Murder, Moonshine, Mayhem

From Dr. Robert J. Wilson III, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of History, Georgia College and State University: Over the 220 years since Milledgeville, Georgia was first settled, there are a few who have chronicled the more unsavory moments in the history of the old capital. In 1809, Daniel Mulford, a lawyer who had settled in the new town, wrote that Milledgeville was a city of about 2,000 souls, "if they all have souls, which is rather doubtful." Two hundred years later, Susan Lindsley also gives us a portrait of the town, similarly candid and replete with her dry wit, which would probably not provide promotional material for the Chamber of Commerce. Over the years, in her many books, Ms. Lindsley has fruitfully mined the country in which she grew up-northwest Baldwin County, near the old plantation purchased and maintained by her father, a chemistry professor at the local woman's college.Lindsley indelibly sketches a raft of characters from juvenile delinquents to murderers. Armed with a rifle or pistol, she is determined to defend her land from poachers, cattle rustlers, utility companies, and all manner of intruders. They range from high-spirited "naughty" boys to killers, a barefoot moonshiner, vigilantes and corrupt local politicians. Lindsley brings them all to life with such a gifted ear for local dialect. She takes us on a delightful, chaotic possum hunt, describes a scary night in an old house down in Haddock, trying to catch furniture thieves. Well-known figures such as Jim Williams of "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" and the great automaker Henry Ford make appearances. There are hauntings and the sad, mysterious apparent suicide of a young woman at the local college. Lindsley also describes her friendship with the novelist Flannery O'Connor, who lived on a neighboring farm. Indeed, for those interested in exploration of O'Connor' terrain, "Murder, Moonshine, and Mayhem" should be required reading. As always Susan Lindsley pulls no punches as she combines careful research with a sharp memory, and her natural gift for storytelling. Enjoy!