Freeman, Watson (fl. 1850-1857) to James Buchanan
High-resolution images are available to schools and libraries via subscription to American History, 1493-1943. Check to see if your school or library already has a subscription. Or click here for more information. You may also order a pdf of the image from us here.
Gilder Lehrman Collection #: GLC09028.04 Author/Creator: Freeman, Watson (fl. 1850-1857) Place Written: s.l. Type: Manuscript letter Date: March 1857 Pagination: 3 p. : docket ; 25 x 20 cm. Order a Copy
Copy of Watson's letter to Buchanan asking to be reappointed as U.S. Marshal. References his service as marshal for the last four years. Describes the case of fugitive slave Anthony Burns. "...the people of Boston, who witnessed the battering down the door of the Court House, & the murder of one of my deputies, standing by my side, by a mob of two thousand abolitionists in their attempt to rescue from my custody the Slave Burns." States he did not leave his post for eight days and that he has received anonymous death threats. Mentions that his father, a merchant in Boston, invested all his money in government securities.
Freeman was the U.S. Marshal of Massachusetts charged with enforcing the Fugitive Slave Act. Anthony Burns was the property of Charles Suttle of Alexandria, Virginia. Burns escaped slavery and fled to Boston. Suttle tried to reclaim Burns and Freeman, as U.S. Marshal, arrested Burns, enraging abolitionists. A mob descended on the courthouse where Burns was being held and attempted to free him. In the melee, a deputy was killed. Burns was convicted on 2 June 1854 and sent back into slavery. A few months later, a black Boston church raised the money to purchase his freedom.
Citation Guidelines for Online Resources
The copyright law of the United States (title 17, United States Code) governs the making of photocopies or other reproductions of copyrighted material. Under certain conditions specified in the law, libraries and archives are authorized to furnish a photocopy or other reproduction. One of these specific conditions is that the photocopy or reproduction is not to be “used for any purpose other than private study, scholarship, or research.” If a user makes a request for, or later uses, a photocopy or reproduction for purposes in excess of “fair use,” that user may be liable for copyright infringement. This institution reserves the right to refuse to accept a copying order if, in its judgment, fulfillment of the order would involve violation of copyright law.