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The Scandalous Hamiltons
The Scandalous Hamiltons: A Gilded Age Grifter, a Founding Father's Disgraced Descendant, and a Trial at the Dawn of Tabloid Journalism | Bill Shaffer
3 posts | 1 read | 3 to read
An Alexander Hamilton heir, a beautiful female con artist, an abandoned baby, and the shocking courtroom drama that was splashed across front pages from coast to coastthis is the fascinating true story behind one of the greatest scandals of the Gilded Age . . . Its a story almost too tawdry to be truea con woman prostitute who met the descendant of a Founding Father in a brothel, duped him into marriage using an infant purchased from a baby farm, then went to prison for stabbing the couples baby nurseall while in a common-law marriage with another man. The scandal surrounding Evangeline and Robert Ray Hamilton, though little known today, was one of the sensations of the Gilded Age, a sordid, gripping tale involving bigamy, bribery, sex, and violence. When the salacious Hamilton story emerged in during Evas trial for the August 1889 stabbing, it commanded unprecedented national and international newspaper coverage thanks to the telegraph and the recently founded Associated Press. For the New York dailies, eager to capture readers through provocative headlines, Ray and Eva were a godsend. As lurid details emerged, the publics fascination grewhow did a man of Hamiltons stature become entangled with such an adventuress? Nellie Bly, the world-famous investigative reporter, finagled an exclusive interview with Eva after her conviction. Hamiltons death under mysterious circumstances, a year after the stabbing, added to the intrigue. Through personal correspondence, court records, and sensational newspaper accounts, The Scandalous Hamiltons explores not only the full, riveting saga of ill-fated Ray and Eva, but the rise of tabloid journalism and celebrity in a story that is both a fascinating slice of pop culture history and a timeless tale of ambition, greed, and obsession.
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Awk_Word_Smith
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I find it difficult to label Robert Ray Hamilton as disgraced. He was taken advantage of by an unscrupulous social climber in Eva Mann, who thankfully never really benefited from her schemes and lies. The sad tale of Alexander Hamilton‘s great grandson checks all of the historical New York boxes: influential New York society, Tammany Hall, tabloid newspapers, a Hamilton involved in a brouhaha in New Jersey.

Awk_Word_Smith Only in New York could this unfortunate tale even be plausible. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5 (edited) 1y
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Awk_Word_Smith
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This tea 🫖 is scandalously delicious.

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Rhondareads
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Looking forward to reading this book a shocking look at the Hamiltons all the dirt could of been torn from today‘s headlines Historical true crime.