In 1846, the slave Dred Scott and his wife Harriet sued for their freedom in the Old Courthouse in St. Louis.
The case went all the way to the Supreme Court, which ruled against the Scotts in 1857.
Public outcry against the decision led to sectional conflict, the Lincoln-Douglas debates, the election of President Abraham Lincoln, the Civil War and then, the Emancipation Proclamation.
Slaves were freed, after the country was in flames, ignited by a spark in St. Louis.
