Edward Gorsuch's Original Fugitive Slave Petition and Ownership Documentation, Court Record - NARA - 278827

Scope and content: Mr. Gorsuch requests permission of the court to seek out and recover his fugitive slaves: Noah Baley, Nelson Ford, George Hammond, Joshua Hammond, Eli Ford, and Charles Ford. The Court did grant Edward Gorsuch the right to reclaim his slaves. But upon taking this action Mr. Gorsuch lost his life and caused the so-called Christiana Riot in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Some say this event foretold the onset of the Civil War. The accounts of the incident state that more than a hundred individuals gathered to prevent the arrest of fugitive slaves, Josh Hammond and Nelson Ford. One hundred and severteen indictments were handed down, making this the largest mass indictment for treason in our nation's history.