Bunco Artists in Richmond, 1870-1920

Book excerpt: Richmond in the late 19th and early 20th centuries was home to a lively underworld of tricksters, swindlers, confidence men and thieves. The former Confederate capital's under-staffed police force and dense population--large numbers of immigrants and the very poor--accommodated the enterprising criminal. Newspaper reports of the day offer a glimpse of a wide variety of crimes and misdemeanors, often with a bit of humor or pathos. Based on reports from the proceedings of the Police Court, this book provides a portrait of Richmond--then the most congested city in the U.S.--during the "Golden Age of the Con," when gamblers, hustlers and frauds plied their trades across the country.