Description

Murder & Mayhem Jefferson City by Michelle Brook

The Dark Side of Jeff City The first century of the wilderness-born Missouri capital was filled with villainous escapes from the state's only prison, resulting in theft, abuse and even murder. The grandest of escape attempts ended with the city's only triple hanging. The capital city had plenty of entrepreneurs willing to sidestep the federal Volstead Act, which attracted Ku Klux Klan activity and culminated in the election of a "law and order" sheriff, whose deputies broke laws to enforce them. Many other tragedies grieved the community, including the South Side murder of a German immigrant by a teen-aged deputy, who had been caught sleeping with the victim's daughter. Author Michelle Brooks has collected a sample of some of the shocking events of Jefferson City's first century.

About the Author

Murder & Mayhem in Jefferson City is Michelle Brooks's fifth book. After nearly twenty-five years as an award-winning newspaper reporter and editor, she has published Hidden History of Jefferson City, Jefferson City Civil Pilots and Lost Jefferson City with The History Press and self-published Interesting Women of the Capital City and co-authored Buried Jefferson City History with Nancy Thompson. Brooks graduated from Lincoln University in 2018 with a bachelor's degree in liberal studies, with an emphasis in anthropology and history.