Alfred, Maine

A sleepy country village became the media spotlight in 1873

As the geographic center of the "shire" of York County, Maine, the rural town of Alfred became the setting for the infamous Wagner trial in the summer of 1873. Every available room was rented to reporters, witnesses, and spectators. OThers travelled by train and trolley daily. Wagner was housed in a brand new modern brick jail just a short walk from the courthouse. The old jail building (still standing today) came into the media spotlight when Wagner and two accomplices escaped the day following his guilty verdict. Wagner was able to pick the new high security lock with a wooden toothbrush and the three convicts climbed onto the roof and then lowered themselves into the empty warden's quarters, down the stairs, and out the back door. (Photographs (c) J. Dennis Robinson.)