Effie Afton Case
Robert J Havlik (LAGWXF@IRISHMVS.BITNET)
Sun, 17 Apr 1994 22:00:50 ECT
Sorry for the delay in answering the question about the Lincoln
case. The case you refer to is called the Effie Afton Case, named
for the river steamship that crashed into the piers of what was the
first railroad bridge across the Mississippi, located between
Rock Island, Ill. and Davenport, Iowa on May 6, 1856. The bridge
and boat burned and the boat owner sued the Rock Island Bridge
Company for $50,000 damages, claiming the bridge was
a hazzard.
The official name of the case was HURD V. ROCK ISLAND
BRIDGE CO. and was held in Chicago from Sept. 8, 1857
through Sept. 23. Lincoln used his early experience
as a riverboatman to gather data. His speech to the
jury over a 2 day period is printed in the "Collected Works".
The case ended with a hung jury and in effect Lincoln won.
The crucial point of the case was that he defeated the
attempt of river traffic people to prevent rail traffic
over the Mississippi and opened the West to railroad
expansion. Most biographies of Lincoln in libraries
mention this as one of Lincoln's most important cases
and list more specific books and journal articles on the
case.
Robert J. Havlik LAGWXF@IRISHMVS.CC.ND.EDU