Every day stories from American history that are not true are repeated in museums and classrooms across the country. Some are outright fabrications; others contain a kernel of truth that has been embellished over the years. Collaborating with The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation, Mary Miley Theobald has uncovered the truth behind many widely repeated myth-understandings in our history in Death by Petticoat including:* Hat makers really were driven mad. They were poisoned by the mercury used in making hats from furs. Their symptoms included hallucinations, tremors, and twitching, which looked like insanity to people of the 17th and 18th centuries--and the phrase "mad as a hatter" came about.*
3/5 stars
This book was full of myths about history that I found pretty interesting. Any lover of trivia will like reading this book. A few things I had heard or read before, but most of stories were new to me. I enjoyed reading this book and would recommend to others that like to read about the truth in history.
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