The Art of the English Murder

The Art of the English Murder

Lucy Worsley

Although the title would seem to imply this book is a look into the art of murder itself, it is actually about art inspired by murder. From the broadsides of the early 1800's sold by street vendors, to the modern detective story, this book follows the intertwined history of police work, murder itself, and the sometimes fictional accounts of celebrated murders. It also visits the Victorian tendency to take souveniers from murder scenes, whether officially or by stealth. These range from Staffordshire porcelain pieces of murder scenes and murderers, to a biograhpy of a murderer bound with his own skin. How these all intertwined to create the development of modern police methods, as well as the changing views and sympathies to police, murderer, and murdered is followed from landmark true crime cases like the Ratcliffe Highway Murders, to the Road Hill House murders, through more modern landmarks as Jack the Ripper, and modern forensic technology to the rise of female crime novelists between World Wars in the Golden Age of detective fiction.

A great deal of the cases and technological developments can be found covered in numerous anthologies of true crime, but this book expands upon these by following the impact they had upon both the creation and consumption of contemporary art. The infamous Red Barn of the Maria Marten murder, for example, spurred printed stories (including the mysterious vision that led to the capture and trial of the murderer), artistic depictions of the murder scene (including an engraving that shows the barn partially pulled apart by souvenier seekers), and depictions of the murdered, murderer and building in porcelain. The photo plates include many historic items, such as original puppets used by traveling showmen to re-enact the murder of Maria Marten, the infamous human skin bound volume of the biography of murderer William Corder, through the more modern "Eric the Skull" used in the rituals of the Detection Club formed of modern detective writers.

Overall, I would categorise this as a "fun" read, despite the gruesome subject, rather than a scholarly work, but this in no way diminishes the guilty pleasure of the enjoyment provided by both true and fictional crime stories depicted.

Murder in St. Augustine

Murder in St. Augustine
The Mysteriousd Death of Athalia Ponsell Lindsley

Elizabeth Randall

Did white Southern respectability politics allow a murderer to go free in 1970's Florida? The author makes a convincing case, bolstered by the convenient lapses and disappearances of documentation and evidence in the hands of the local sheriff's office and court.

Athalia Ponsell Lindsley was everything that was hated by the "respectable" demographics in the south at the time - independent, outspoken, and willing to go toe-to-toe with not just men, but white men in power from "good" families with a long local history. The likelihood that this is what led to her brutal murder by machete on her own doorstep is laid out in this book. The evidence is damning - paper trails of receipts, credit card statements, and even laundry marks tie the bloody evidence to Alan Stanford, county manager at the time. Neighbors and local gossip, as well as records of county commission meetings show the antagonism behind a man with at best questionable qualifications for his job, and the subsequent feud with as his neighbor tried to get him removed from his position. Despite what would appear to be rock solid evidence, a local church took up a collection for his expenses, and local papers portrayed the probable murderer as a respectable man unfairly framed by the police, even though all evidence points in exactly the opposite direction.

As a native small-town Floridian, I have no problem believing that a jury, especially at that time, would gladly excuse a murder by a local man from a "respectable" family, especially when the victim was an "uppity" outsider who dared to work for civil rights and challenge the white patriachy at the time. In fact, it is mentioned in the book that many people at the time felt that Athalia Lindsley "got what she deserved", and were willing to look the other way in the face of evidence, as long as the perpertator quietly removed himself from the area once released. Even more saddening and horrifying is the realization that such motives and privilege still allow crimes to go unpunished, if you are from the right family, social class, and have the finances and social connections to give you access to good lawyers.

Six Women of Salem

Six Women of Salem
The Untold Story of the Accused and Their Accusers in the Salem Witch Trials

Marilynne K. Roach

I think most of us are familiar with the stories of the events in Salem Massachusetts from 1692. This book takes a different view. Rather than just a historical recounting, it focuses on the actual lives (with period appropriate speculative sections told from the point of view of the likely thoughts, lives, and beliefs of the women in question). Both accuser and accused are represented here: Rebecca Nurse, Bridget Bishop, Mary English, Ann Putnam Sr., Tituba, and Mary Warren. Through this, you gain more insight into the socio-economic factors at play, both in the actual trials, and in the day to day lives of these women which ultimately led to their roles as accused and accuser.

Rather than harsh condemnation on either side, Roach looks at the societal factors that led to the accusers not being able to retract their statments, or for the ones who tried how and why their recantations were swept aside. Even for the imprisoned accused, we see the drastic differences between the treatment of those who were better off financially and able to bribe their way to freedom by escaping to a different state, and that of Tituba, who was left in jail long after the trials until she was sold as nothing more than unclaimed property. There is also analysis, based on more modern understanding of psychological trauma, of what may have led the accusers to instigate the witch hunts - from the likelihood of mental issues following the traumatic loss of a child, to basic human greed and ignorance.

Overall, I found this one of the most sympathetic and thought provoking accounts I've read, as it focuses on the lives of the women involved, rather than the lives of the men who were in charge of law and government at the time. I am greatly looking forward to reading her other works.