Existing comment:
We the People
Definitions of citizenship and who qualified for such status and the accompanying rights have changed over time for both arriving immigrants who entered through Ellis Island and other immigration stations, as well as men and women born in the United States.
The 14th Amendment declares that "All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the state wherein they reside." Before passage of the 1922 Cable Act, however, a married woman's citizenship status followed that of her husband. Harriot Stanton Blatch, activist and daughter of suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton, lost her American citizenship when she moved to England with her British husband. Although born in New York, Blatch had to petition for US citizenship upon her return.
Fugitive slave William "Jerry" Henry escaped from slavery and began a new life as a barrel maker in Syracuse, New York. After Henry was captured by Federal marshals under the provisions of the Fugitive Slave Act, dozens of Syracuse residents helped him escape again. One of these, William Salmon, was charged with assisting in his escape in 1851. The 13th Amendment would alter abolish slavery throughout the United States. |