Rhode Island Passes First Colonial Law Restricting Slave Trade

Rhode Island enacted a law prohibiting the importation of enslaved people into the colony, the first such restriction by any American colony. The law declared all enslaved people imported after its passage to be free. However, it contained a significant loophole: it did not prohibit Rhode Island merchants from continuing to trade enslaved people to other colonies and markets. Newport remained a major slave-trade port for decades afterward.