BLOODY ISLAND

The history of Bloody Island

Bloody Island was a sandbar or "towhead" (river island) in the Mississippi River, opposite St. Louis, Missouri, which became densely wooded and a rendezvous for duelists because it was considered "neutral" and not under Missouri or Illinois control.

Thomas Biddle and Spencer Darwin Pettis
on August 26, 1831.

Their duel was one of the most famous duels to occur on Bloody Island.

It is an example of how all politics is local. Pettis (a staunch Jacksonian Democrat) challenged Biddle (brother of Nicholas Biddle, the president of the Second Bank of the United States) because Biddle had publicly humiliated Pettis.

Because the Code Duello stated that the particulars of the duel were to be decided by the "chalengee," Biddle chose Bloody Island, and a distance of five feet.

It is argued that Biddle thought such a close distance would convince Pettis not to go through with the duel, but Pettis was undeterred. They fired at five feet.....

BLOODY ISLAND

Freitag, 4. Mai 2012

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