Slave shackles

November 1st, 2009 marks the 145th Anniversary of a landmark event in Maryland history, but an event little remembered by non-historians. On November 1st, 1864, with the Civil War entering its fourth bloody year, a new constitution went into effect in the State of Maryland, a constitution which abolished slavery. Exactly two centuries after Maryland had codified into law one man’s right to own another man, Maryland’s radical Unionists succeeded in reversing that odious portion of our constitution. To do so required some convoluted political maneuvers. Although the Unionists had political control of Maryland by this time in the war, secessionist sympathies and long held prejudices still held sway among the population. The Unionists, recognizing that anti-southern and pro-abolition sentiments were at their peak, knew this was their opportunity to reduce the “secesh” influence, which had almost caused the state to leave the Union in 1861. The Unionist members of the 1864 constitutional Convention added several provisions to further that goal. First, and foremost, they outlawed the owning of slaves. Second, the constitution disenfranchised, stripping the right to vote, of anyone who had given “aid, comfort, countenance or support…” to the rebellion. Having served, or having a relative in the Confederate army, having publicly expressed pro- southern sentiments, having been in southern territory and then returned; these reasons and more were grounds upon which a Maryland citizen could be denied a vote. Third, the convention attempted to reduce the influence of some of the smaller Maryland counties, those with large slave populations, which had historically supported both slavery and secession. The Unionists wanted to change the formula which determined how counties were represented in the legislature. Previous to 1864, the number of representatives was determined by a county’s total population. In what seems an oxymoronic way to reduce minority white power, the new constitution provided that legislative representation would be determined by counting the white population only. Since Maryland did not allow blacks to hold elected office (neither could they vote, as Maryland legislators did not ratify the 14th or 15th Amendments) only whites in a majority black county could be elected to the legislature, and those whites tended to be anti-abolitionists.

Although the radical Unionists succeeded at Convention to overpower the minority conservatives on most points, the made at least two concessions that had horrible consequences for thousands of African-American families freed from bondage. The first provision, known as ‘apprenticeship’, made it the duty of Marylands Orphan's Courts to bind out till they became of age " all negroes emancipated by the adoption of this Constitution, who are minors, incapable of supporting themselves, and whose parents are unable to maintain them," and that " in all cases the preference shall be given to their former masters, when in the judgment of said courts they are suitable persons to have charge of them." African-American children could once again be taken by force from parents, having been deemed unfit by a local magistrate, and returned to their former, or a new master. An amendment to require a master to provide the ‘apprentice’ with an education (as required for white apprentices) was defeated at the convention. The other concession was based on this statement in the constitution: “hereafter in this state, there shall be neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except in punishment of crime, whereof the party shall have been duly convicted; and all persons held to service or labor as slaves, are hereby declared free." Utilizing this loophole, the conservative members of the Maryland legislature then created new punishments for freedmen convicted of crimes, binding them to hard labor as involuntary servants. As late as 1866 advertisements appeared for public auctions selling an African-American, convicted for the crime of larceny, as a slave.

The actual vote for ratification was extremely close. Submitted to the people on October 12, 1864, the voters at the polls actually voted against the new constitution by 1,995 votes. However, a new provision included in the new constitution allowed for the inclusion of votes of Maryland soldiers in the Union Army. Although contested hotly, the soldier’s votes of 2,633 for, and only 263 against, gave the Unionists and their new constitution a victory with only the slimmest of margins: 375 votes.

As a result, on November 1, 1864 Maryland became, forevermore, a ‘free State’.

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