In 1801, a wealthy landowner who lived in present-day Arlington County freed his slaves and their descendants. His deed of emancipation would have ripple effects across Northern Virginia—especially for one woman, Julia Roberts, who sued over her long-promised freedom while living near the Barcroft, Arlington Forest, and Buckingham neighborhoods. Her case eventually wound up before the U.S. Supreme Court in Adams v. Roberts (1844).
Her story is one of personal bravery in the face of unimaginable injustice, but it is also a story of how the law was available as a tool for seeking freedom and justice.
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