As we journeyed through the thicket of Lloyd’s life and lies, his lawyer’s concoctions, the falsified testimonies, and the shadows Lloyd cast at his changing whims, we were ably assisted by fine scholars, document examiners, diligent archivists, various special collections librarians, cemetery historians, and members of the legal community. So, our thanks to National Archives archivist Jane Fitzgerald (Archives 1 Reference Section, Research Services, Washington, DC); the wise and ever-helpful Dr. Lynda Lasswell Crist, editor and project manager of the Papers of Jefferson Davis, Rice University, Houston, Texas; Professor Elizabeth Leonard at Colby College, Waterford, Maine; Laurie Verge, director, Surratt House Museum, Clinton, Maryland; Lew Napier at the Cave Hill Cemetery, Louisville, Kentucky; at Eastern Cemetery in Louisville—a valuable historical site that is being lovingly restored but can always use ready, helping hands—Bobby Hunt; Dann Penn and archaeologist Dr. Philip DiBlasi; Jana Meyer at the Filson Historical Society in Louisville, Kentucky; Lance J. Hale of the Kentucky Archives Center; Derek Gray at the DC Public Library: Washingtonian Division; James Blankenship and Chris Boyce at the Petersburg National Battlefield; Tom Neel at the Ohio Genealogical Society; C. Danny Wofford at the Atlanta Masonic Library and Museum; and Elisabeth A. Engel, director of collections and exhibits at the Waukesha County Museum.
For lively conversation and valuable consultation about the Lincoln pass, many thanks to Dr. James M. Cornelius, curator, Lincoln Collection, Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum (Springfield, Illinois); Dr. Daniel Stowell, director and editor of the papers of Abraham Lincoln (Springfield, Illinois); forensic document analyst Kirsten Singer; handwriting analyst Ellen Schuetzner; autograph dealer Edward N. Bomsey; and Daniel Weinburg, proprietor of the Abraham Lincoln Bookshop in Chicago. To Zack Mazur, who three years ago at the start of this project spent many hours in the New York Public Library retrieving the John Bakeless Papers. And to Charles Richter at George Washington University, who ably combed through the Joseph Holt Papers at the Library of Congress.
Author Jane Singer’s important conversations with Professor Steven Schwinn and Professor Robert M. Chesney added greatly to our understanding of the continuing impact of the Totten Doctrine, the state secrets privilege, and the differences between them. At the start of this project Professor D. A. Jeremy Telman’s assertion that our discovery of the Lloyd fraud would “rock the legal community” was an inspiration and an added impetus to forge ahead.
And many thanks to Ryan Martz, who instantly, cheerfully, and diligently helped, big-time.
For his guidance, input, sage advice, and ongoing support as we journeyed together, we thank our agent, William Callahan at Inkwell Management.
To Keith Wallman, Editorial Director at Lyons Press, thank you for continuing to believe in this work as you toiled so mightily on your own. And to production editor Lauren Brancato and copy editor Jessie Shiers, thanks for everything.
To Chuck Eckstein, Jessica Eve Masser, Caspy, and Buster, every day, every moment you have been there.