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by A. Stephen Johnson (Author)
How did your ancestors die?
Before 1920, most people didn't live to a ripe old age. And many didn't die in bed. In fact, some died suddenly, in unusual ways and odd places. Your ancestors might have been struck by lightning, blown to bits in a steamboat explosion, run over by a train, burned to death, murdered, or cut in half by a sawmill. Or they might have blown their brains out with a pistol, taken poison, or drowned. Deadly diseases like typhoid and tuberculosis were common; infections from injuries could be fatal, and medical care was minimal. Our ancestors had to contend with hazards like severe weather, obstinate farm animals, fires, machinery, explosives-life was not easy. They had to adjust to rapid technological development brought by the Industrial
Revolution-stagecoaches gave way to steamboats, railroads, and automobiles; candles to kerosene lamps, gaslights, and electricity. With all this, plus unregulated firearms, narcotics, and alcohol, no wonder so many people died unexpected, traumatic deaths.
500 Horrible Ways to Die in Georgia introduces you to over five hundred Southerners who met untimely ends in tragic, and sometimes bizarre, ways. Georgia's contemporary newspapers reported their deaths in graphic, gruesome detail. They are quoted verbatim in this book, and will make your hair stand on end. You may even find one of your relatives!
