A Mistress, A Spy, and a Rare Book: The Ephemera of a Gilded Age Scandal

Sponsor: ABAA Boston International Antiquarian Book Fair

Elizabeth DeWolfe, PhD | Author; Professor of History and Co-Founder, Women’s & Gender Studies Program, University of New England 

In 1894, Jane Tucker, a Boston stenographer, spied for a U.S. congressman. Her target: Madeleine Pollard, the congressman’s mistress, who had sued him for breach of promise when he failed to marry her. The trial captivated the nation, and opportunists sought ways to cash in—generating illustrated trial recaps, a novel, and Tucker’s spy memoir, as well as photographs, a play, advertising, and a plethora of popular culture referents. In this illustrated talk, we’ll explore the material history of this gilded age scandal.