In a Nutshell…

“Beloved by her grandchildren.” “A female fiend.” “One of the most expert sneak thieves in the country.” How could all of these describe the same woman? After discovering an 1889 newspaper account of my husband’s ancestor Catherine Seeley, I set out to uncover the truth behind the headlines. What I found was the remarkable story of a woman who, after losing the life she had spent decades building, reinvented herself again and again—becoming one of the Gilded Age’s most audacious confidence women.

The Story Behind the Pages…

In 2010, while researching my husband’s family history, I discovered a newspaper account of Catherine Seeley’s sensational divorce trial. One article led to another, and soon I found myself following Catherine across nearly three decades, dozens of aliases, and communities throughout the Midwest.

What began as a family history project eventually became years of original genealogical research. Along the way I uncovered court records, newspaper accounts, city directories, census records, and hundreds of forgotten documents that revealed not only Catherine’s crimes, but the complicated woman behind the headlines.

The result is Countess of Cons—a biographical narrative that invites readers to meet Catherine Seeley not simply as a confidence woman, but as a mother, grandmother, survivor, and one of the Gilded Age’s most extraordinary women.

About the Book

After losing the life she had spent decades building, Catherine Seeley refused to disappear. She spent the next twenty-five years reinventing herself—new names, new cities, new schemes—until she became one of the Gilded Age’s most audacious confidence women.

Every reinvention came at a cost. As Catherine pursued the life she believed she deserved, the consequences rippled through the lives of her daughters and everyone drawn into her orbit.

Drawn from years of original genealogical research, Countess of Cons takes readers beyond the headlines to meet the woman herself.

Meet the Real Catherine

Explore Catherine’s timeline, aliases, family tree, historic photographs, and original newspaper coverage.

The Research Behind Countess of Cons

Follow Catherine’s paper trail through census records, newspapers, court documents, city directories, vital records, and other historical sources used to reconstruct her remarkable story.

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