No. 643
Crime, Eccentricity, and the Sporting Life in 19th Century America.
August 02, 2022

A Transparent Rigg.

Benjamin, of that name, vainly attempts to break a bank in female disguise at Palmerston, Ontario.
August 2, 2022
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New York didn’t invent April Fools Day; this holiday might date back all the way to ancient Rome. But starting in the 19th century, April 1 in Gotham has been a day to celebrate with stupid pranks, outrageous hoaxes, the mocking of politicians and business leaders, and since 1986, a parade down Fifth Avenue. This […]
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Ephemeral New York - 3/30/2026
"As his son I am proud of hisefforts to succeed in life"Jefferson Randolph Smith IIIArtifact #93-2Jeff Smith collection(Click image to enlarge) oapy's son hires a legal firm to stop the defamation of his father's name. At age 30, Jefferson Randolph Smith III, Soapy and Mary's oldest son, was protecting his father's legacy and his mother's reputation from "libel" and scandal. He was also
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Soapy Smith's Soap Box - 10/13/2025
 Welcome to this week's Link Dump!Our host for this Friday is the handsome mascot (name unknown) of the S.S. Custodian, a cargo ship that was active during the first half of the 20th century.New research into the Battle of Hastings.The wonders of Mayan astronomy.The importance of horses in the Mughal Empire.A famous film of Bigfoot is probably a hoax.  I know, shocker.What it was like
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Strange Company - 3/27/2026
Youth With Executioner by Nuremberg native Albrecht Dürer … although it’s dated to 1493, which was during a period of several years when Dürer worked abroad. November 13 [1617]. Burnt alive here a miller of Manberna, who however was lately … Continue reading
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Executed Today - 11/13/2020
National Police Gazette, January 28, 1882Mrs. J.W. Gibbons was away from her home in Ashland, Kentucky, on December 23, 1881. She left behind her 18-year-old son Robert, her 14-year-old daughter Fannie, and 17-year-old Emma Thomas (aka Carico), who was staying with them. Mrs. Gibbons returned the following day to find her home burned to the ground and all three inhabitants dead.Read the full
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Murder By Gaslight - 3/28/2026
Whatever you believe about the guilt or innocence of Lizzie Borden, I have always believed film makers do a great injustice to the story by not beginning at the beginning- the death on March 26, 1863 of the first Mrs. Borden. In the dying moments of Sarah Morse, Emma takes on the weight of the care of her little sister, not yet three years old. Emma herself was just 12 on March 1st. Emma has seen her mother suffer for a long time, seen her pain and loss of little Alice Esther. Emma is old enough
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Lizzie Borden: Warps and Wefts - 3/26/2026
  [Editor’s note: Guest writer, Peter Dickson, lives in West Sussex, England and has been working with microfilm copies of The Duncan Campbell Papers from the State Library of NSW, Sydney, Australia. The following are some of his analyses of what he has discovered from reading these papers. Dickson has contributed many transcriptions to the Jamaica […]
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Early American Crime - 2/7/2019
A Hot Day in New York. | Eaten by Sharks.

A Transparent Rigg.

Transparent-Rigg

A daring attempt was made to rob Scott's bank at Palmerston, Ontario, Canada, on the morning of June 9th. By a ruse J. W. Scott, proprietor, was got rid of, and about eleven o'clock a person closely-veiled and dressed in woman's clothes went into the office and wished to deposit $2.000. Teller Bert Boomer showed his customer to a seat in the private office until he got through with other customers. When he returned to the veiled one he was asked to lock the door until the deposit was made. As the customer appeared very nervous Boomer complied with the request. and on returning to the private office the party displayed a large knife and ordered him into the washroom. Boomer refused to go and a struggle ensued, the teller getting badly cut and otherwise injured, Finally he overcame the robber, took the knife from him and on stripping the veil from his face found himself confronted by one Ben Rigg, a resident of the town. Rigg was arrested.


National Police Gazette, July 3, 1886.