The controversial Dred Scott case of 1857 is considered a landmark in the debate over slavery in the United States. Few realize that Scott once lived in Illinois.

The Supreme Court decision on Scott determined that Blacks could not be U.S. citizens, and therefore had no right to sue in federal court. The majority opinion, written by Chief Justice Roger B. Taney, became a flashpoint in the slavery debate.

The impetus for the case was set in the early 1830s. Scott, a St. Louis slave, was sold to Dr. John Emerson, a civilian doctor who gained a U.S. Army appointment as assistant surgeon in 1833. Late that year, Emerson was assigned to Fort Armstrong at Rock Island, where he served until May 1836.

“Dred Scott came with Emerson as his valet,” said Virgil Mayberry of Rock Island, an authority on Black history. “That’s what they were called at times, rather than slaves. He was illiterate, but he was not dumb. He assisted Emerson with surgery, among other things.”

Two factors should have entitled Scott to his freedom. Not only did the Northwest Ordinance of 1787 prohibit slavery between the Great Lakes and the Mississippi and Ohio rivers, but slavery was also barred under the Illinois Constitution. However, Scott did not sue for his freedom, for reasons that remain unclear.

While most sources report Scott as an Illinois resident, Mayberry disputes that claim based on his own research. “Dred Scott actually built a log cabin and homesteaded a piece of property near the I-74 bridge, in what is today Bettendorf, Iowa,” Mayberry said. “Emerson owned the land, and Scott was farming it for him. I don’t know that Dred really ever lived in Illinois.”

Bettendorf is one of the communities that make up the Quad Cities region, which is divided by the Mississippi River and includes Rock Island, Moline and Davenport, Iowa.

Emerson was then assigned to Fort Snelling in the Wisconsin Territory (now St. Paul, Minnesota) until October 1837, a territory governed by the Missouri Compromise of 1820, which prohibited slavery north of 36′ 30″. Again, Scott did not pursue his freedom. While there, he met and married Harriet, another slave.

Emerson requested and received an assignment back to St. Louis, subsequently serving in Louisiana and Florida. He was also briefly sent back to Fort Snelling, accompanied by the Scotts, though they did not travel with Emerson on each assignment. Emerson was discharged in August 1842, settled in Davenport, and died the next year.

In 1846, Dred and Harriet Scott filed separate petitions in St. Louis Circuit Court against Emerson’s widow Irene, whom he married in 1838, for their freedom, based on their past residences in free territory. The Scotts each signed their petitions with an “X” and were supported by the descendants of the Blow family, which had sold Dred to Emerson.

Despite precedents in their favor, various courts ruled for and against the Scotts for over a decade, and the case eventually advanced to the U.S. Supreme Court. On March 6, 1857, the court ruled that Blacks were not American citizens and had no right to sue. Scott’s claim of freedom since he had resided in a free state was also disallowed. The decision, in effect, ruled the Missouri Compromise unconstitutional, arguing that Congress was unable to block slavery from territories.

Many of the justices were Southern-leaning, including Taney, a committed Southern sympathizer and former slave owner. The decision incensed abolitionists and drew the ire of Abraham Lincoln, who declared Taney had “assumed historical facts which are not really true.” Lincoln later clashed with Taney as president.

Ownership of Scott eventually passed to a Massachusetts Congressman, Calvin Chaffee, who had married Emerson’s widow. Soon after the decision, Chaffee, in turn, gave ownership to Taylor Blow, whose family had owned Scott and had helped in his quest for freedom. Blow freed Scott on May 26, 1857.

Dred Scott died on Sept. 17, 1858. His remains were eventually interred in Calvary Cemetery in St. Louis, where his grave was unmarked for nearly a century. In 1957, on the centennial of the infamous Supreme Court decision, a simple marker was placed on the site.

Mayberry wants more Americans to understand the significance of Dred Scott.

“Not enough people of any race appreciate history as they should,” Mayberry said. “This happened right here, where we live. Unfortunately, I think 95% of people in the Quad Cities, or anywhere else for that matter, don’t even know who Dred Scott was.”

• Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher from Carlinville, Illinois. He may be reached at 217-710-8392 or ilcivilwar@yahoo.com.