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Arkansas city honors enslaved man who fled to Canada and was later extradited

The unprecedented 1842 extradition of Nelson Hackett from Canada sparked an uproar in the British colony
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People gather during a dedication ceremony on the Fayetteville square renaming Archibald Yell Boulevard to Nelson Hackett Boulevard on Friday, June 16, 2023 in Fayetteville, Ark. Hackett was the first and last slave to be extradited from Canada back to the United States. A marker telling his story was installed Friday in the flower bed at the northwest corner of the downtown square, in front of the Bank of Fayetteville, the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported. (J.T. Wampler/The Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette via AP)

An enslaved man who fled Arkansas in 1841 seeking freedom in Canada, only to be forcibly returned to the U.S., has been honored with a historical marker and a new street sign in the city where he once labored.

The unprecedented 1842 extradition of Nelson Hackett from Canada on a theft charge sparked an uproar in the British colony, which had long been viewed as a safe haven for escaped slaves.

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