American Scoundrel Stephen Wallace Dorsey

American Scoundrel Stephen Wallace Dorsey

From True Crime Historian by Richard O Jones

May 5, 2026 · 9 min · Episode 10504

About this episode

The episode explores the corrupt practices of Senator Stephen W. Dorsey during the Gilded Age, including a bid-rigging scandal involving the Post Office.

Gilded Age Washington, 1876. Senator Stephen W. Dorsey and the Second Assistant Postmaster General ran a bid-rigging racket that bled the Post Office of millions — fake mail routes, real money. Two trials, two acquittals, one stolen castle on the New Mexico prairie. The jury said not guilty. The record disagrees. Jump to the AD-FREE Safe House Edition Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/true-crime-historian--2909311/support . You can pay more if you want to, but rent at the Safe House is still just a buck a week, and you can get access to over 400 ad-free episodes from the dusty vault, Safe House Exclusives, direct access to the Boss, and whatever personal services you require. We invite you to our other PULPULAR MEDIA podcasts: If disaster is more your jam, check out CATASTROPHIC CALAMITIES , telling the stories of famous and forgotten tragedies of the 19th and 20th centuries. What could go wrong? Everything! For brand-new tales in the old clothes from the golden era of popular literature, give your ears a treat with PULP MAGAZINES with two new stories every week.

People in this episode

Host: Richard O Jones

Topics covered

  • Gilded Age
  • political corruption
  • legal trials
  • American history
  • scandals

Keywords

  • Stephen W. Dorsey
  • Gilded Age
  • Post Office
  • corruption
  • bid-rigging
  • trials
  • New Mexico

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Post Office

Places: New Mexico

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