On This Day - What happened 13 February 1793 AD

On February 12, 1793, Washington signed into law the Fugitive Slave Act, which overrode state laws and courts, allowing agents to cross state lines to capture and return escaped slaves. Many in the north decried the law believing the act allowed bounty hunting and the kidnappings of blacks. The Slave Trade Act of 1794, limiting American involvement in the Atlantic slave trade, was also enacted.

The Electoral College unanimously elected him president on February 13, 1793, and John Adams as vice president by a vote of 77 to 50.