No. 416
Crime, Eccentricity, and the Sporting Life in 19th Century America.
May 28, 2019
alias: REYNOLDS
SNEAK, BURGLAR
Artificial Intelligence would be an excellent tool for historical research, but for one flaw – it does not distinguish between fact and guesswork. I was researching Robert Sprague, who murdered his mother in Jasper County, Iowa, in 1868, and I could not find any information on his trial and sentencing. I decided to ask Grok, which very confidently returned a quite detailed answer, concluding
More...
Murder By Gaslight - 9/18/2025
Soapy Smith STAR NotebookPage 24 - Original copy1884Courtesy of Geri Murphy(Click image to enlarge)
oapy Smith's "STAR" notebook page 24, 1882 and 1884, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland. Steamer Ancon.
This post is on page 24, the last of the "STAR" notebook pages I have been deciphering and publishing for the last two years, since July 24, 2023. The page is two separate notes dated 1882
More...
Soapy Smith's Soap Box - 9/17/2025
Deep roots anchor P.J. Clarke’s, the restaurant and bar occupying a Civil War–era brick building with its top two floors sheered off at Third Avenue and 55th Street. Converted into a tavern in 1884 when Irish laborers held a large presence in the developing neighborhood, the building was bought by Irish immigrant Patrick “Paddy” J. […]
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Ephemeral New York - 9/15/2025
Welcome to this week's Link Dump!We have tea!A marriage ends with a murder/suicide."Through thick and thin" was originally used literally.How prehistoric humans survived a supervolcano.Why we call them "dive bars."So maybe deflecting asteroids isn't such a great idea.An extinct human species who appear to have buried their dead.You will be pleased to hear that scientists spend their time
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Strange Company - 9/19/2025
Soapy Smith STAR NotebookPage 24 - Original copy1884Courtesy of Geri Murphy(Click image to enlarge)
oapy Smith's "STAR" notebook page 24, 1882 and 1884, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Portland. Steamer Ancon.
This post is on page 24, the last of the "STAR" notebook pages I have been deciphering and publishing for the last two years, since July 24, 2023. The page is two separate notes dated 1882
More...
Soapy Smith's Soap Box - 9/17/2025
Stop by this week as we explore what happened the week before the murders, Emma and Lizzie’s getaway to Fairhaven and New Bedford, and new imagery which will help to tell the story. The pears are almost ripe, August 4th is coming fast, and thoughts begin to turn to that house on Second Street once again. Follow us at https://www.facebook.com/lizziebordenwarpsandwefts/ !
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Lizzie Borden: Warps and Wefts - 7/26/2025
Artificial Intelligence would be an excellent tool for historical research, but for one flaw – it does not distinguish between fact and guesswork. I was researching Robert Sprague, who murdered his mother in Jasper County, Iowa, in 1868, and I could not find any information on his trial and sentencing. I decided to ask Grok, which very confidently returned a quite detailed answer, concluding
More...
Murder By Gaslight - 9/18/2025
Welcome to this week's Link Dump!We have tea!A marriage ends with a murder/suicide."Through thick and thin" was originally used literally.How prehistoric humans survived a supervolcano.Why we call them "dive bars."So maybe deflecting asteroids isn't such a great idea.An extinct human species who appear to have buried their dead.You will be pleased to hear that scientists spend their time
More...
Strange Company - 9/19/2025
Deep roots anchor P.J. Clarke’s, the restaurant and bar occupying a Civil War–era brick building with its top two floors sheered off at Third Avenue and 55th Street. Converted into a tavern in 1884 when Irish laborers held a large presence in the developing neighborhood, the building was bought by Irish immigrant Patrick “Paddy” J. […]
More...
Ephemeral New York - 9/15/2025
The Bloody Century 2
Takes the reader back to 19th-century America in all its gory glory.
