In 1817 the Linnaean Society of New England published a thrilling report: they had investigated reports of a new sea creature, and after scrupulous examination they could declare that they had discovered not just a new species, but an entirely new genus native to the shores of the United States. They had identified and scientifically described, they claimed, a great sea monster.
The “Murder at the Regatta” was a story of jealousy, passion, and some say even madness that shocked and fascinated the nation, and changed the very nature of how murder was seen and prosecuted in the United States.