Includes bibliographical references (pages 252-276) and index.
Contents:
Enchantress in her last home. Madame Devere, European clairvoyant -- Family troubles -- A clear forgery -- An unprincipled adventuress -- A most novel and unique defense -- Guilty as charged -- A sort of a business arrangement -- The greatest bull market in history -- Splendid business -- H. Clark Ford and the Oberlin College loans -- The Carnegie notes -- Frenzied finance -- Absurd! -- A most unpleasant duty -- Simply a sucker -- Chadwicked -- A noble thing -- A most dangerous criminal -- No artistic taste and no culture -- Enchantress in her last home.
Summary:
"Queen of the Con tells the true story of Cassie Chadwick, a successful swindler and 'one of the top 10 imposters of all time,' according to Time Magazine. Born Elizabeth Bigley in 1857 in Canada, she first operated as Madame Devere, a European clairvoyant, and in 1890 was arrested for defrauding a Toledo bank of $20,000. In the mid-1890s, while continuing her work as a medium under the name Madame La Rose in Cleveland, Cassie met and married a widowed physician with a coveted Euclid Avenue address. At the dawn of the 20th century, Cassie borrowed $2 million (worth roughly $50 million today) throughout northern Ohio, Pittsburgh, New York, and Boston by convincingly posing as the illegitimate daughter of wealthy industrialist-turned-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. When the fraud collapsed in 1904, it was a nationwide sensation. 'Yes, I borrowed money in very large amounts,' she told reporters, 'but what of it? You can't accuse a poor businesswoman of being a criminal, can you?' Carnegie, who never responded to the claim, merely joked that Mrs. Chadwick had demonstrated that his credit was still good. This meticulously researched book is the first full-length account of the notorious career of this fascinating con artist. Crowl's engaging storytelling also leads readers to consider aspects of gender stereotypes, social and economic class structures, and the ways in which we humans can so often be fooled"--Back cover.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.