Kenneth W. Noe
"Stuart Sanders's meticulous unpacking of two notorious murders on the Ohio River dives deeply into the antebellum South's culture of honor and masculine violence. Deeply researched and wise, this is the best kind of microhistory."
Dr. Brian McKnight
"Few people know as much about the Civil War era in Kentucky and the Ohio River Valley as Stuart Sanders. Viewing history through the lens of the Ohio Belle, Sanders shifts the story from an isolated murder to a much more complex series of events that speak directly to the sectional tensions already permeating the United States in 1856. Caught between these sections while plying the Ohio River, the Ohio Belle was the perfect host for issues involving slavery, honor, violence, and ultimately murder."
From the Publisher
"Stuart Sanders's meticulous unpacking of two notorious murders on the Ohio River dives deeply into the antebellum South's culture of honor and masculine violence. Deeply researched and wise, this is the best kind of microhistory." Kenneth W. Noe, author of Reluctant Rebels, The Confederates Who Joined the Army after 1861.
Anne Marshall
"In this lively, insightful read, Stuart Sanders follows the steamboat Ohio Belle as it transports tons of cargo, actresses, enslaved men and women, gamblers, dead men and their murderers, thieves, and Civil War soldiers. Like the vessel about which he writes, Sanders's book is full of fascinating characters. With his deft interweaving of historical context, he illuminates antebellum American attitudes about class, politics, slavery, southern honor, personal identity, and war."