Review--A Rogue's Paradise: Crime and Punishment in Antebellum Florida, 1821-1861

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A Rogue's Paradise: Crime and Punishment in Antebellum Florida, 1821-1861A Rogue's Paradise: Crime and Punishment in Antebellum Florida, 1821-1861 by James M. Denham
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another outstanding history that kept me turning pages when I should have been doing other things. Denham's comprehensive and extremely well-documented overview of Antebellum Florida's law enforcement gives a clear view of the frontier society, where justice was often administered by lynch mobs, where the lack of prisons and law enforcement offices truly made it a "rogue's paradise" and where fear of slave insurrections kept the public paranoid and twitchy.

This book is a valuable asset for anyone writing historical fiction about the Florida frontier, and of interest to all who like a glimpse into history that's more than kings, queens and huge battles.


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