Very good David. Thank You

But the Dred Scott Supreme Court decision in 1857 (whether you liked it or not) superceeded Illinois State Laws. The Court held that African Americans, whether slave or free, could not be American citizens (until the 14th Amendment in 1866) and therefore had no standing to sue in federal court, and that the federal government had no power to regulate slavery in the federal territories acquired after the creation of the United States with the Ratification of the United States Constitution in 1788. That would include the Territory of "Illinois".

The mear tranporting of a slave accross a state line did not change the status of that person. This had previously been upheld in a New York court prior to the Dred Scott decision in the Armistad Incident.

So the question still remains. The Todd family of Kentucky were legal slave owners under the laws of the United States. So were these two "servants" the property of the Todd family, given by Mary's father for her privilege and comfort? This is the most logical explaination since reportedly Lincoln (being a lowly Law partner at the time)
wasn't supposed to be wealthy enough, according to legend, to afford to pay two free servants to keep house.

Even IF they were converted to "Indentured" servants what would have been the difference in their status from being a "slave"?

If this was the case then these two "servants" were still in effect slaves of the Todd family estate even if they were in the benevelent service of the 1st Lady elect.

So now what happened to these two "servants" when Lincoln went to Washington DC?

Were they emancipated in Illinois? Were they returned to Mary's father? If Lincoln took them to Washington was Lincoln paided the $100.00 each by the Federal Government for their freedom and were they then "recolonized" (what Lincoln supported) and shipped to Liberia, since owning slaves, indentured or otherwise in Washington, had been outlawed since 1850?

Question Question? What happen to these two individuals?