 25th day of October, so as to make the whole number of 135 slaves.
The men and women slaves were divided. The men were all placed in the forward hold of the brig, except old Lewis and servant of Mr. Thomas McCargo, who staid in the cabin, as assistant servant, and the women in the hold aft, except six female servants, who were taken in the cabin. Between them was the cargo of the brig, consisting of boxes of tobacco. The slaves were permitted to go on deck, but the men were not allowed at night to go in the hold aft where the women were.
On the 30th of October, the brig left Hampton Roads for New Orleans. The slaves were all under the superintendence of William Henry Merritt, a passenger. John R. Howell had the particular charge of the slaves of Thomas McCargo— Theophilus McCargo being considered too young and inexperienced— and the general charge of the other slaves, all being under the master of the vessel. The slaves were all carefully watched. They were perfectly obedient and quiet, and showed no signs of mutiny and disturbance, until Sunday, the 7th of Nov. about 9 P.M. in lat. 27 46, N. lon. 75 20 W.
The captain, supposing that they were nearer Abaco than they were, had ordered the brig to be laid to, which was done. A good breeze was blowing at the time, and the sky was a little hazy, with trade clouds flying. Mr. Gifford was on watch. He was told by Elijah Morris, one of the slaves of Thomas McCargo, that one of the men had gone aft among the women. Mr. Gifford then called Mr. Merritt, who was in the cabin, and informed him of the fact. Mr. Merritt came up and went to the main hatch, which was the entrance to the after hold, and asked two or three of the slaves who were near, if any of the men were down in that hold, and he was informed that they were. Mr. Merritt then waited until Mr. Gifford procured a match, and then Mr. Merritt went down in the hold and lighted it. Mr. Gifford stood over the hatchway.
On striking a light, Merritt found Madison Washington, a very large and strong slave of Thomas McCargo, standing at his back. Merritt said to Madison, 'Is it possible that you are down here? You are the last man on board the brig I expected to find here.' Madison replied, 'Yes, sir, it is me,' and instantly jumped to the hatchway, and got on deck, saying, 'I am going up, I cannot stay here.' He did this in spite of the resistance of Gifford and Merritt, who both tried to keep him back, and laid hold of him for that purpose. Madison ran forward, and Elijah Morris fired a pistol, the ball of which grazed the back part of Gifford's head. Madison then shouted, 'We have begun, and must go through. Rush, boys, rush aft, and we have them!' and calling to the slaves below, he said— 'Come up, every one of you! If you don't lend a hand, I will kill you all, and throw you overboard.'
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Blindy, who is a descendant of someone who traveled on the Underground Railroad, is the latest addition to BABES (Basic Awareness Beginning Education Studies) The Blindy story and curriculum helps children understand the importance of freedom, and how everyone—even children--can become involved in community building by helping to heal the wounds that have been caused by the process of depriving people of that freedom. This character takes advantage of a well-established program in all 50 states and five other countries to carry the messages of slavery, resistance and the UGRR. Primary sources and lessons help contextualize a historical based journey of escape from Louisiana to Canada in 13 states. Blindy’s Trip To The Archives curriculum, Southern States of the Mississippi, aids BABES educators, youth and scholars in joining the BABES kids as they visit a special archive to research and interpret some of the many documents from Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas and Missouri that help tell the stories that set the stage for Blindy. BABES kids visit the card catalogue, newspaper, rare book, legal document, map and computer rooms to view and engage 19th century newspapers, legal documents, narratives and maps related to slavery, resistance and the Underground Railroad.
