Abstract
In 1866, the West Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals upheld a divorce issued to a woman who had fled her home after her husband had been “negligent, intemperate in drinking ardent spirits, and abusive and violent to her, frequently beating her with great bodily hurt.” The ruling by the state supreme court ensured Aveline Hitchcox’s divorce, rights to all her pre-marital property, and full custody of the couple’s children. During the age of emancipation, ideas of freedom were in flux, including those regarding women’s roles within the household and society; Aveline Hitchcox was in the middle of a re-evaluation of gender roles not only in her own state, but throughout the country. 4 ALLISON FREDETTE / THE VIEW FROM THE BORDER
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