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Anthony E. Roberts
Anthony Ellmaker Roberts (October 29, 1803 – January 23, 1885), was an American politician, member of the United States House of Representatives from 1855 to 1859, an abolitionist and close associate of Thaddeus Stevens.
Anthony Ellmaker Roberts was born near Barneston Station in Chester County, Pennsylvania. He was the son of John Roberts and Mary Ellmaker. His family moved to Lancaster County in 1804. Growing up, Roberts received the limited education available from the local common school. In 1816, at the age of thirteen, Roberts began working for his uncle Isaac Ellmaker as a clerk in Isaac's country store in New Holland; at the age of twenty, Anthony received a share in the ownership of the store, and continued in the business until 1839.
On October 8, 1839, Roberts was elected on the Democratic Antimasonic ticket as Sheriff of Lancaster County. He then moved to Lancaster City, where he served his three-year term as sheriff from 1839 to 1842. In the fall of 1843, Roberts ran for a seat on the Twenty-Eighth Congress on the Anti-Masonic Party ticket, but he was defeated by the Whig Party candidate, Jeremiah Brown. On May 16, 1850, Roberts was appointed by US President Zachary Taylor as the United States Marshal for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, a position he held until May 29, 1853.
Just a few months after Roberts was appointed Marshal, the United States Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Law as part of the Compromise of 1850. The law put Roberts in a difficult position as a Marshal who was also an abolitionist, because he was expected to enforce laws promoting the return of runaway slaves to the South or risk a fine of one thousand US$ per incident.
After many tense incidents in the north between local communities harboring runaway slaves and southern slave owners seeking to reclaim their "property". An incident arose in which blood was shed: on September 11, 1851, Edward Gorsuch, a Maryland slave owner, came to Christiana in Lancaster County to reclaim a runaway slave named Nelson Ford. A group of runaway slaves in Christiana, headed by William Parker, had formed a vigilante group to protect one another from any attempts by Southern slave owners to enslave them again.
Edward Gorsuch soon learned that his former slave was staying with William Parker. He went to William Parker's house along with a small posse to take back the slave he claimed to own. The fugitive slaves, led by William Parker, sounded an alarm, which summoned other blacks as well as some local white abolitionists. As Edward Gorsuch advanced to reclaim his "property", William Parker led an active resistance, and a small battle ensued. One hour later the incident was over and Gorsuch lay dead.
Two days later, Anthony Roberts was on the scene with a detachment of Philadelphia police. Those who participated in the resistance, including the white bystanders, were arrested and put on trial for treason, beginning with Castner Hanway, a white man who was not a Quaker but was sympathetic to Quaker ideals. Thaddeus Stevens took on the case as the defense attorney, while Roberts was responsible for keeping those on trial in custody.
The prosecuting attorneys held two blacks in "voluntary" custody for the case. These men discovered Edward Gorsuch's plot to reclaim his slaves the day before the resistance took place and warned William Parker. The prosecution was planning to use their testimony to prove that the Christiana incident was an organized effort to resist the laws of the United States. Two weeks before the trial began, however, the two blacks mysteriously disappeared from custody. The prosecution hinted that Marshal Roberts had let them go, since there was no evidence of a broken lock or use of force in their escape. The defense denied the accusation.
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Anthony E. Roberts
Anthony Ellmaker Roberts (October 29, 1803 – January 23, 1885), was an American politician, member of the United States House of Representatives from 1855 to 1859, an abolitionist and close associate of Thaddeus Stevens.
Anthony Ellmaker Roberts was born near Barneston Station in Chester County, Pennsylvania. He was the son of John Roberts and Mary Ellmaker. His family moved to Lancaster County in 1804. Growing up, Roberts received the limited education available from the local common school. In 1816, at the age of thirteen, Roberts began working for his uncle Isaac Ellmaker as a clerk in Isaac's country store in New Holland; at the age of twenty, Anthony received a share in the ownership of the store, and continued in the business until 1839.
On October 8, 1839, Roberts was elected on the Democratic Antimasonic ticket as Sheriff of Lancaster County. He then moved to Lancaster City, where he served his three-year term as sheriff from 1839 to 1842. In the fall of 1843, Roberts ran for a seat on the Twenty-Eighth Congress on the Anti-Masonic Party ticket, but he was defeated by the Whig Party candidate, Jeremiah Brown. On May 16, 1850, Roberts was appointed by US President Zachary Taylor as the United States Marshal for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, a position he held until May 29, 1853.
Just a few months after Roberts was appointed Marshal, the United States Congress passed the Fugitive Slave Law as part of the Compromise of 1850. The law put Roberts in a difficult position as a Marshal who was also an abolitionist, because he was expected to enforce laws promoting the return of runaway slaves to the South or risk a fine of one thousand US$ per incident.
After many tense incidents in the north between local communities harboring runaway slaves and southern slave owners seeking to reclaim their "property". An incident arose in which blood was shed: on September 11, 1851, Edward Gorsuch, a Maryland slave owner, came to Christiana in Lancaster County to reclaim a runaway slave named Nelson Ford. A group of runaway slaves in Christiana, headed by William Parker, had formed a vigilante group to protect one another from any attempts by Southern slave owners to enslave them again.
Edward Gorsuch soon learned that his former slave was staying with William Parker. He went to William Parker's house along with a small posse to take back the slave he claimed to own. The fugitive slaves, led by William Parker, sounded an alarm, which summoned other blacks as well as some local white abolitionists. As Edward Gorsuch advanced to reclaim his "property", William Parker led an active resistance, and a small battle ensued. One hour later the incident was over and Gorsuch lay dead.
Two days later, Anthony Roberts was on the scene with a detachment of Philadelphia police. Those who participated in the resistance, including the white bystanders, were arrested and put on trial for treason, beginning with Castner Hanway, a white man who was not a Quaker but was sympathetic to Quaker ideals. Thaddeus Stevens took on the case as the defense attorney, while Roberts was responsible for keeping those on trial in custody.
The prosecuting attorneys held two blacks in "voluntary" custody for the case. These men discovered Edward Gorsuch's plot to reclaim his slaves the day before the resistance took place and warned William Parker. The prosecution was planning to use their testimony to prove that the Christiana incident was an organized effort to resist the laws of the United States. Two weeks before the trial began, however, the two blacks mysteriously disappeared from custody. The prosecution hinted that Marshal Roberts had let them go, since there was no evidence of a broken lock or use of force in their escape. The defense denied the accusation.