Exhibits

The Freedom Suits Exhibit NOW OPEN THROUGH DECEMBER 3

Thank you to those who visited our recent exhibit, Slavery in St. Louis (now in Jefferson County). You can still join us to see  The Freedom Suits, an exhibit created for the Law Library by the Missouri State Archives-St. Louis. On view through December 3 at the Law Library Associaton of St. Louis, 10 N. Tucker Blvd., 13th Floor (in the Civil Courts Building, between Market and Chestnut Streets). Normal viewing hours for the exhibit are Monday-Friday, 8:30 AM to 5:00 PM. For more information or to arrange a group tour, contact Gail Wechsler at gwechsler@llastl.org or call 314-622-4470.  

The Freedom Suits exhibit includes original, rarely-seen court pleadings of three different types of claims made by enslaved people seeking their freedom.  The exhibit also includes explanatory panels about

(1) Freedom suits in general – what were they and how did they work in the context of slavery in Missouri

(2) Freedom suits in St. Louis – highlights some of the freedom suits in St. Louis within the context of slavery in St. Louis

(3) Freedom suits in other parts of Missouri – highlights 20+ freedom suits from other parts of the state

Connected events: 

Meet and Greet the Judges, September 12th, 4:00 - 6:00 pm in the Law Library.   It is an informal opportunity to meet with judges in the St. Louis community and view the exhibits.  Thanks to all who came! 

Lunchtime Talk and Tour, September 26, 12:30 to 1:30 PM in the Law Library--with Nick Sacco of the Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site and Washington University Professor of African and African-American Studies Kelly Schmidt. Thanks to all who came! 

CLES: We have two upcoming CLEs related to the exhibit. 

In October, Judge Christopher Cross speaks on the history of racial injustice in America and the hope created by emancipation, the Thirteenth, Fourteenth, and Fifteenth Amendments, and Reconstruction.  For more details on the October 16 CLE click here.

In December, learn more from historian and author Dorris Keeven-Franke about the issue of Confiscation and Contraband during the Civil War, as demonstrated by the case of Archer Alexander, a freedom seeker buried in St. Louis.  For more on the December 4 CLE, click here.

Presenting sponsors:

Law Library Association of St. Louis
The Freedom Suits Memorial Foundation

Additional sponsors

Gold sponsors:

• AJ Legal Services LLC
• Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice LLC
• Bar Association of Metropolitan St. Louis
• Brown & James Law Firm
• Dowd Bennett 
• Michael and Laura Ellenhorn
• Husch Blackwell
• Legal Services of Eastern Missouri
• Lexitas 
• Littler Mendelson PC 
• Thompson Coburn LLP

Bronze sponsors:

• Thomas and Sara Neill

The Slavery in St. Louis exhibit runs from Tuesday September 3 through Tuesday October 1, 2024. The Freedom Suits exhibit runs from Tuesday September 3 through Tuesday December 3, 2024.  

For more information and for sponsorship opportunities, contact Library Director Gail Wechsler at gwechsler@llastl.org or 314-622-4470.