The US Supreme Court delivers the Dred Scott decision, in which the justices declare that enslaved Missouri man Dred Scott, not being a citizen, has no right to bring suit. Scott had lived at Fort Snelling and in other "free" areas with his owner, Dr. John Emerson, and he claimed that residence in free states and territories made him a free man. While living at Fort Snelling from 1836 to 1838, Scott married Harriet Robinson, an enslaved woman owned by Indian agent Lawrence Taliaferro.