Carnival of Blood: Dueling, Lynching, and Murder in South Carolina, 1880-1920

Carnival of Blood presents the often disturbing history of changes in homicidal tendencies in South Carolina over four formative decades on the cusp of our modern era. In his investigation into murder and death in the Palmetto State, John Hammond Moore identifies three trends that emerged during the period from 1880 to 1920 - the demise of dueling, the rise and fall of lynching, and the proliferation of murder. Revisiting one of the nation's last formal duels, Moore recounts details of the Cash-Shannon meeting of July 1880 and the ensuing circle of carnage that left nine dead. He explores the circumstances that prompted duels and the reasons for their eventual disappearance. In his history of lynching, Moore describes the role politicians such as Ben Tillman and Cole Blease played in encouraging the lynching mentality, and he uncovers the underlying forces that pushed white South Carolinians to whip, hang, and otherwise brutalize African Americans.