On 16 April 1862, Congress passed an act abolishing slavery in the District of Columbia. Owners were required to file a schedule of slaves with the court, which issued certificates of freedom. On 12 July 1862, another act permitted minor or absentee owners and slaves themselves to file for certificates of freedom. Four slaves belonging to Benjamin L. Jackson seek their freedom. The slaves petitioning are William Williams, sixty years of age, Charlotte Smith, thirty years of age, Mary Catharine Smith, six years of age, and Ann Amelia Smith, five years of age.
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Repository: National Archives, Washington, D. C.
