{"product_id":"the-nastiest-saloon-in-iowa-murder-prostitution-and-corruption-in-the-heartland-9781467170826","title":"The Nastiest Saloon in Iowa: Murder, Prostitution, and Corruption in the Heartland","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003e\"Wickedest place in the wickedest section of Des Moines\" --Des Moines Register\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the first decades of the twentieth century, saloon proprietor Erastus Wallace Scott of Des Moines--with his cousins in the infamous Carter Gang--operated a campaign of murder, fraud, corruption, and prostitution from his bar on East Court Avenue. In 1908, the local paper denounced the neighborhood as \"given up almost entirely to houses of prostitution. At one end stands a notorious saloon, the scene of many crimes, even murders, and for years a harbor for criminals and a plotting place for the evil minded.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThat reviled enterprise was none other than Scott's seedy shack of sin. Initially, Scott gained the most notoriety, due to a slaying, numerous assaults, and sex trade associated with his establishment. But a subsequent murder brought cousin Will to the forefront. A land fraud scheme involving all three Carter brothers followed, including grand theft and even more deaths.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAuthors David and Rose Donovan \u003c\/strong\u003erecount the long-forgotten story of a crime family's nefarious reach beyond the red-light district.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e History Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 06\/16\/2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781467170826\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 192","brand":"David P. Donovan,Rose M. Donovan","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52452312514741,"sku":"9781467170826","price":21.24,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0473\/0804\/6492\/files\/img_8ca03aeb-f87e-46b8-92d0-a406fb903aea.jpg?v=1776826688","url":"https:\/\/pastforward.org\/products\/the-nastiest-saloon-in-iowa-murder-prostitution-and-corruption-in-the-heartland-9781467170826","provider":"Past Forward","version":"1.0","type":"link"}