Hattie Lawton Explained

Hattie Lawton
Birth Date:c. 1837
Death Date:(aged ?)
Known For:Female detective, in the Pinkerton Detective Agency's Female Detective Bureau and Union spy in the American Civil War
Occupation:detective, spy
Other Names:Hattie H. Lawton, Hattie Lewis Lawton
Nationality:American

Hattie Lawton, also known as Hattie H. Lawton,[1] Hattie Lewis,[2] and Hattie Lewis Lawton was an American detective, who worked for Allan Pinkerton, of the Pinkerton Detective Agency. Lawton may have been born around 1837,[3] although most details of her life, before and after the American Civil War, are unknown. "[Hattie] Lawton was part of Pinkerton's Female Detective Bureau, formed in 1860 to 'worm out secrets' by means unavailable to male detectives."[4]

Baltimore assassination plot against Abraham Lincoln

Hattie Lawton, along with fellow female Pinkerton detective Kate Warne, worked with other Pinkerton agents who actively participated in the detection of the 1861 Baltimore assassination plot against President-elect Abraham Lincoln. In order to remain undetected, she posed as the wife of Timothy Webster.[5] It has also been said that she, and Warne, learned more about the assassination plots against Lincoln than the male detectives who were part of the same agency.[6]

American Civil War

During the American Civil War, Hattie Lawton continued to work with the Pinkerton Detective Agency. According to Pinkerton's account, in the early part of 1861, Lawton was stationed in Perryville, Maryland, with Timothy Webster, another Pinkerton agent. Lawton was recruited to the agency along with Elizabeth H. Baker,[7] by Warne, who headed the agency's Female Detective Bureau, which was based in Chicago, Illinois.[8]

After Pinkerton began his "Secret Service" for Gen. George B. McClellan, Lawton and Webster were added to the payroll of the Pinkerton's service in Washington on August 8, 1861. Lawton again posing as Timothy Webster's wife appeared in Richmond, Virginia, in the early part of 1862. The two were sent by Pinkerton to Richmond to gather intelligence about Confederate army movements.[9]

Arrest and imprisonment

Hattie Lawton tended to Timothy Webster when he fell ill at the Monument Hotel in Richmond,[10] which prevented intelligence reports from being sent back to Allan Pinkerton. John Scobell, an African American Union spy, worked with the "twenty-five-year-old beauty", Hattie Lawton, during this time, posing as her servant.[3] [11]

Allan Pinkerton sent two agents, Pryce Lewis and John Scully, to Richmond, Virginia, to find out what happened to Webster and Lawton. They found Webster and Lawton, but Lewis and Scully were recognized as Pinkerton agents, arrested and later released as part of a prisoner exchange on March 18, 1863. Various sources indicate that one or both of the men, either to save their own lives or after being tricked, revealed the identity of Webster. Webster and Lawton were arrested and after a quick trial both were found guilty.[12]

Timothy Webster was sentenced to death and executed, on April 29, 1862.[13] Lawton was sentenced to one year in Castle Thunder prison in Richmond, Virginia. In Confederate records, Lawton was described as "Mrs. Timothy Webster", one of a party of four Federals, exchanged for Confederate spy Belle Boyd, on December 13, 1862.

During her imprisonment, Richmond's most accomplished Union spy, Elizabeth Van Lew, visited Hattie Lawton, but it is unclear whether Van Lew was aware of the real identity of "Mrs. Timothy Webster".[4] Lawton also attempted to persuade Confederate officials of Webster's innocence, but was unsuccessful.[14]

Post-war years and death

Following her release from prison, nothing is known regarding Lawton's post-war years or death.

See also

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Cuthbert, Norma Barrett . 1949 . Lincoln and the Baltimore Plot, 1861: From Pinkerton Records and Related Papers . . . 4.
  2. Web site: Recko. Corey. Hattie Lewis, a Pinkerton Operative and Civil War Spy. 2019. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230514104810/http://coreyrecko.com/hattielewis. May 14, 2023. live.
  3. Book: Quarles, Benjamin . 1953 . The Negro in the Civil War . Boston . Russell & Russell . 89.
  4. Web site: Rhoades . Priscilla . The Women of Castle Thunder . The Kudzu Monthly . August 2002 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080927210547/http://www.kudzumonthly.com/kudzu/aug02/CastleThunder.html . September 27, 2008 . dead .
  5. Book: Recko, Corey . 2013 . A Spy for the Union: The Life and Execution of Timothy Webster . . . 9780786474905 . 75 .
  6. Web site: 'The Lincoln Conspiracy' performed in Boca. Sun Sentinel. March 21, 2014. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230901215503/https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2014/03/21/the-lincoln-conspiracy-performed-in-boca/. September 1, 2023. subscription.
  7. Web site: Ness. Chris. Wild Women of the West: Elizabeth Baker. Cowgirl. July 19, 2017. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230326003404/https://cowgirlmagazine.com/wild-women-wednesday-elizabeth-baker/. March 26, 2023. live.
  8. Web site: Gormly. Kellie B.. How Kate Warne, America's First Woman Detective, Foiled a Plot to Assassinate Abraham Lincoln. March 29, 2022. Smithsonian. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230406142014/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-kate-warne-americas-first-woman-detective-foiled-a-plot-to-assassinate-abraham-lincoln-180979829/. April 6, 2023. live.
  9. Web site: Bonansinga. Jay. The Weakest Link. HistoryNet. September 4, 2017. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230901221359/https://www.historynet.com/the-weakest-link/. September 1, 2023. live.
  10. Web site: Life behind enemy lines – the story of Newtown's American Civil War spy. Powy's County Times. July 18, 2021. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230901215728/https://www.countytimes.co.uk/news/19448148.life-behind-enemy-lines---story-newtowns-american-civil-war-spy/. September 1, 2023. live.
  11. Web site: Melton. H. Keith. Philadelphia Is a Secret Spy Mecca. The Daily Beast. February 23, 2021. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20220626072648/https://www.thedailybeast.com/philadelphia-is-a-secret-spy-mecca. June 26, 2022. live.
  12. Web site: Book Review: The Pinks. Security Management. ASIS International. August 7, 2019. September 1, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20221126114712/https://www.asisonline.org/security-management-magazine/latest-news/online-exclusives/2019/book-review-the-pinks/. November 26, 2022. live.
  13. 2007 . Intelligence in the Civil War . . 9, 18, 26 . September 1, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20071212073420/https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/additional-publications/civil-war/Intel_in_the_CW1.pdf . December 12, 2007 . dead . 2007 date listed here
  14. Thompson . Erin E. . April 24, 2023 . Confederates Execute First Civil War Spy . . . . September 1, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230426000147/https://www.dvidshub.net/news/443221/confederates-execute-first-civil-war-spy . April 26, 2023 . live.

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