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Cry of Murder on Broadway: A Woman's Ruin and Revenge in Old New York
Description
In Cry of Murder on Broadway, Julie Miller shows how a woman's desperate attempt at murder came to momentarily embody the anger and anxiety felt by many people at a time of economic and social upheaval and expanding expectations for equal rights.
On the evening of November 1, 1843, a young household servant named Amelia Norman attacked Henry Ballard, a prosperous merchant, on the steps of the new and luxurious Astor House hotel. Agitated and distraught, Norman followed Ballard down Broadway before confronting him at the door to the Astor House. Taking out a folding knife, she stabbed him, just missing his heart.
Ballard survived the attack, and the trial that followed created a sensation. Newspapers in New York and beyond followed the case eagerly, and crowds filled the courtroom every day. Prominent author and abolitionist Lydia Maria Child, championed Norman and later included her story in her fiction and her writing on women's rights.
The would-be murderer also attracted the support of politicians, journalists, and legal and moral reformers who saw her story as a vehicle to change the law as it related to "seduction," and advocate for the rights of workers. Cry of Murder on Broadway describes how New Yorkers, besotted with the drama of the courtroom and the lurid stories of the penny press, followed the trial for sensation.
Miller deftly weaves together Norman's story to show how, in one violent moment, she expressed all the anger that the women of the emerging movement for women's rights would soon express in words.
In Cry of Murder on Broadway, Julie Miller shows how a woman's desperate attempt at murder came to momentarily embody the anger and anxiety felt by many people at a time of economic and social upheaval and expanding expectations for equal rights.
On the evening of November 1, 1843, a young household servant named Amelia Norman attacked Henry Ballard, a prosperous merchant, on the steps of the new and luxurious Astor House hotel. Agitated and distraught, Norman followed Ballard down Broadway before confronting him at the door to the Astor House. Taking out a folding knife, she stabbed him, just missing his heart.
Ballard survived the attack, and the trial that followed created a sensation. Newspapers in New York and beyond followed the case eagerly, and crowds filled the courtroom every day. Prominent author and abolitionist Lydia Maria Child, championed Norman and later included her story in her fiction and her writing on women's rights.
The would-be murderer also attracted the support of politicians, journalists, and legal and moral reformers who saw her story as a vehicle to change the law as it related to "seduction," and advocate for the rights of workers. Cry of Murder on Broadway describes how New Yorkers, besotted with the drama of the courtroom and the lurid stories of the penny press, followed the trial for sensation.
Miller deftly weaves together Norman's story to show how, in one violent moment, she expressed all the anger that the women of the emerging movement for women's rights would soon express in words.
280 pages, Hardcover
First published October 15, 2020
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115 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
August 8, 2020
On November 1, 1843, illiterate, domestic/seamstress Amelia Norman stabbed prosperous merchant, Henry Ballard on the steps of the Astor House Hotel on Broadway in New York. Norman "did not seem to be angry nor attempt to escape". Arrested and jailed in the Tombs, she awaited trial. The trial, held in the Court of Sessions, commenced on January 15, 1844. It was conducted before three judges, a jury as well as a gallery of three hundred spectators. Was Amelia Norman's act of violence an act of revenge? Were there mitigating factors?
James Gordon Bennett, editor of the New York Herald, initially sympathized with Henry Ballard, "a man of credit and standing" but swayed by popular opinion, he began to advocate for Norman. Norman's staunchest supporter was Lydia Marie Child, author and abolitionist who wove elements of Norman's story into her fiction. People in the nineteenth century attended trials "for entertainment...expect[ing] lawyers to have oratorical and performance skills of actors...spectators who watched what amounted to a serial drama...".
In spring 1841, Amelia met Henry Ballard, a seemingly respectable gentleman. He courted her, "walked out with her publicly" and wrote her letters "containing strong feelings of love and affection". It was a false courtship. He took her to a house of prostitution where "he succeeded in accomplishing her seduction...Amelia had been cajoled, convinced, tricked and, finally, possibly, raped". "Henry Ballard no longer play[ed] the affectionate lover". He deserted Amelia, now pregnant and alone without any means of support.
The trial of Amelia Norman created a vehicle to highlight many issues of the times including abolition and woman's rights. The American Female Moral Reform Society wanted to criminalize seduction. "The seduction tort [in the nineteenth century] ...allowed the father or master of an unmarried woman to sue her seducer for damages on the basis of his loss of her services, usually because of the pregnancy and motherhood that resulted from the seduction". No damages could be awarded to the "wronged woman".
"Cry of Murder on Broadway: A Woman's Ruin and Revenge in Old New York" by Julie Miller chronicled an attempted murder, societal perceptions and calls for women's voices to be heard. The trial addressed a woman's plight, although supporters "...read into Norman's predicament a parable ready-made for their own use...the boundaries between fiction and factual reporting sometimes blended".
No diaries or court documents in Amelia's own words exist, therefore her true feelings have been rendered by supposition. A character study of Amelia Norman and her subsequent trial comprise only part of this tome. Biographical details on woman's rights crusader, Lydia Marie Child as well as many others seemed to diminish my interest. Perhaps less thorough attention to these players and a more intense procedural treatment of the trial would have been more captivating, however, I applaud the monumental research Miller completed in presenting this true crime story.
Thank you Cornell University Press, Three Hills and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
James Gordon Bennett, editor of the New York Herald, initially sympathized with Henry Ballard, "a man of credit and standing" but swayed by popular opinion, he began to advocate for Norman. Norman's staunchest supporter was Lydia Marie Child, author and abolitionist who wove elements of Norman's story into her fiction. People in the nineteenth century attended trials "for entertainment...expect[ing] lawyers to have oratorical and performance skills of actors...spectators who watched what amounted to a serial drama...".
In spring 1841, Amelia met Henry Ballard, a seemingly respectable gentleman. He courted her, "walked out with her publicly" and wrote her letters "containing strong feelings of love and affection". It was a false courtship. He took her to a house of prostitution where "he succeeded in accomplishing her seduction...Amelia had been cajoled, convinced, tricked and, finally, possibly, raped". "Henry Ballard no longer play[ed] the affectionate lover". He deserted Amelia, now pregnant and alone without any means of support.
The trial of Amelia Norman created a vehicle to highlight many issues of the times including abolition and woman's rights. The American Female Moral Reform Society wanted to criminalize seduction. "The seduction tort [in the nineteenth century] ...allowed the father or master of an unmarried woman to sue her seducer for damages on the basis of his loss of her services, usually because of the pregnancy and motherhood that resulted from the seduction". No damages could be awarded to the "wronged woman".
"Cry of Murder on Broadway: A Woman's Ruin and Revenge in Old New York" by Julie Miller chronicled an attempted murder, societal perceptions and calls for women's voices to be heard. The trial addressed a woman's plight, although supporters "...read into Norman's predicament a parable ready-made for their own use...the boundaries between fiction and factual reporting sometimes blended".
No diaries or court documents in Amelia's own words exist, therefore her true feelings have been rendered by supposition. A character study of Amelia Norman and her subsequent trial comprise only part of this tome. Biographical details on woman's rights crusader, Lydia Marie Child as well as many others seemed to diminish my interest. Perhaps less thorough attention to these players and a more intense procedural treatment of the trial would have been more captivating, however, I applaud the monumental research Miller completed in presenting this true crime story.
Thank you Cornell University Press, Three Hills and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.
March 25, 2021
I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA NETGALLEY. THANK YOU.
Rating: 4* of five
The thing about writing books about illiterate people is that one has no direct access to their thoughts. While a diary, or a body of correspondence no matter how quotidian, might be suspect in it honesty, the lack of such a diary or correspondence makes the project feel removed, remote, untethered to the person in the crosshairs.
This is a built-in, and serious, structural flaw. I believe Author Miller chose Amelia Norman as a subject anyway because she was a woman who attempted to revenge herself on the man who callously and cruelly deprived her of a woman in her class's only possession: Her reputation. Her story attracted a great deal of attention from the press and the reality-TV-watchers' ancestors who went to trials expecting to be entertained by "...what amounted to a serial drama." Establishment pillar and publisher of the New York Herald, James Gordon Bennett, was among the media fanners-of-flames who, not coincidentally, are the only reason we have any idea who she was or what the heck Amelia Norman was thinking at all.
Publisher Bennett's initial sympathy for Ballard, Norman's victim, softened over time; one senses that he was a bellwether and as famous popular writer, abolitionist, and national newspaper columnist Lydia Maria Child inserted herself into the proceedings, felt the wind of opinion changing direction. As a circulation-seeking businessman, he trimmed his sails to catch the new wind.
As the trial parts of the book get going, the pace of my reading picked up as well. The reason is as simple as the legions of reality-TV watchers goggling at The Bachelor and The Bachelorette as they go through their race-relations horrors, their allegations of many kinds of abuse, and the unexamined tawdriness of pruriently peering into the complicit cast's intimate moments.
So we're moving through a trial that, in its well-analyzed in this text result, affected deep and abiding injustices in the law and society of the United States. A woman's right to bring a lawsuit on her own behalf in the circumstances Amelia Norman found herself in was immeasurably advanced by the "Not Guilty" verdict returned on that January day in 1844. The crowds were jubilant, having decided that ugly-souled narcissist and seducer Ballard brought this assassination attempt on himself by his callous actions. It helped shape the public sentiment of a time of great change, and of increasing progressive social activism. In 1848, a mere four years after this trial's conclusion, Lydia Maria Child took part in the Seneca Falls Convention, the pioneering women's rights convention. This was a moment of revolution, and its sparks would ignite much action for the rest of the century and much of the next. One of those sparks was the passage of New York's "Act to Punish Seduction as a Crime." That was the beginning of developments that Author Miller spends the last third of the book contextualizing and analyzing with what, to me, was deft and involving erudition of prose.
I'm quite certain you will all be shocked, shocked!, to learn that Norman wasn't just allowed to sink back into anonymity. She, her family, and in time the country riled themselves up about tawdry secrets carefully hushed during the trial itself. More ink was spilled when a woman resembling her was seen in, um, compromising circumstances for the day. But Child defended her in every forum against all charges and, in the end, it was her success that allowed Norman to vanish from the public records.
Which fact, in and of itself, tells me that the verdict of Not Guilty was indeed right and just. Absent her own words expressing her own thoughts on the subject, I believe her complete vanishing act...no arrests, no documentation of criminality...tells us she was just an ordinary woman who wanted, and ultimately was able to, live an ordinary life.
Rating: 4* of five
The thing about writing books about illiterate people is that one has no direct access to their thoughts. While a diary, or a body of correspondence no matter how quotidian, might be suspect in it honesty, the lack of such a diary or correspondence makes the project feel removed, remote, untethered to the person in the crosshairs.
This is a built-in, and serious, structural flaw. I believe Author Miller chose Amelia Norman as a subject anyway because she was a woman who attempted to revenge herself on the man who callously and cruelly deprived her of a woman in her class's only possession: Her reputation. Her story attracted a great deal of attention from the press and the reality-TV-watchers' ancestors who went to trials expecting to be entertained by "...what amounted to a serial drama." Establishment pillar and publisher of the New York Herald, James Gordon Bennett, was among the media fanners-of-flames who, not coincidentally, are the only reason we have any idea who she was or what the heck Amelia Norman was thinking at all.
Publisher Bennett's initial sympathy for Ballard, Norman's victim, softened over time; one senses that he was a bellwether and as famous popular writer, abolitionist, and national newspaper columnist Lydia Maria Child inserted herself into the proceedings, felt the wind of opinion changing direction. As a circulation-seeking businessman, he trimmed his sails to catch the new wind.
As the trial parts of the book get going, the pace of my reading picked up as well. The reason is as simple as the legions of reality-TV watchers goggling at The Bachelor and The Bachelorette as they go through their race-relations horrors, their allegations of many kinds of abuse, and the unexamined tawdriness of pruriently peering into the complicit cast's intimate moments.
So we're moving through a trial that, in its well-analyzed in this text result, affected deep and abiding injustices in the law and society of the United States. A woman's right to bring a lawsuit on her own behalf in the circumstances Amelia Norman found herself in was immeasurably advanced by the "Not Guilty" verdict returned on that January day in 1844. The crowds were jubilant, having decided that ugly-souled narcissist and seducer Ballard brought this assassination attempt on himself by his callous actions. It helped shape the public sentiment of a time of great change, and of increasing progressive social activism. In 1848, a mere four years after this trial's conclusion, Lydia Maria Child took part in the Seneca Falls Convention, the pioneering women's rights convention. This was a moment of revolution, and its sparks would ignite much action for the rest of the century and much of the next. One of those sparks was the passage of New York's "Act to Punish Seduction as a Crime." That was the beginning of developments that Author Miller spends the last third of the book contextualizing and analyzing with what, to me, was deft and involving erudition of prose.
I'm quite certain you will all be shocked, shocked!, to learn that Norman wasn't just allowed to sink back into anonymity. She, her family, and in time the country riled themselves up about tawdry secrets carefully hushed during the trial itself. More ink was spilled when a woman resembling her was seen in, um, compromising circumstances for the day. But Child defended her in every forum against all charges and, in the end, it was her success that allowed Norman to vanish from the public records.
Which fact, in and of itself, tells me that the verdict of Not Guilty was indeed right and just. Absent her own words expressing her own thoughts on the subject, I believe her complete vanishing act...no arrests, no documentation of criminality...tells us she was just an ordinary woman who wanted, and ultimately was able to, live an ordinary life.
July 1, 2023
More than an excavation of a forgotten crime of passion and a gross non-miscarriage of justice, "Cry of Murder on Broadway" opens a window to the era. Don't read it if you don't want to know more about the mix of classes and causes that roiled antebellum New York and reshaped men and women's most intimate relations. The exploitation and trial of Amelia Norman occurred at a unique historical moment in which abolition, woman's rights, temperance, and penal reform vied for public attention. The economy was in flux, people were on the move, and New York was awash in a carnival of print. Flash papers, penny papers, the labor press, and evangelical weeklies all weighed in on the case. Miller makes good use of these sources, court records, and other documents to revisit this tragedy and trace its long-term reverberations. She also helps rehabilitate Lydia Maria Child's reputation as a truly intrepid reporter and an iconoclastic feminist.
June 8, 2020
I will preface this with my notes when at Page 38: "I am going to admit that I am struggling to find some connection with this story. It starts, goes back, moves forward; it is flooded with so much (unnecessary) information that my mind is failing to absorb it all and sift through what is relevant and what is not. I shall no doubt keep persevering ... for the time being."
I will continue by saying that I skimmed through the rest of the book - unimpressed. Quite a lot of the information could easily have been curated and inserted into the trial component of the story. I was not interested in the (vast) biographical information on a number of other players - again these could easily have been significantly shortened.
As the focus of this book seemed to be on Lydia Maria Child, author and reformer, one wonders whether of not this book should have been about here with the account of Amelia Norman being given as illustrative of her actions (with others) in bringing about reform for women.
Amelia's (and Lydia's) story ends just under the halfway mark - the rest is taken up by sources, notes and bibliography. Had I realised just how this would be structured, I would have passed.
I will continue by saying that I skimmed through the rest of the book - unimpressed. Quite a lot of the information could easily have been curated and inserted into the trial component of the story. I was not interested in the (vast) biographical information on a number of other players - again these could easily have been significantly shortened.
As the focus of this book seemed to be on Lydia Maria Child, author and reformer, one wonders whether of not this book should have been about here with the account of Amelia Norman being given as illustrative of her actions (with others) in bringing about reform for women.
Amelia's (and Lydia's) story ends just under the halfway mark - the rest is taken up by sources, notes and bibliography. Had I realised just how this would be structured, I would have passed.
January 11, 2026
This book has a great premise. I love reading about class divides and the struggles that women have endured historically. A highlight for me was how there was a seduction law and women could sue men who they felt “seduced” them. Unfortunately, I found it difficult to get attached to the women in this book probably because it’s so difficult to find information on them. They also had similar crimes and experiences so it began to feel repetitive.
Thank you NetGalley for an ebook in order to write this review.
Thank you NetGalley for an ebook in order to write this review.
April 27, 2020
Thank you to the publisher for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest opinion.
The premise of this book - research into the events which led up to a woman stabbing her former lover in a public place in 1840s New York - sounded fantastic and full of potential to explore 19th century society. This was achieved to some extent, with the actions of Amelia Norman being interpreted in the light of the role of women in society at the time and the work of some of the contemporary reforming women.
However the main problem Miller seems to run into is that there just isn't a lot of information about Norman and Ballard, her victim, out there. As a probably semi-illiterate woman from a humble background, Norman did not leave any letters or record of her own feelings and views except through the notes of the trial and the words of Lydia Maria Child, the writer, who was one of her advocates. As a result, the book gets bogged down in autobiographical information about the lawyers involved in Norman's case, and at times reads like a biography of Child's life rather than being focused on Norman. Even in the epilogue Miller admits that she does not know what happened to Norman after she left Child's house, which though understandable feels a little disheartening after one has read all about the trial.
The most interesting parts were when Norman's actions were viewed in light of societal attitudes (such as the myth of the 'Fallen woman') and contemporary literature such as Mysteries of Paris by Eugene Sue. More time exploring where these attitudes came from and perhaps comparing Norman's actions to other women in similar situations (in New York or elsewhere) might have been interesting. I would also like to know how it was possible for the jury to so quickly return a verdict of Not Guilty given how clear it was that Norman did stab Ballard and the prosecution would not allow the defence to ask witnesses about Norman and Ballard's past relationship - the implication was that the media was in Norman's favour but this was not really given as a reason as to why the jury were so clearly on Norman's side.
The premise of this book - research into the events which led up to a woman stabbing her former lover in a public place in 1840s New York - sounded fantastic and full of potential to explore 19th century society. This was achieved to some extent, with the actions of Amelia Norman being interpreted in the light of the role of women in society at the time and the work of some of the contemporary reforming women.
However the main problem Miller seems to run into is that there just isn't a lot of information about Norman and Ballard, her victim, out there. As a probably semi-illiterate woman from a humble background, Norman did not leave any letters or record of her own feelings and views except through the notes of the trial and the words of Lydia Maria Child, the writer, who was one of her advocates. As a result, the book gets bogged down in autobiographical information about the lawyers involved in Norman's case, and at times reads like a biography of Child's life rather than being focused on Norman. Even in the epilogue Miller admits that she does not know what happened to Norman after she left Child's house, which though understandable feels a little disheartening after one has read all about the trial.
The most interesting parts were when Norman's actions were viewed in light of societal attitudes (such as the myth of the 'Fallen woman') and contemporary literature such as Mysteries of Paris by Eugene Sue. More time exploring where these attitudes came from and perhaps comparing Norman's actions to other women in similar situations (in New York or elsewhere) might have been interesting. I would also like to know how it was possible for the jury to so quickly return a verdict of Not Guilty given how clear it was that Norman did stab Ballard and the prosecution would not allow the defence to ask witnesses about Norman and Ballard's past relationship - the implication was that the media was in Norman's favour but this was not really given as a reason as to why the jury were so clearly on Norman's side.
January 25, 2022
Historical true crime set in New York City in 1843. Amelia Norman, a young servant, stabbed Henry Ballard, a rich businessman, in the midst of a crowd of people on the steps of a luxury hotel. The subsequent trial wasn't so much about whether she did it (since she very obviously did), but why, and if her actions were justified. Ballard, it turned out, had "seduced" Norman (not always a euphemism for rape, but very much so in this case), who found herself pretty much legally defenseless. At the time, laws about seduction allowed the father or master of the seduced woman "to sue her seducer for damages on the basis of his loss of her services", but the woman herself could not. Norman's case, which highlighted this discrepancy, became a media circus and cause célèbre for early women's rights activists.
It's a fascinating story, and Miller does what she can with it, but unfortunately the book comes off as fairly slight. It's not really Miller's fault, other than that she picked a case which simply doesn't have as much historical documentation as one might want. Norman in particular has almost no voice at all; as a semi-literate poor servant, she has barely any presence in the historical record before the trial, and disappears entirely afterwards. We never get her perspective on the events, or even what happens to her later in life. Again – there's not really anything Miller can do about this, but it's hard not to feel the lack while reading. It made me think the story might have worked better as an article than an entire book, since it raises almost more questions than it answers. Still, it's definitely an interesting moment in history, and worth knowing about.
I read this as an ARC via NetGalley.
It's a fascinating story, and Miller does what she can with it, but unfortunately the book comes off as fairly slight. It's not really Miller's fault, other than that she picked a case which simply doesn't have as much historical documentation as one might want. Norman in particular has almost no voice at all; as a semi-literate poor servant, she has barely any presence in the historical record before the trial, and disappears entirely afterwards. We never get her perspective on the events, or even what happens to her later in life. Again – there's not really anything Miller can do about this, but it's hard not to feel the lack while reading. It made me think the story might have worked better as an article than an entire book, since it raises almost more questions than it answers. Still, it's definitely an interesting moment in history, and worth knowing about.
I read this as an ARC via NetGalley.
January 21, 2022
A young woman's quest for vengeance against an older lover that seduced her and then abandoned her, is at the heart of this compelling story set in NYC in 1843.
Blinded by jealousy and enraged by the despicable behavior of her ex-lover, 25 year old Amelia Norman, originally from NJ tries but fails to kill Henry Ballard, a 31 year businessman from Boston.
Her subsequent trial became a sensational affair throughout the country thanks to the American penny's press willingness to turn the affair into a media circus and the American Female Moral Society, a feminist organisation who had been tirelessly trying to criminalize "seduction" for well over a decade. They embraced wholeheartedly Amelia's cause and at the end she was acquitted.
I found this story captivating because it dealt with several interesting subjects such as gender inequality, the power of the press especially the penny press and its lack of integrity (yes we still have unfortunately a good example today with the New York Post), journalism and ethics, feminism and the birth (maybe) of the first #metoo movement in America. A fascinating look at social conditions in the US before the Civil War.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Cornell University Press for giving me the opportunity to read this wonderful book prior to its release date
Blinded by jealousy and enraged by the despicable behavior of her ex-lover, 25 year old Amelia Norman, originally from NJ tries but fails to kill Henry Ballard, a 31 year businessman from Boston.
Her subsequent trial became a sensational affair throughout the country thanks to the American penny's press willingness to turn the affair into a media circus and the American Female Moral Society, a feminist organisation who had been tirelessly trying to criminalize "seduction" for well over a decade. They embraced wholeheartedly Amelia's cause and at the end she was acquitted.
I found this story captivating because it dealt with several interesting subjects such as gender inequality, the power of the press especially the penny press and its lack of integrity (yes we still have unfortunately a good example today with the New York Post), journalism and ethics, feminism and the birth (maybe) of the first #metoo movement in America. A fascinating look at social conditions in the US before the Civil War.
Many thanks to Netgalley and Cornell University Press for giving me the opportunity to read this wonderful book prior to its release date
June 27, 2020
Thank you to NetGalley, the author and publisher for affording me the opportunity to read this book.
The concept caught my interest - I love history and a true tale of attempted murder intertwined with the rise of the women's movement sounded so interesting. I liked that this book shed some light on an otherwise little known figure - Amelia Norman - whose life experiences and struggles reflected those of many other women of her time. I definitely learned new facts and stories from this book, but found the title to be misleading - there was no actual murder. The book is extremely well-researched and the knowledge contained within is encyclopaedic, however much of the detail is overkill and did not further my insight of the subject matter. The woman Amelia Norman herself disappears in the story as others mould her tale to suit their own purposes. There appear to be few primary sources about her and the author's job was made more difficult by Amelia being illiterate and unable to leave a record of her own.
The concept caught my interest - I love history and a true tale of attempted murder intertwined with the rise of the women's movement sounded so interesting. I liked that this book shed some light on an otherwise little known figure - Amelia Norman - whose life experiences and struggles reflected those of many other women of her time. I definitely learned new facts and stories from this book, but found the title to be misleading - there was no actual murder. The book is extremely well-researched and the knowledge contained within is encyclopaedic, however much of the detail is overkill and did not further my insight of the subject matter. The woman Amelia Norman herself disappears in the story as others mould her tale to suit their own purposes. There appear to be few primary sources about her and the author's job was made more difficult by Amelia being illiterate and unable to leave a record of her own.
September 21, 2020
Compelling, gripping and historically fascinating, this book is about an impoverished woman and her "courtship" with an abusive wealthy man which nearly ended with murder. What makes it so compelling? It happened in real life.
Amelia Norman left home at the age of 16 to try to earn a living in 1830s New York City. She worked for and lived with several families and shortly after the 1837 economic collapse met wealthy merchant Henry Ballard. He treated her badly and insulted her. After a time she followed him and stabbed him at his store building but he survived.
The story continues with abolitionist and author Lydia Marie Child who becomes interested in the case and takes it on. The women's rights movement had begun to stir and as the press sensationalized the story it drew a lot of attention. Details of the case and outcomes follow.
Strongly emotive, Julie Miller drew me in and I felt engaged and connected. I appreciate the history and stories about others during those times as it is interesting to go beyond the immediate scope of characters. So much emotion, so much depth. This time period is my favourite era to read and learn about.
Incorporating the massive amount of notes into the main text would have been useful, though tricky to accomplish. A few stories felt extraneous.
Those into history and women's (lack of) rights will learn a lot from this book. It's not an enjoyable read due to the subject matter but worthwhile.
My sincere thank you to Cornell University Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this fascinating and sobering book in exchange for an honest review. Much appreciated.
Amelia Norman left home at the age of 16 to try to earn a living in 1830s New York City. She worked for and lived with several families and shortly after the 1837 economic collapse met wealthy merchant Henry Ballard. He treated her badly and insulted her. After a time she followed him and stabbed him at his store building but he survived.
The story continues with abolitionist and author Lydia Marie Child who becomes interested in the case and takes it on. The women's rights movement had begun to stir and as the press sensationalized the story it drew a lot of attention. Details of the case and outcomes follow.
Strongly emotive, Julie Miller drew me in and I felt engaged and connected. I appreciate the history and stories about others during those times as it is interesting to go beyond the immediate scope of characters. So much emotion, so much depth. This time period is my favourite era to read and learn about.
Incorporating the massive amount of notes into the main text would have been useful, though tricky to accomplish. A few stories felt extraneous.
Those into history and women's (lack of) rights will learn a lot from this book. It's not an enjoyable read due to the subject matter but worthwhile.
My sincere thank you to Cornell University Press and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC of this fascinating and sobering book in exchange for an honest review. Much appreciated.
April 7, 2021
Cry of Murder on Broadway
A Woman’s Ruin and Revenge in Old New York
by Julie Miller
Cornell University Press
Three Hills
History | True Crime
Pub Date 15 Oct 2020
I am reviewing a copy of Cry of Murder on Broadway through Cornell University Press through Netgalley:
This book recounts a nineteenth century true crime story.
The date was November 1, 1843, a young household servant named Amelia Norman attacked Henry Ballard, a prosperous merchant, on the steps of the new and luxurious Astor House Hotel. Both agitated and distraught Amelia Norman had followed Ballard down Broadway before confronting him at the door to the hotel. She had taken out a folding knife, and stabbed him, barely missing his heart.
Ballard had survived the attack and the trial that followed created a sensation. The newspapers in New York. Lydia Marie Clark a prominent author and abolitionists championed Norman and later included her story in her fiction and her writing on women’s rights.
Norman, the would be murderer attracted the support of politicians journalists, and legal and moral reformers who saw her story as a vehicle to change the law as it related to “seduction” and to advocate for the rights of workers.
Cry of Murder on Broadway tells the reader how New Yorkers, besotted with the drama of the courtroom and the lurid stories of the penny press, followed the trial for entertainment. Throughout all this, Norman gained the sympathy of New Yorkers, in particular the jury, which acquitted her in less than ten minutes.
I give Cry of Murder on Broadway five out of five stars!
Happy Reading!
A Woman’s Ruin and Revenge in Old New York
by Julie Miller
Cornell University Press
Three Hills
History | True Crime
Pub Date 15 Oct 2020
I am reviewing a copy of Cry of Murder on Broadway through Cornell University Press through Netgalley:
This book recounts a nineteenth century true crime story.
The date was November 1, 1843, a young household servant named Amelia Norman attacked Henry Ballard, a prosperous merchant, on the steps of the new and luxurious Astor House Hotel. Both agitated and distraught Amelia Norman had followed Ballard down Broadway before confronting him at the door to the hotel. She had taken out a folding knife, and stabbed him, barely missing his heart.
Ballard had survived the attack and the trial that followed created a sensation. The newspapers in New York. Lydia Marie Clark a prominent author and abolitionists championed Norman and later included her story in her fiction and her writing on women’s rights.
Norman, the would be murderer attracted the support of politicians journalists, and legal and moral reformers who saw her story as a vehicle to change the law as it related to “seduction” and to advocate for the rights of workers.
Cry of Murder on Broadway tells the reader how New Yorkers, besotted with the drama of the courtroom and the lurid stories of the penny press, followed the trial for entertainment. Throughout all this, Norman gained the sympathy of New Yorkers, in particular the jury, which acquitted her in less than ten minutes.
I give Cry of Murder on Broadway five out of five stars!
Happy Reading!
May 17, 2020
If you believe that Carrie White was in the right when she slaughtered nearly her entire graduating class of assholes at the prom, then you will in all likelihood side with Amelia Norman. Norman is the centralizing figure in Julie Miller’s chronicle of how one woman’s public attempt at murder on a bustling New York City street in 1843 changed the tide in the fight for women’s equity...
Miller writes with an academic neutralism. This lends her a moderately journalistic reliability, as a narrator. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if this whole endeavor started out as an article or dissertation of some sort that then grew out of that, which would be cool. But, sadly, the story never really jumps off the page, because the whole account reads too much like a term paper. On the one hand, I admire how fact-based Miller’s prose is—and how she offers credence to her own hypotheses when a primary source does not exist—but… to use a dreaded word, the book repeatedly becomes dull. And given how inherently dramatic this story is, I find that disappointing and unfortunately ironic.
For more, check out my full review: https://www.fearsomequeer.net/blog/da...
Miller writes with an academic neutralism. This lends her a moderately journalistic reliability, as a narrator. In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if this whole endeavor started out as an article or dissertation of some sort that then grew out of that, which would be cool. But, sadly, the story never really jumps off the page, because the whole account reads too much like a term paper. On the one hand, I admire how fact-based Miller’s prose is—and how she offers credence to her own hypotheses when a primary source does not exist—but… to use a dreaded word, the book repeatedly becomes dull. And given how inherently dramatic this story is, I find that disappointing and unfortunately ironic.
For more, check out my full review: https://www.fearsomequeer.net/blog/da...
July 25, 2020
Don't let the title fool you-while you will be told of the cry of murder on Broadway that is the result of a woman's ruin and revenge in old New York, what you are also getting is a meticulously researched and simply presented story of how one person's small action can contribute to huge changes. This is the butterfly effect told through the lens of the Amelia Norman case. While the crime of the story is the impetus, it's really the story of how the laws of this country are set up by men to protect men. While this story focuses on how the laws disenfranchise women specifically, it is easy to see how the same attitudes led to laws that disenfranchised other populations as well; and how even when those laws are changed, seemingly to the advantage of the disenfranchised, it is really still to the advantage of the ones making the laws. Julie Miller lays out the facts and the history in a simple straight forward manner, and it is because of this simplicity that the facts, the history and the injustices (that unfortunately are still VERY MUCH in existence today) are so effectively, powerfully and stunningly conveyed.
August 31, 2020
I'm left a bit confused by this book. The story of Amelia Norman and her attempted murder of Henry Ballard sounded like an intriguing one to me and drew me in. I'm unsure if there were a lack of sources or what the issue was but it seems that a majority of the book wasn't as focused on this event as I would have thought. There was more focus on the entire lives of the people involved in and around the trial. I don't think that the entire life story of each person was necessary, but only the parts of their background (such as the previous work of the lawyers and the continuation of work towards changing the rights of women). The tie in with the movement for women's rights was good but felt a bit rushed or wedged into the book.
Overall the book was interesting and has a great premise, I just think it could benefit from some better organization. As an example, it seems like only half of the book is actually reading material, and the other half is all notes. Why so many notes? Could it not have been worked into the book rather than trying to explain it after the fact?
Overall the book was interesting and has a great premise, I just think it could benefit from some better organization. As an example, it seems like only half of the book is actually reading material, and the other half is all notes. Why so many notes? Could it not have been worked into the book rather than trying to explain it after the fact?
March 26, 2021
Using ample quotes from writers from the time of the event, and a great deal of research into the attitudes and beliefs of the era, the author tries to convey the atmosphere of Amelia Norman's life. Much is speculation formed through examination of historic records. The book feels choppy, jumping from the event to family history to current opinion and back to family background, and even reviewing writer's works from the time period. It may be that it was difficult to weave all of the elements of such a story together smoothly. Or more likely there wasn't enough information available about Amelia Norman's trial without the embellishment provided by Julie Miller. Based on relationships that may have existed, and mores of the times, the author draws conclusions about likely reasons for the different responses people had to the events. Overall, it was an interesting read, and it is available to my patrons through a nearby library. For someone interested in history, genealogy, the start of the women's movement, and crime stories, this book could be a page-turner.
February 12, 2023
"On the evening of November 1, 1843, a young household servant named Amelia Norman attacked Henry Ballard, a prosperous merchant, on the steps of the new and luxurious Astor House hotel. Agitated and distraught, Norman followed Ballard down Broadway before confronting him at the door to the Astor House." The trial of Amelia Norman was a spectacle as most were back in the 1800s, doubling as performative theater and entertainment for the crowds both inside and out. The sensational journalism used to sway sympathy for Norman, helping her gain support from politicians as well as legal and moral reformists who were determined to change the laws around crimes committed with "seduction". Author Julie Miller delivers Norman's story which hit at the same time as the women's rights movement was gaining traction. Though I found "Cry of Murder..." somewhat interesting, the story didn't fully hold my attention. Wasn't the true crime book I was expecting though history buffs might find this one interesting.
May 11, 2020
The premise of this book was promising. But due to the lack of information about Norman and Ballard available, it felt like the author was forced to use more information about society during that time and taking a feminist viewpoint to fill a page count. Therefore, the book felt like a feminist take on society and how this could have played a part in why Norman did what she did I think instead of focusing on the surrounding society, the focus should have been more on Norman and Ballard, as well as how the jury could have easily given a not guilty verdict even though she clearly did stab Ballard. By removing focus to discuss what society was like then, the story of Norman felt a little lost at times, put on the back burner in order for historical details to be given that weren't necessarily need in the first place. This book definitely wouldn't be for everyone, but the feminine take on history surrounding Norman (someone I had never heard of) could be appealing to a modern audience.
April 21, 2020
I was thrown off initially by the way this eBook was formatted. Maybe this is something that will be fixed in final publication? The copy I received jumped right into the story, with no "prelude" or "introduction" heading. Once you get past the fact that the story behind so abruptly, the book was actually quite enjoyable. I read it, with many breaks in between, in one day.
I think the story was riveting. The main protagonist is very intriguing. And you really get a sense of why...why the story started like it did, why she did what she did, and why the author tells it like she did.
I wouldn't say it is a story for everyone. Use good readers judgement when picking this one up.
Overall, great job, Julie. It's an interesting story that I will read again.
Thank you NetGalley for letting me review this book.
I think the story was riveting. The main protagonist is very intriguing. And you really get a sense of why...why the story started like it did, why she did what she did, and why the author tells it like she did.
I wouldn't say it is a story for everyone. Use good readers judgement when picking this one up.
Overall, great job, Julie. It's an interesting story that I will read again.
Thank you NetGalley for letting me review this book.
September 17, 2020
I have received this title via NetGalley and publishers in exchange for an honest review
What even was this book?
It's a 280 page book with over half of it being notes. Why couldn't the notes have been incorporated into the book? There was important and interesting information in the notes that I wish had been included.
I picked this book up thinking it would be about Amelia Norman and her attempted murder of Henry Ballard. But most of this book was about the people who knew Amelia, not Amelia.
I honestly had expected more from this book. There was not much of an introduction so being thrown into this book was super jarring. Once you get to the trial portion, it got easier to read. But I felt like she kept dropping names of people Amelia used to be acquainted with that I forgot what the purpose of this book was.
What even was this book?
It's a 280 page book with over half of it being notes. Why couldn't the notes have been incorporated into the book? There was important and interesting information in the notes that I wish had been included.
I picked this book up thinking it would be about Amelia Norman and her attempted murder of Henry Ballard. But most of this book was about the people who knew Amelia, not Amelia.
I honestly had expected more from this book. There was not much of an introduction so being thrown into this book was super jarring. Once you get to the trial portion, it got easier to read. But I felt like she kept dropping names of people Amelia used to be acquainted with that I forgot what the purpose of this book was.
October 18, 2020
On November 1, 1843, Amelia Norman shocked New York City with the stabbing of Henry Ballard on the steps of the Astor House Hotel. I was so intrigued by this book because I am a lover of true crime and had never heard of this before. The book was very well researched and I learned a ton about how this helped to shape the burgeoning women's rights movement but it was also very hard to read. At times it felt like it was pulling teeth to get myself to focus on this book enough to take something away from the story. The formatting of the book made it difficult to read as well as veering off of the main plot.
*ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
*ARC provided by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review*
December 30, 2020
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher and Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. The setting of early Broadway Street before it was anything like the one we know today was intriguing. The setting around the mid-1800s was also tempting. However, the story got so bogged down in facts that did not appear to advance the story that it read more like an encyclopedia entry than a story. Any one (or seven) of the little facts about her background could have been exploited to enhance things, but it missed.
January 8, 2021
The book could have been so great! The case was interesting, the writing kept me hooked; I was looking forward to the solution - I was amazed by this true crime novel. The low rating has a simple reason, which annoyed me to death: The writing of the case makes up about 60% of the book. The rest is links and sources and pictures. While I understand this as important, whose idea was it to include that stuff into the reading percentage?!
I feel cheated of 40% book because I wanted to know more about this case. Guess I'll have to Google...
I received a free ARC by Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
I feel cheated of 40% book because I wanted to know more about this case. Guess I'll have to Google...
I received a free ARC by Netgalley in exchange of an honest review.
May 15, 2021
The synopsis on this book made it seem much more dramatic and interesting than it truly was. Story was interesting for the first half then it got VERY slow and hard to read. I honestly struggled to keep paying attention the further I got in the book. It was an interesting series of events that I had never heard of before, which made it worthwhile even though it was a rough read at times.
January 7, 2023
Thank you to NetGalley and Cornell University Press/Three Hills for a copy of this book. All opinions in this review are my own.
I loved this book. If you are looking for a historical read that is non-fiction, this might be the perfect book for you. It follows an attempted murder case from the 1800s in New York City, but Julie Miller doesn't just tell you about the victim/perpetrator, the detective work, and the trial, no she tells you everyone's history and how everything is intertwined. She goes into depth on people's backstories, showing the wide web that was cast leading up to the time that this crime occurred. She showed the ramifications of this crime, and the legal precedents that had been in place and subsequently started to change. She discusses what happens in the future and we can start to see parallels to today's society. This book is written beautifully, it is a sad but captivating story, and it was clearly researched with great care. I would love to read more books like this one where it follows a singular story but gives the context for what was going on, because I think that is what makes the story more rich and enjoyable. This was a great read.
I loved this book. If you are looking for a historical read that is non-fiction, this might be the perfect book for you. It follows an attempted murder case from the 1800s in New York City, but Julie Miller doesn't just tell you about the victim/perpetrator, the detective work, and the trial, no she tells you everyone's history and how everything is intertwined. She goes into depth on people's backstories, showing the wide web that was cast leading up to the time that this crime occurred. She showed the ramifications of this crime, and the legal precedents that had been in place and subsequently started to change. She discusses what happens in the future and we can start to see parallels to today's society. This book is written beautifully, it is a sad but captivating story, and it was clearly researched with great care. I would love to read more books like this one where it follows a singular story but gives the context for what was going on, because I think that is what makes the story more rich and enjoyable. This was a great read.
Read
May 16, 2020The first third is a little slow. Once the trial begins, it becomes interesting. The parallels between our current wave of feminism and this very old, small, step forward for women really make this book
May 21, 2020
I love books that take a little known facet of history, and then retell it so well that it becomes a part of your own mental landscape of the past. This is a book that does that and then some. Captivating from the first page, with every detail brought to life, and every horror too. Loved it.
October 22, 2020
This is a good crime story. Its most solid sections are when it discusses the Seduction Laws and their impact on women in the America. Quick and enjoyable.
November 8, 2020
Very good book , it was well written enjoyable and fact finding . If you like crime and drama you will love this .
February 2, 2021
4 stars
On November 1, 1843, Amelia Norman rocked New York society when she stabbed her former lover Henry Ballard in the lobby of the Astor Place Hotel. Miller's account of this shocking event and the sensational trial that ensued is richly detailed and well-researched, if a times a bit rambling.
As a lover of history and true crime, the fact that I had never heard of this case absolutely intrigued me. Miller does an excellent job of getting the reader involved from the get-go with a detailed description of the attack and teasing the wide-ranging impact of the event. From there, the rest of the book went a little downhill for me. I know that contextualizing the case is important, but I found some of the digressions from the details of the case to go on for far too long.
Despite this, I found this book to be an incredibly informative look into an obscure case that had a far broader impact that even I could have imagined.
Thank you to NetGalley, Cornell University Press, and Three Hills for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!
On November 1, 1843, Amelia Norman rocked New York society when she stabbed her former lover Henry Ballard in the lobby of the Astor Place Hotel. Miller's account of this shocking event and the sensational trial that ensued is richly detailed and well-researched, if a times a bit rambling.
As a lover of history and true crime, the fact that I had never heard of this case absolutely intrigued me. Miller does an excellent job of getting the reader involved from the get-go with a detailed description of the attack and teasing the wide-ranging impact of the event. From there, the rest of the book went a little downhill for me. I know that contextualizing the case is important, but I found some of the digressions from the details of the case to go on for far too long.
Despite this, I found this book to be an incredibly informative look into an obscure case that had a far broader impact that even I could have imagined.
Thank you to NetGalley, Cornell University Press, and Three Hills for an ARC of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review!
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