Abram Smith caught political fire as a radical Locofoco Democrat, a friend of working people and outsiders. Smith was elected to the Wisconsin Supreme Court in 1852 after he spent some time as a notable defense attorney. Let’s not forget that in 1850 the Fugitive Slave Act was revamped in order to ensure that Northerners were not a hinderance in the capture of slaves who had escaped their southern masters. In fact, Northerners were now required to return any slaves whom they knew to be fugitives. Smith, as a judge, was in utter disagreement with this act and he made that quite apparent when he nullified the Fugitive Slave Act for his state after a slave by the name of Joshua Glover was thrown into the city jail. Sherman Booth had been helping Glover maintain his freedom. Smith decided that Glover should be liberated and Booth should be cleared of any wrongdoing.

Who was Abram Smith? What was the Fugitive Slave Act and did it change during the Compromise of 1850? What did Abram Smith decide about the Fugitive Slave Act?

Further Reading:

Dunley, Ruth. “A.D. Smith: Knight-Errant of Radical Democracy,” (PhD Diss.). The University of Ottowa. 2008.

Abram D. Smith: Nullification, from Classics of Liberty

“From President of Canada to Governor of the People”

Music by Kai Engel

Related Content:

The Slave Trade and the Constitution, written by George H. Smith

There’s No Excuse for Slavery, Liberty Chronicles Episode

Why did the Southern States Secede?, written by Anthony Comegna

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