Speaking Ill of the Dead: Jerks in Ohio History - Paperback

by Susan Sawyer (Author)

Each volume in this series features fifteen to twenty short biographies of notorious bad guys, perpetrators of mischief, visionary if misunderstood thinkers, and other colorful antiheroes from the history of a given city, state, or region of the U.S. The villainous, the misguided, and the misunderstood all get their due in these entertaining yet informing books. Ohio has more than its fair share of stories of women who chose arsenic as the way to eliminate "problems" from their lives, along with corrupt politicians, thieves, unscrupulous gamblers, and other con artists. Read about Dr. John Cook Bennett, who made a fortune off his belief that diplomas were better bought than earned; Olympic gold medalist James Snook, whose sordid affair took a deadly turn; and Nancy Farrar, whose culpability for one man's murder was as unclear as her mental status.

Back Jacket

A delightfully wicked look at the badly behaved characters who shaped the history of Ohio through their deeds and misdeeds Speaking Ill of the Dead: Jerks in Ohio History features fifteen short profiles of notorious bad guys, perpetrators of mischief, visionary if misunderstood thinkers, and other colorful antiheroes from the history of The Buckeye State. It reveals the dark side of some well-known and even revered characters from Idaho's past--both part-time Jerks and others who were Jerks through and through. They include: Dr. John Cook Bennett, who made numerous attempts to establish several medical colleges-- and funded his endeavors by (ironically) selling bogus medical diplomas James Snook, an Olympic gold medalist whose sordid extramarital affair turned deadly--and resulted in lurid testimony that shocked the entire courtroom at the murder trial Nancy Farrar, cruelly labeled "the ugliest girl ever known in Cincinnati," whose culpability for one man's murder was as unclear as her mental status Susan Sawyer is the author of sixteen books, including Ohio's Remarkable Women, More Than Petticoats: Remarkable Tennessee Women, It Happened in Tennessee, and Myths and Mysteries of Tennessee (all by Globe Pequot). She is a former magazine editor and communications consultant and lives in the suburbs of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Front cover photos (clockwise from top): Martha Wise, Edythe Klumpp, and Stephen Wallace Dorsey (courtesy Library of Congress) Back cover photo: use Snook (if LDS Archives perm allows) or Bennett (pd)

Author Biography

Susan Sawyer enjoys exploring the past and writing about historical topics. History serves as the centerpiece for many of her writings, taking form in both fact and fiction. Susan is the author of sixteen books, including Ohio's Remarkable Women, 2nd edition, More Than Petticoats: Remarkable Tennessee Women, It Happened in Tennessee, and Myths and Mysteries of Tennessee (all by Globe Pequot Press). A graduate of the University of Tennessee, Susan worked as a magazine editor and communications consultant before establishing a career as a freelance writer and published author. Today she writes from her home in the suburbs of Chattanooga, Tennessee.