List of United States Supreme Court cases, volume 60

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This is a list of cases reported in volume 60 (19 How.) of United States Reports, decided by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1856 and 1857.

In 1874, the U. S. government created the United States Reports, and retroactively numbered older privately published case reports as part of the new series. As a result, cases appearing in volumes 1–90 of U. S. Reports have dual citation forms; one for the volume number of U. S. Reports, and one for the volume number of the reports named for the relevant reporter of decisions (these are called "nominative reports").

Starting with the 42nd volume of U. S. Reports, the Reporter of Decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States was Benjamin Chew Howard. Howard was Reporter of Decisions from 1843 to 1860, covering volumes 42 through 65 of United States Reports which correspond to volumes 1 through 24 of his Howard's Reports. As such, the dual form of citation to, for example, Lathrop v. Judson is 60 U. S. (19 How.) 66 (1857).

The Supreme Court is established by Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of the United States, which says: "The judicial Power of the United States, shall be vested in one supreme Court . . ". The size of the Court is not specified; the Constitution leaves it to Congress to set the number of justices. Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 Congress originally fixed the number of justices at six (one chief justice and five associate justices). Since 1789 Congress has varied the size of the Court from six to seven, nine, ten, and back to nine justices (always including one chief justice). When the cases in 60 U. S. (19 How.) were decided the Court comprised these nine members:

Portrait Justice Office Home State Succeeded Date confirmed by the Senate(Vote) Tenure on Supreme Court Roger B. Taney Chief Justice Maryland John Marshall March 15, 1836(29–15) March 28, 1836–October 12, 1864(Died) John McLean Associate Justice Ohio Robert Trimble March 7, 1829(Acclamation) January 11, 1830–April 4, 1861(Died) James Moore Wayne Associate Justice Georgia William Johnson January 9, 1835(Acclamation) January 14, 1835–July 5, 1867(Died) John Catron Associate Justice Tennessee newly created seat March 8, 1837(28–15) May 1, 1837–May 30, 1865(Died) Peter Vivian Daniel Associate Justice Virginia Philip P. Barbour March 2, 1841(25–5) January 10, 1842–May 31, 1860(Died) Samuel Nelson Associate Justice New York Smith Thompson February 14, 1845(Acclamation) February 27, 1845–November 28, 1872(Retired) Robert Cooper Grier Associate Justice Pennsylvania Henry Baldwin August 4, 1846(Acclamation) August 10, 1846–January 31, 1870(Retired) Benjamin Robbins Curtis Associate Justice Massachusetts Levi Woodbury December 20, 1851(Acclamation) October 10, 1851–September 30, 1857(Resigned) John Archibald Campbell Associate Justice Alabama John McKinley March 22, 1853(Acclamation) April 11, 1853–April 30, 1861(Resigned)

Scott v. Sandford, 60 U. S. (19 How.) 393 (1857), is the most notorious and condemned decision in the history of the U. S. Supreme Court. In it, the Court held that the US Constitution was not meant to include American citizenship for black people, regardless of whether they were enslaved or free, and so the rights and privileges that the Constitution confers upon American citizens could not apply to them. Although Chief Justice Roger Taney and several of the other justices hoped that the decision would permanently settle the slavery controversy, which was increasingly dividing the American public, the decision's effect was the opposite. Taney's majority opinion suited the slaveholding states, but was intensely decried in the other states. The decision inflamed the national debate over slavery and deepened the divide that led ultimately to the Civil War. In 1865, after the Union won the Civil War, the Dred Scott ruling was voided by the Thirteenth Amendment to the US Constitution, which abolished slavery except as punishment for a crime, and the Fourteenth Amendment, which guaranteed citizenship for "all persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof". The Supreme Court's decision has been continuously denounced ever since, both for its overt racism and its role in the near destruction of the United States four years later. Bernard Schwartz said that it "stands first in any list of the worst Supreme Court decisions—Chief Justice Hughes called it the Court's greatest self inflicted wound." Junius P. Rodriguez wrote that it is "universally condemned as the U. S. Supreme Court's worst decision". Historian David Thomas Konig agrees that it was "unquestionably, our court's worst decision ever."

Under the Judiciary Act of 1789 the federal court structure at the time comprised District Courts, which had general trial jurisdiction; Circuit Courts, which had mixed trial and appellate (from the US District Courts) jurisdiction; and the United States Supreme Court, which had appellate jurisdiction over the federal District and Circuit courts—and for certain issues over state courts. The Supreme Court also had limited original jurisdiction (i. e., in which cases could be filed directly with the Supreme Court without first having been heard by a lower federal or state court). There were one or more federal District Courts and/or Circuit Courts in each state, territory, or other geographical region. Bluebook citation style is used for case names, citations, and jurisdictions. "C. C. D." = United States Circuit Court for the District of . e. g.,"C. C. D. N. J." = United States Circuit Court for the District of New Jersey
"D." = United States District Court for the District of . e. g.,"D. Mass." = United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts
"E." = Eastern; "M." = Middle; "N." = Northern; "S." = Southern; "W." = Western
e. g.,"C. C. S. D. N. Y." = United States Circuit Court for the Southern District of New York
e. g.,"M. D. Ala." = United States District Court for the Middle District of Alabama
"Ct. Cl." = United States Court of Claims
The abbreviation of a state's name alone indicates the highest appellate court in that state's judiciary at the time. e. g.,"Pa." = Supreme Court of Pennsylvania
e. g.,"Me." = Supreme Judicial Court of Maine

Case Name Page and year Opinion of the Court Concurring opinion(s) Dissenting opinion(s) Lower court Disposition Prevost v. Greneaux 1 (1857) Taney none none La. affirmed Morgan v. Curtenius 8 (1857) Taney none none C. C. D. Ill. continued Ex parte Secombe 9 (1857) Taney none none Sup. Ct. Terr. Minn. mandamus denied Shaffer v. Scudday 16 (1857) Taney none none La. dismissed Thomas v. Osborn 22 (1856) Curtis none Taney C. C. D. Md. remand to dismiss Ure v. Coffman 56 (1857) Wayne none none C. C. E. D. La. affirmed Stevens v. Gladding 64 (1857) McLean none none C. C. D. R. I. affirmed Lathrop v. Judson 66 (1857) McLean none none C. C. E. D. La. affirmed Moore v. Greene 69 (1856) McLean none none C. C. D. R. I. affirmed Betts v. Lewis 72 (1857) Curtis none none N. D. Ala. remand for amendment United States v. Le Baron 73 (1856) Curtis none none C. C. S. D. Ala. reversed Willot v. Sandford 79 (1856) Catron none none
C. C. D. Mo. reversed Vandewater v. Mills 82 (1857) Grier none none C. C. D. Cal. affirmed The Brig Neurea 92 (1856) Grier none none N. D. Cal. reversed Seymour v. McCormick 96 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. N. D. N. Y. affirmed The Steamer St. Charles 108 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. E. D. La. reversed Coiron v. Millaudon 113 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. E. D. La. affirmed Long v. O'Fallon 116 (1856) Campbell none none C. C. D. Mo. affirmed Baker v. Nachtrieb 126 (1856) Campbell none none C. C. W. D. Pa. reversed Meegan v. Boyle 130 (1857) McLean none none C. C. D. Mo. affirmed Post v. Jones 150 (1857) Grier none none C. C. S. D. N. Y. reversed E. I. DuPont de Nemours Company v. Vance 162 (1857) Curtis none Campbell C. C. E. D. La. reversed The Steamer Virginia 182 (1857) Taney none none C. C. D. Md. dismissed Brown v. Duchesne 183 (1857) Taney none none C. C. D. Mass. affirmed Mordecai v. Lindsay 199 (1857) Wayne none none C. C. D. S. C. reversed Cousin v. Labatut 202 (1857) Catron none none La. reversed Hartshorn v. Day 211 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. D. R. I. reversed Slater v. Emerson 224 (1857) McLean none none C. C. D. Mass. reversed Schuchardt v. Babbidge 239 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. S. D. N. Y. affirmed New York and Virginia Steamship Company v. Calderwood 241 (1857) Campbell none none C. C. S. D. N. Y. affirmed Williams v. Hill McLane and Company 246 (1857) Campbell none none M. D. Ala. affirmed Bell v. Hearne 252 (1857) Campbell none none La. reversed Richardson v. City of Boston 263 (1857) Grier none none C. C. D. R. I. reversed Hipp v. Babin 271 (1857) Campbell none none C. C. E. D. La. affirmed Wolfe v. Lewis 280 (1857) McLean none none N. D. Ala. reversed Beebe v. Russell 283 (1857) Wayne none none C. C. D. Ark. dismissed Farrelly v. Woodfolk 288 (1857) Wayne none none C. C. E. D. Ark. dismissed Babcock v. Wyman 289 (1857) McLean none Catron, Campbell C. C. D. Mass. affirmed Byers v. Surget 303 (1857) Daniel none none C. C. E. D. Ark. affirmed Garrison v. Memphis Insurance Company 312 (1857) Campbell none none C. C. D. Mo. affirmed Commercial Mutual Marine Insurance Company v. Union Mutual Insurance Company of New York 318 (1857) Curtis none none C. C. D. Mass. affirmed Field v. Seabury I 323 (1857) Wayne none none C. C. D. Cal. reversed Field v. Seabury II 333 (1857) Wayne none none C. C. D. Cal. reversed Bryan v. Forsyth 334 (1857) Catron none McLean C. C. N. D. Ill. reversed Ballance v. Papin 342 (1857) Catron none none C. C. N. D. Ill. reversed United States v. Peralta 343 (1857) Grier none none S. D. Cal. affirmed McCullough v. Roots 349 (1857) Campbell none none C. C. D. Md. affirmed Walton v. Cotton 355 (1857) McLean none Curtis Tenn. reversed Pratt v. Reed 359 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. N. D. N. Y. reversed The Steam Boat Sultana 362 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. N. D. N. Y. affirmed United States v. Sutherland 363 (1857) Grier none none S. D. Cal. affirmed Fellows v. Blacksmith 366 (1857) Nelson none none N. Y. Sup. Ct. affirmed Roberts v. Cooper 373 (1857) Wayne none none C. C. D. Mich. bond increase denied McRea v. Bank of Alabama 376 (1857) Curtis none none C. C. E. D. Ark. affirmed Michigan Central Railroad Company v. Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railway Company 378 (1857) Grier none none Mich. dismissed Ballard v. Thomas 382 (1857) Nelson none none C. C. D. Md. affirmed Platt v. Jerome 384 (1856) Nelson none none C. C. S. D. N. Y. appeal denied United States v. City Bank of Columbus 385 (1857) Daniel none none C. C. S. D. Ohio certification Burke v. Gaines 388 (1857) Taney none none Ark. dismissed Bulkley v. Honold 390 (1857) Curtis none none C. C. E. D. La. affirmed Scott v. Sandford 393 (1857) Taney Wayne, Catron, Daniel, Grier, Campbell Curtis, McLean C. C. D. Mo. reversed