A statue honors a once-enslaved woman who won her freedom in court
A state representative found that many of his colleagues were largely unaware of the significance of the woman's case, which set the legal precedent that essentially ended slavery in Massachusetts.
The story of an enslaved woman who went to court to win her freedom more than 80 years before the Emancipation Proclamation had been pushed to the fringes of history.
A group of civic leaders, activists and historians hope that ended Sunday in the quiet Massachusetts town of Sheffield with the unveiling of a bronze statue of the woman who chose the name Elizabeth Freeman when she shed the chains of slavery 241 years ago to the day.
, while remarkable, remains relatively
