Hell Gate of the Mississippi, the Effie Afton Trial and Abraham Lincoln's Role in It [Perfect Paperback]

Larry A. Riney (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 20, 2007

For fifteen days in September, 1857, the attention of both the United States and Europe turned to a rundown Chicago courtroom. The steamboat Effie Afton had crashed into a pier of the first railroad bridge thrown across the Mississippi River at Rock Island, Illinois. The controversial lawsuit that followed promised to change the economy and the social fabric of the vast Mississippi River Valley. Some of the sharpest legal minds practicing in what was called at that time the Far West tried the test case. One of those lawyers was Abraham Lincoln. Hell Gate of the Mississippi puts you in the jury box for an up-close, firsthand look at this highly charged trial. Full of background information, the book examines the reasons why the litigation became an explosive issue for both the steamboat and railroad factions. In a year that saw such highly emotional and important events, such as the Dred Scott decision, the Mountain Meadows Massacre, false reports of "Indian" uprisings in Iowa, Walker in Nicaragua, and the sinking of the gold ship SS Central America, the Chicago lawsuit continually filled front page headlines on newspapers across the United States and Europe. Was the jury "stacked" against the river men and women who wanted the bridge torn down? Was Abraham Lincoln the lead council for the railroad promoters? Was he in charge of a compromised trial? These questions and more are answered in Hell Gate of the Mississippi. Copyright 2007

Editorial Reviews

Review

Special to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch 12/22/2007: The misfortune happened on May 6, 1856, on the Mississippi River at Rock Island, Ill. That's where the northbound riverboat Effie Afton struck a pier on a two-year-old railroad bridge, the first to span the Mississippi. Although passengers and crewmen escaped, the riverboat burned and so did part of the bridge's wooden deck. The boat's owner sued the railroads that owned the bridge, calling it a hazard to navigation on a river that was supposed to remain forever open to steamboats. The civil case finally went to trial in federal court in Chicago. In Hell Gate of the Mississippi, author Larry A. Riney of Geneseo, Ill., gives a blow-by-blow account of that trial. Well, that brief description may make the book sound a touch so-what-ish. Nobody got killed, and who cares about a bunch of lawyers arguing a civil damage suit? But among that bunch of lawyers was one Abraham Lincoln, helping to defend the railroads. And the impact of the suit ranged far beyond one riverboat's striking one bridge. In the larger sense, the courtroom drama pitted: The nostalgia of the steamboat fleet against the new technology of railroads. Proud St. Louis, the heart of the steamboat fleet, against upstart Chicago, the hub of the railroad net. The agricultural South, with its steamboats and slaves, against the industrial north, with its railroads and factories. The St. Louis angle will grab local readers. After all, the St. Louis Chamber of Commerce raised a bunch of money to press the lawsuit. Indeed, the bridge got its nickname of Hell Gate of the Mississippi in St. Louis. And the local chamber's agent later faced charges of trying to burn down what remained of the bridge at Rock Island. Even so, St. Louis was fighting a losing battle. In those pre-Civil War years, St. Louis enjoyed a 2-1 population edge over Chicago. But before long, thanks largely to that first-of-its kind bridge at Rock Island, Chicago would surpass St. Louis (except, of course, in baseball). At times, Riney's book is frustrating. It goes into arcane detail on the back-and-forth of the trial while dipping only lightly into the larger questions. And in the manner of the day, civil trials tended to end in indecision. But as background to why St. Louis erected the Eads Bridge two decades too late, Hell Gate of the Mississippi is all but required reading. © 2007 St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Written by Harry Levins formerly a senior writer of the Post-Dispatch. --Special to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch 12/22/2007:

About the Author

Larry A. Riney is a freelance writer headquartered near the Great Bend of the Mississippi River not far from the site of the Effie Afton disaster. He has carried a fascination for the history of both steamboats and railroads since his childhood. Playing and fishing along the great river in his youth, he was struck by the majesty of the floating palaces that lazily paddled by. Growing up near the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy tracks, the massive un-styled steam engines of the day gave him an appreciation of the raw power, speed, and force of railroad transport. Early in his youth, he discovered that he was a descendant of Abraham Lincoln's first teacher. He has been an admirer of Illinois' most famous lawyer since. All three elements are important to the writing of Hell Gate of the Mississippi. Riney earned a Master of Arts degree from Western Illinois University in 1972. An award-winning writer, he has edited and published dozens of technical textbooks as well as written a wide variety of publications for industrial companies and independent magazines. In 1989, he wrote and published a textbook covering the fine art and science of technical writing with Prentice-Hall. For the past ten years, he has focused his attention upon the history of Illinois and the Upper Mississippi River Valley.

Product Details

• Perfect Paperback: 323 pages
• Publisher: Talesman Press (June 20, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0979152801
• ISBN-13: 978-0979152801
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,177,179 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Railroads v. River men, September 27, 2007

By 

William Klotz - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hell Gate of the Mississippi, the Effie Afton Trial and Abraham Lincoln's Role in It (Perfect Paperback)

The maturation of the American society was a complex and idealistic endeavor that was accentuated by many different transitional phases. Hell Gate of the Mississippi marks one of these major transitions that occurred during the growth, which was emphasized by its' `Manifest Destiny'. The transition that the author, Larry A. Riney, transcribes in this journey presents nineteenth century America, and the great characters in these events utilized it as a major point of experience in their lives.
Hell Gate of the Mississippi presents a dichotomy that existed throughout history, the struggle between progress and the established norm. In this instance the established norm, the steamboat trade, and the desire to establish a progressive national railroad. The establishment of the national railroad meant that steamboats became more of an archaic endeavor. The railroads are presented to Americans as the cheaper, faster mode of transit for their businesses and social uses. However, even when the railroads were presented as an obstruction to the already established steamboat companies, the power of the purse prevailed. The railroads used the courts as their pulpit, presenting the American people with a high powered legal team, and the growth of the rail towns to accentuate a puppet courtroom. The legal team used savvy and their prestige, presenting individuals such of Abraham Lincoln, to push their case over the top, leaving the steam boaters cause with little more than a hope and a prayer.
The author presents to the reader a technical view on the maritime precedents that were established during this trial. This was a scholarly written piece of non-fiction that established most of what it sought out to accomplish. The most important presentation was to ascertain that the influential players involved in this event were not entirely essential to the outcome of the trial.

William Klotz