Mariah Fredericks on The Heartbreaking Details of Historical Fiction ‹ CrimeReads

The trial of Bruno Richard Hauptmann for the kidnapping and death of Charles Lindbergh Jr. was a national spectacle. Media flooded the New Jersey town of Flemington. Hordes of sightseers arrived, trying to get inside the courthouse or waiting outside for a glimpse of Colonel and Mrs. Lindbergh. Naturally, the local businesses did quite well. Hotels were full. Restaurants offered ice cream sundaes called Lindys. People sold fake autographed pictures of the famous aviator. Other souvenirs included tiny ladders on green ribbon. One man sold bags of blond curls, claiming they were the Lindbergh Baby's hair. A single bag went for five dollars. The Lindberghs would have passed that man every time they went to the courthouse.

That particular vendor stayed in my mind as I wrote The Lindbergh Nanny, which tells the story of the most famous kidnapping in American history through the eyes of Betty Gow, the young Scottish woman who was the baby's nurse. I've written four historical novels, but I have never written about real people before.