Lincoln's Greatest Case
The River, The Bridge, and The Making of America

This review is entirely subjective (as I suppose all reviews are), since some reviewers really seemed to like this book. But it didn't really do it for me. I do know to be wary of books that put Abraham Lincoln in the title and on the cover, when the story they aim to tell is not strictly about Linc......more

As a native son of Rock Island, IL, I learned about Lincoln's role in the Effie Afton steamboat case at sometime in my local schooling. When I read a review of Lincoln's Greatest Case in the the Times and then saw it on the shelves of my neighborhood library, I decided to read it. I think that Mr. M......more

A rather short book, but the definitive account of the Effie Afton trial of 1857, which legal historian McGinty argues was the most important one of Abraham Lincoln's nearly 25-year career as a lawyer. This is Hurd et al v. The Railroad Bridge Co. The steamboat "Effie Afton" (owned by Hurd) crashed......more

A good little history book on a limited but important topic. The book is well organized and reported. The role of and importance to Lincoln are soundly explored. There are connections to Lincoln's future and our Country's history disclosed in the story but I cannot give the fifth star. Big parts of......more

A fascinating book about one of Lincoln's most important but little discussed trials. The trial was that of Hurd et al. v. The Railroad Bridge Company and pits powerful Mississippi River steamboat interests against those of the nascent railroad companies. In short, a side-wheeler steamboat, the Effi......more