Filed March 29, 1858, this is an affadavit by slaveowner C.A. Stovall in the case of "C.A. Stovall vs. Archie (Lee), a Slave," the only known federal Fugitive Slave case tried in California, a “free state.” Surviving proceedings documents in the case record, filed mostly by Stovall the slaveholder, give his versions of both his and Archie’s travels and activities, which began in Mississippi and proceeded all the way to Sacramento, California, and then to San Francisco, where Archie was arrested by the U.S. Marshal. The case was finally resolved by the U.S. Commissioner of San Francisco, who concluded on April 14, 1858, that Archie was not a fugitive slave and should be released.
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Today’s Document from the National Archives