Has it Come to This?: The Mysterious, Unsolved Murder of Frank Richardson
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2022-03-16 17:21:35
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Kimberly Tilley
- ISBN：B09NDXB4S5
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Summary
Somebody got away with murder on Christmas Eve of 1900 in Savannah， Missouri。
Frank Richardson， a wealthy merchant who had repented of his wayward past and was determined to make the most of the second chance he was given， was shot dead in his home。
His killer had vanished， but investigators were determined to find and punish the murderer。 The evidence they discovered exposed Frank's secret life to the world and scandalized the residents of Savannah。 Of all the clues they found， none was more fascinating than Frank's enigmatic last words， uttered the moment before he was shot: "Has it come to this？"
Suspicion fell at once on Frank's former paramour， Goldie Whitehead; his charming wife， Addie; and Stewart Fife， the suave young clerk of whom he was known to be insanely jealous。 All the clues and evidence in this unsolved true crime are assembled here for readers to unravel the truth behind who killed Frank Richardson。
Frank Richardson， a wealthy merchant who had repented of his wayward past and was determined to make the most of the second chance he was given， was shot dead in his home。
His killer had vanished， but investigators were determined to find and punish the murderer。 The evidence they discovered exposed Frank's secret life to the world and scandalized the residents of Savannah。 Of all the clues they found， none was more fascinating than Frank's enigmatic last words， uttered the moment before he was shot: "Has it come to this？"
Suspicion fell at once on Frank's former paramour， Goldie Whitehead; his charming wife， Addie; and Stewart Fife， the suave young clerk of whom he was known to be insanely jealous。 All the clues and evidence in this unsolved true crime are assembled here for readers to unravel the truth behind who killed Frank Richardson。
Reviews
Bettye McKee
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Kimberly Tilley has given us another unsolved murder mystery。 This one takes place in Savannah， Missouri， in 1900。The entire story is interesting。 Background information is provided for the main characters， Frank and Addie Richardson。 The main event occurs on Christmas Eve， 1900， when Frank Richardson enters his home and is shot in the head。 The only other known person present in the house is his wife， Addie。The trials are interesting and important because that's where the witnesses' testimony e Kimberly Tilley has given us another unsolved murder mystery。 This one takes place in Savannah， Missouri， in 1900。The entire story is interesting。 Background information is provided for the main characters， Frank and Addie Richardson。 The main event occurs on Christmas Eve， 1900， when Frank Richardson enters his home and is shot in the head。 The only other known person present in the house is his wife， Addie。The trials are interesting and important because that's where the witnesses' testimony either matches or does not match in every aspect。 I believe the key to the mystery lies in knowing whom Frank was addressing when he says， "Has it come to this？"152 。。。more
Gojan
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This satisfying true crime whodunit has all the juicy ingredients of a police procedural novel: a Christmas Eve pistol shot to the back of the head of a prominent small town merchant， unexplained last words uttered by the victim and a cast of murder suspects with iffy alibis。 Add blackmail money， extramarital lust and jealousy and you have a well-paced story written with attention to detail that offers insight into how murders were investigated a decade before fingerprints were finally accepted This satisfying true crime whodunit has all the juicy ingredients of a police procedural novel: a Christmas Eve pistol shot to the back of the head of a prominent small town merchant， unexplained last words uttered by the victim and a cast of murder suspects with iffy alibis。 Add blackmail money， extramarital lust and jealousy and you have a well-paced story written with attention to detail that offers insight into how murders were investigated a decade before fingerprints were finally accepted as evidence in a U。S。 courtroom。Kimberly's meticulous and perceptive re-telling of a crime that received national attention in 1900 relies heavily on actual courtroom dialogue and police interviews。 Like a good reporter， she removes herself from the story and lets the facts do the speaking until she finally intercedes at the end of the book with her own speculation on the who， what， where， how， when and why of Frank Richardson’s murder。The victim， a 43-year-old drinker prone to depression who has an affair with a teenager， is carefully profiled by the author， making this as much a psychological study as it is a police story。 We also get historic insight into how newspapers of the era reported crimes， often with a level of speculation and rumor that would stand out even in today’s atmosphere of opinion journalism。 Hardly a detail is overlooked by the author， including how handwriting samples of people closely tied to the case might offer insight into their personalities。 We also learn about how juries of that time were regarded， their home addresses often printed in the local paper。 If you were a crime suspect and wanted to disappear in the world of 1900， it was often just a matter of moving to another state and assuming a new identity， something easier said than done today。 I highly recommend this American crime time capsule。 Well conceived and well written， “Has it Come to This” is an entertaining and informative look at a world long-gone。 It’s a true crime gem and you should read it。 。。。more
Kristin A。 Sherry
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I received an early review copy of this book and， like Kimberly's previous books， was reeled into this long ago murder。 I'm always amazed by the author's research prowess。 She unearths details no one else has ever written。。。 anywhere。 In addition to the impressive research， I was fascinated by how the people in this time period behaved and responded compared to modern day。 It's like a cultural/historical lesson and true crime all in one。 Tilley is an author whose books I anticipate more than any I received an early review copy of this book and， like Kimberly's previous books， was reeled into this long ago murder。 I'm always amazed by the author's research prowess。 She unearths details no one else has ever written。。。 anywhere。 In addition to the impressive research， I was fascinated by how the people in this time period behaved and responded compared to modern day。 It's like a cultural/historical lesson and true crime all in one。 Tilley is an author whose books I anticipate more than any other。 She has found her niche and will no doubt become the dominant voice in turn of the century true crime。 。。。more
Beverly Pittenger
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Once again， Kimberly has me wanting more of her books。 The murder of Frank Richardson and who may have done it is one of the more interesting books I have read。 Excellent research。
Joan
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Review of eBookWell-to-do mercantile merchant Frank Richardson， remorseful for his past illicit affairs， seems determined to make every effort to salvage his marriage。 But a gunshot to the head ends his life on Christmas Eve in 1900 and suspicion immediately falls on his wife， Addie。 Although his last mistress， Goldie Whitehead， falls under suspicion， her alibi， keeps her from being charged。 More attention is paid to one of the clerks in the mercantile， Stewart Fife， a young man of whom Frank wa Review of eBookWell-to-do mercantile merchant Frank Richardson， remorseful for his past illicit affairs， seems determined to make every effort to salvage his marriage。 But a gunshot to the head ends his life on Christmas Eve in 1900 and suspicion immediately falls on his wife， Addie。 Although his last mistress， Goldie Whitehead， falls under suspicion， her alibi， keeps her from being charged。 More attention is paid to one of the clerks in the mercantile， Stewart Fife， a young man of whom Frank was known to be jealous， especially when he was drinking。 Who is responsible for the death of Frank Richardson？=========This unsolved， true crime investigation into the death of the wealthy merchant weaves all the known facts， suppositions， and beliefs into an unbiased， comprehensive look at the case， the trials， and the outcomes。 With newspaper accounts and court records as the basis for the reporting， the corroboration of facts is readily apparent as an extensive reference appendix is included。 Based on her extensive research， the author provides an opinion regarding the culprit。 She invites readers to discuss the book 。 。 。 and their own ideas of who was responsible for Frank Robinson’s death 。 。 。 on her website at OldSpirituals。com。Recommended。 。。。more
Desirae van de Sandt
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