{"product_id":"queen-of-the-con-from-a-spiritualist-to-the-carnegie-imposter-paperback","title":"Queen of the Con: From a Spiritualist to the Carnegie Imposter - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eCrowl\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eBack Jacket\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe definitive account of audacious con woman Cassie Chadwick, the Carnegie Imposter\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eQueen of the Con \u003c\/em\u003etells the true story of Cassie Chadwick, a successful swindler and \"one of the top 10 imposters of all time,\" according to \u003cem\u003eTime\u003c\/em\u003emagazine. Born Betsy Bigley in 1857 in Canada, she first operated as Madame Devere, a European clairvoyant, and in 1890 was arrested for defrauding a Toledo bank of $20,000. In the mid-1890s, while working as a madam in Cleveland, Cassie met and married a widowed physician with a coveted Euclid Avenue address.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAt the dawn of the 20th century, Cassie borrowed $2 million (worth roughly $50 million today) throughout northern Ohio, Pittsburgh, New York, and Boston by convincingly posing as the illegitimate daughter of wealthy industrialist-turned-philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. \u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eWhen the fraud collapsed in 1904, it was a nationwide sensation. \"Yes, I borrowed money in very large amounts,\" she told reporters, \"but what of it? You can't accuse a poor businesswoman of being a criminal, can you?\" Carnegie, who never responded to the claim, merely joked that Mrs. Chadwick had demonstrated that his credit was still good.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis meticulously researched book is the first full-length account of the notorious career of this fascinating woman, the forerunner to more recent female scammers like Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes or fake heiress Anna Sorokin, the \"Soho Grifter.\" Crowl's engaging storytelling also leads readers to consider aspects of gender stereotypes, social and economic class structures, and the ways in which we humans can so often be fooled.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThomas Crowl \u003c\/strong\u003eis an avocational historian who has published two previous books, \u003cem\u003eMurder of a Journalist \u003c\/em\u003e(published by Kent State University Press) and \u003cem\u003eOpdycke's Tigers in the Civil War. \u003c\/em\u003eHis articles have appeared in \u003cem\u003eTimeline, Echoes, History Magazine, \u003c\/em\u003eand the \u003cem\u003eCentral States Archaeological Journal.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 320\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.87 x 8.98 x 6.06 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e October 26, 2021\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49152386531480,"sku":"9781606354292","price":33.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0759\/8830\/4024\/files\/3TCP1-5HEB9781606354292.webp?v=1779576778","url":"https:\/\/thepinkflamingobooks.myshopify.com\/products\/queen-of-the-con-from-a-spiritualist-to-the-carnegie-imposter-paperback","provider":"The Pink Flamingo","version":"1.0","type":"link"}