Siya Sakhardande

Eminent domain is often seen as the acquisition of private property for public use, like public buildings and transportation systems. During the Civil War, eminent domain was used by both the Union and the Confederacy to impress goods for their efforts. The impressment of enslaved men occurred in the Confederacy for their labor on the battlefield and in the Union through the enlistment or the drafting of enslaved men. Eminent domain justifies the acquisition of private property by providing just compensation for its taking. Through my historical research, the compensation for the labor of these enslaved men to their owners is investigated. My evidence includes a slave impressment receipt issued in North Carolina in 1863, legislation from the Confederacy and the Union including the Slave Impressment Act of 1863 and the DC Compensated Emancipation Act. Exploring the idea of just compensation for the impressment of enslaved labor is an area that has not been explored by historians studying this subject matter. Eminent domain is often not seen as a wartime power of the United States government and in this case, the Confederate Government, so learning how these institutions navigated this power is crucial to the history of the Civil War and the legal powers of the U.S. government during war.