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Chronicling the sometimes outlandish, often tragic history of the environs of the White House, this book covers two centuries of assassinations, slave escapes, deadly duels, sex scandals, battles, brawls and spy intrigues that took place in the presidential neighborhood, Lafayette Square. The author recounts the triumphs and catastrophes of heroes and villains both famous and unsung, placing them in the context of contemporary world events of the day.
List of contents
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Preface
¿1.¿The Secretary of State Is Nearly Stabbed to Death
¿2.¿The Unsung Slave Whose Family Sparked a Civil Rights Revolution
¿3.¿The Perilous Life of America's Greatest Foreign Friend
¿4.¿The Craziest Inaugural Party of Them All
¿5.¿The Biggest Slave Escape in American History
¿6.¿The "Big Cheese" Receives a Mammoth Gift
¿7.¿Mrs. Lincoln's Sad Search for Her Deceased Son
¿8.¿The Plantation Owner's Startling Army of Diversity
¿9.¿The Burning of the White House and the Rescue of Its Riches
10.¿A White House Surgery That Echoed Bullets and Brawls
11.¿The Populist Politics of Pennsylvania Avenue's Park
12.¿The Biggest Sex Scandal in Washington's History
13.¿The Tragic Wife of America's Premier Thinker
14.¿The Secret Life of the Intrepid Explorer
15.¿The Cunning Craft of a Deadly Spy
16.¿The Backstory of the American Revolution's Martinet
17.¿The Violent End of America's Bravest Sailor
18.¿A Duel Between the Oddest and Most Famous of Congress
19.¿The King of the Camel Corps
20.¿The Enslaved Woman Who Sued the Head of the State Department
21.¿The War-Hero Womanizer Who Slayed the Son of Francis Scott Key
22.¿The Accursed Life of the Man Who Tried to Save the President
23.¿A Shocking Seedling from the Victory at Yorktown
24.¿The Bloody Assassination Attempt on President Truman
25.¿Lincoln Makes Lee an Offer He Could Refuse
26.¿The Wretched Life Behind the Gaudiest Place
27.¿How a Personal Vendetta and Patriotic Passion Led to America's Most Honored Place
28.¿The Spook Who Spied on the President and Inspired the Formation of the NSA
29.¿The Most Criminally Inept Family in Military History
30.¿A Peerless Singer Lays the Groundwork for "I Have a Dream"
31.¿The Miracle Manse
32.¿The Lost Barracks of the National Mall
33.¿George Washington, the Flinty Scot, the Powerful Mayor, and the Children's Angel
34.¿The Near Drowning of the President in the Potomac
35.¿The Forgotten Terror Attack
36.¿A President's Brush with Death After a Deadly Navy Accident
37.¿The Poetess Behind America's Most Inspiring Song
38.¿Hamilton! The Tour!!: A White House Area Itinerary
39.¿Murder Bay and Hooker's Division
40.¿A Wartime Tavern Keeper's Unwanted Guests
41.¿A Humble Cleaning Lady Gulls a Mighty Invader
42.¿The Entrepreneur and the Ingénue: A Match Made in Heaven Gone to Hell
43.¿The Black Businessman Whose Workplace Birthed Jim Crow
44.¿The Financial Wizard Who Helped Stave Off a Civil War
45.¿The Crooked Bank for the Former Slaves
Index
About the author
A former presidential speechwriter and writer for The Tonight Show, Edward P. Moser is the author of 12 published books. He lives in Alexandria, Virginia.
