''Deaths on Pleasant Street: The Ghastly Enigma of Colonel Swope and Doctor Hyde'' () is a
non-fiction
Nonfiction, or non-fiction, is any document or media content that attempts, in good faith, to provide information (and sometimes opinions) grounded only in facts and real life, rather than in imagination. Nonfiction is often associated with be ...
book describing the suspicious deaths of three members of the prominent Swope family of
Independence Mo. The deaths took place in the fall and winter of 1909, in the family's 26-room gothic mansion. Author
Giles Fowler
Giles may refer to:
People
* Giles (given name), male given name (Latin: ''Aegidius'')
* Giles (surname), family name
* Saint Giles (650–710), 7th–8th-century Christian hermit saint
* Giles of Assisi, Aegidius of Assisi, 13th-century compa ...
presents evidence that at least two of the deaths were
murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...
s, committed by Dr.
Bennett Clark Hyde
Thomas Hunton Swope (October 21, 1827 – October 3, 1909) was an American real estate magnate and philanthropist in Kansas City, Missouri. His death in 1909 became the focus of one of the most publicized murder trials in the early 20th century.
...
, who was married to a Swope heiress. The first Hyde trial, for the murder of philanthropist
Thomas Hunton Swope
Thomas Hunton Swope (October 21, 1827 – October 3, 1909) was an American real estate magnate and philanthropist in Kansas City, Missouri. His death in 1909 became the focus of one of the most publicized murder trials in the early 20th century.
...
, was covered by virtually every major newspaper in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. Fowler's book, published by the
Truman State University Press
Truman State University (TSU or Truman) is a public university in Kirksville, Missouri. It had 4,225 enrolled students in the fall of 2021 pursuing degrees in 52 undergraduate and 11 graduate programs.
The university is named for U.S. Presid ...
, was winner of the
Jackson County, MO. Historical Society's Historic Book of the Year award, in 2009, and a 2009
ForeWord
A foreword is a (usually short) piece of writing, sometimes placed at the beginning of a book or other piece of literature. Typically written by someone other than the primary author of the work, it often tells of some interaction between the ...
award as True Crime Book of the Year.
References
The 2009 Best True Crime Book of the Yea
The Sewanee Review, Spring 201
Jackson County, Mo., Historical Societ
American non-fiction books
History of Missouri
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