Wicked Springfield: Crime, Corruption and Scandal During the Lincoln Era

In the twenty-four years that Abraham Lincoln lived in Springfield, the city saw its share of crime, corruption and scandal, much of it at the hands of Lincoln's law clients and acquaintances. Erika Holst sheds light on these shady characters, from the man being sued for divorce who claimed that he caught his venereal disease from an outhouse to Governor William Bissell, whose near duel with Jefferson Davis almost made him ineligible to hold office. Learn what prompted a congressional candidate- in an election clerked by Lincoln- to shout down his accuser as some 'spindle-shanked, toad-eating, man-granny, who feeds the depraved appetites of his patrons with gossip and slander.' Read the true stories that fed those depraved appetites, drawn from the newspapers Lincoln read and the docket where he practiced law. In these pages, discover the wicked side of Lincoln's Springfield.
1115141898
Wicked Springfield: Crime, Corruption and Scandal During the Lincoln Era

In the twenty-four years that Abraham Lincoln lived in Springfield, the city saw its share of crime, corruption and scandal, much of it at the hands of Lincoln's law clients and acquaintances. Erika Holst sheds light on these shady characters, from the man being sued for divorce who claimed that he caught his venereal disease from an outhouse to Governor William Bissell, whose near duel with Jefferson Davis almost made him ineligible to hold office. Learn what prompted a congressional candidate- in an election clerked by Lincoln- to shout down his accuser as some 'spindle-shanked, toad-eating, man-granny, who feeds the depraved appetites of his patrons with gossip and slander.' Read the true stories that fed those depraved appetites, drawn from the newspapers Lincoln read and the docket where he practiced law. In these pages, discover the wicked side of Lincoln's Springfield.
19.99 Out Of Stock
Wicked Springfield: Crime, Corruption and Scandal During the Lincoln Era

Wicked Springfield: Crime, Corruption and Scandal During the Lincoln Era

by Erika Holst
Wicked Springfield: Crime, Corruption and Scandal During the Lincoln Era

Wicked Springfield: Crime, Corruption and Scandal During the Lincoln Era

by Erika Holst

Paperback

$19.99 
  • SHIP THIS ITEM
    Temporarily Out of Stock Online
  • PICK UP IN STORE

    Your local store may have stock of this item.

Related collections and offers


Overview


In the twenty-four years that Abraham Lincoln lived in Springfield, the city saw its share of crime, corruption and scandal, much of it at the hands of Lincoln's law clients and acquaintances. Erika Holst sheds light on these shady characters, from the man being sued for divorce who claimed that he caught his venereal disease from an outhouse to Governor William Bissell, whose near duel with Jefferson Davis almost made him ineligible to hold office. Learn what prompted a congressional candidate- in an election clerked by Lincoln- to shout down his accuser as some 'spindle-shanked, toad-eating, man-granny, who feeds the depraved appetites of his patrons with gossip and slander.' Read the true stories that fed those depraved appetites, drawn from the newspapers Lincoln read and the docket where he practiced law. In these pages, discover the wicked side of Lincoln's Springfield.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781596299016
Publisher: History Press, The
Publication date: 03/28/2010
Pages: 127
Product dimensions: 6.00(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author


Erika Holst holds a master's degree from the Winterthur Program in Early American Culture. She has volunteered, interned and worked at museums and history projects throughout Illinois, including the David Davis Mansion State Historic Site in Bloomington, the McLean County Museum of History in Bloomington, the Cuneo Museum in Vernon Hills, Dickson Mounds Museum in Lewistown, the Papers of Abraham Lincoln, the Illinois State Museum and the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library in Springfield.

Table of Contents

Introduction 7

Chapter 1 Political Brawls 11

Fighting with Words 12

Fighting with Fists 16

Fighting (Fatally) with Firearms 21

Chapter 2 Governors' (Mis)Deeds 27

Joel Matteson and the Great Canal Scrip Scandal 28

William H. Bissell's Duel, Disingenuousness and Debilitating Disease 34

Chapter 3 Sex, Slander and Fighting 41

Lovers, Brothels and Venereal Diseases 43

Slanderous Statements and Atrocious Accusations 48

Fighting Dirty 50

Chapter 4 Slavery in the Emancipator's Hometown 55

Springfield's Slaves and Indentured Servants 57

The Fugitive Slave Case 59

Chapter 5 Abraham Lincoln's Scandal 67

The Poison Pen 67

The Duel 72

Chapter 6 Murder Most Foul 79

The Trailor Mystery: The Murder that Wasn't 80

Bumped Off in the Backyard 87

A Shot in the Dark 90

Infanticide of an Illegitimate Child 93

A Dance Turns Deadly 96

Chapter 7 Civil War Shenanigans 101

Revelry and Riots 103

An Officer with a Hair-Trigger Temper 107

Shot by a Soldier in the Street 109

Lincoln's Wartime Nepotism Gone Bad 112

Epilogue 117

Bibliography 121

About the Author 128

From the B&N Reads Blog

Customer Reviews