The Mack Marsden Murder Mystery: Vigilantism or Justice?
In the late 19th century, while
the cosmopolitan people of St. Louis were installing telephones, the sheriff in
neighboring Jefferson County was trying to find out who was stealing all the
pigs. In that era, when the West was wild all the way back to the Mississippi
River, the Sandy Valley was home to Mack Marsden. Every major crime in
Jefferson County was hung around his neck for over three years, and the
newspapers labeled him a desperado, but he was tried only once and never
convicted of any wrongdoing. So when he was ambushed, shotgunned, and left
dying in a dusty road, his mystery took on a new life. Who murdered him? And if
Mack wasn’t the desperado behind all those crimes, who was?
For the first time, all the available
resources, including oral history, are mined for the clues that answer these
questions and more. After 130 years, the light of research shines on the Mack
Marsden legend.
Marsden’s story is a true mystery, told
for the first time in this narrative nonfiction book. It’s an obscure cold case
that’s as thrilling as any of the more famous tales of the Old West. Mack’s
story bears striking parallels to that of fellow Missourian Jesse James. It’s
filled with murder, arson, livestock rustling, attempted lynching, guns, fast
horses, a trusty sidekick, threats, counter-threats, deathbed testimony,
ambush, a big city detective, ambitious politicians, tainted juries, and
pompous judges.
Mack
never stole a pig, never took a human life, and never set one of the terrifying
arson fires that plagued the valley. But he knew who did. No matter what other
people said, his family never stopped believing in him, and Mack was ready to
set it all right. But when he made that decision, it was too late. The
assassin’s plan was already unfolding.
The
Mack Marsden Murder Mystery: Vigilantism or Justice? is a stirring tale of
loyalty and family set in a thrilling Old West adventure. Published by Missouri History Museum.
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