Sara Lucy Bagby fled from slavery in Wheeling on October 3, 1860. Her arrest in Cleveland, OH, on January 19, 1861, became a test case of the Fugitive Slave Act. Wheeling resident John Goshorn and his son showed proof of ownership, and the federal court ordered her return to Virginia. One of the last slaves returned to bondage under the law, Bagby received her freedom because of the Civil War.

Photo: Mark Parker

Photo: Mike Wintermantel

Bethlehem, West Virginia · USA