Lost Rights: The Misadventures of a Stolen American Relic by Connecticut native David Howard has just been added to the "new book shelf" on the library’s third floor. The book tells the story of how one of the 14 original handwritten copies of the Bill of Rights was stolen from the North Carolina Statehouse at the end of the Civil War by a Union soldier and was ultimately returned to its rightful owner in 2005. It traces the document’s path during those 140 years, through the world of antique document dealers, historians, and auction houses, ending with an FBI sting operation and a 3-year battle through the legal system.
For more, read an excerpt from the book, view a talk by the author, or read a review.
