President Thomas Jefferson signs into law the Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves (2 Stat. 426), passed by Congress on March 2, 1807, prohibiting the importation of enslaved people into the United States effective January 1, 1808—the earliest date permitted by the Constitution’s Article I, …
Thomas JeffersonU.S. CongressJoseph Bradley Varnumslave-tradeslaveryconstitutional-deadlinefederal-legislation
Congress passes and President George Washington signs the Slave Trade Act of 1794, prohibiting American ships from being used in the international slave trade and making it illegal to build, outfit, equip, or dispatch vessels for slave trading purposes. The Act represents an early federal …
U.S. CongressGeorge WashingtonAmerican ship ownersslaveryinstitutional-corruptionslave-tradelimited-reform
The Constitutional Convention’s Committee of Eleven, chaired by William Livingston of New Jersey, recommends prohibiting Congress from banning slave importation until 1808—initially proposing twelve years but extending to twenty years after southern delegates demand more time. This compromise, …
Committee of ElevenWilliam LivingstonJohn RutledgeCharles PinckneyRoger Sherman+2 moreslaveryslave-tradeconstitutional-designinstitutional-corruptionslave-power+1 more