No. 380
Crime, Eccentricity, and the Sporting Life in 19th Century America.
August 30, 2017

Hugged and Kissed Each Other’s Wife.

The Mason-Wooley families pay an election bet in the presence of a large crowd, Putnam, MD.
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August 30, 2017
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Tag: Court

That Settled It.

A Chicago man wants a divorce because his wife sings Salvation hymns, gains his suit by having her give an exhibition of her vocal powers in court.

1/22/2018

She Played Kissy Kissy

12/6/2011

Driven by Delusion

Henry Goodwin entered the office of his partner, Albert Swan, pulled out a revolver and shot him.

11/14/2011

Trixie Got the Best of It.

Two Little Gem Theatre, Buffalo, N. Y., Soubrettes have a scrap on account of a man.

10/8/2011
JOHN LOVE
alias: JAMES D WELLS
SNEAK, BANK BURGLAR

Trial of the Century commences June 5, 1893

Be sure to follow the trial every day on our facebook page. This will be our fourth year showcasing the trial. This year the coverage will be augmented with AI reels and images to help put you on the spot! https://www.facebook.com/lizziebordenwarpsandwefts/
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Lizzie Borden: Warps and Wefts - 6/4/2026

Artifact #93: Soapy's son, hires attorney to stop the slurring of his father's name.

"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
Amen.

Newspaper Clipping of the Day

Via Newspapers.com Proof of reincarnation--sort of--appeared in the “Ottawa Citizen," December 16, 1933:LONDON (by mail).-Here is the man who has "died" three times in three years. He is Mr. Tim Sandell, of Templar street, Camberwell.On the first occasion the report spread among his friends that he had met with a sudden and mysterious death, and that a post-mortem was to be made. His wife's
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Strange Company - 6/3/2026

1617: A miller of Manberna, the hangman’s last

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

Jack the Strangler Post-Mortem.

Strangler Suspect, Jacob Tolker(New York Journal, May 14, 1897)Eight women were strangled—seven fatally— on Manhattan’s East Side, between May 1894 and August 1900. While the police closed three of the cases, their solutions were so weak that the New York City newspapers continued to list them all as unsolved and continued to speculate that one man committed all eight crimes. “It is not difficult
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Murder By Gaslight - 5/31/2026
On the Russians.

All the beaches open for swimming in Depression-era New York City, according to a subway poster

Say what you want about Robert Moses. But as Parks Commissioner in the 1930s, he opened 11 new public municipal pools across the five boroughs—helping residents keep cool and resist the lure of swimming in the East or Hudson River, which amazingly people used to do. Moses, a swim fan himself, also championed and helped […]
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Ephemeral New York - 6/1/2026

Convicts to Maryland, 1773 by Peter Dickson

  [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 Female Card Sharp.

Hugged and Kissed Each Other’s Wife.

Hugged and Kissed Each Other's Wife

The Mason-Wooley families pay an election bet in the presence of a large crowd, Putnam, MD. [more]

John Mason and Martin Wooley recently hugged and kissed each other’s wives in the Town Hall at Putnam, Md., in the presence of 500 people. This remarkable exhibition was made in payment of election bets made, one by the husbands and the other by the wives, by which each wagered the caresses of his or her mate on the election result.

Reprinted from National Police Gazette, December 3, 1892.

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