The Marshall family was in fact one of the biggest landowners in the town of Hamiltonban, Pennsylvania at the time of the Civil War. But the characters and descendants from that family in this story are invented, as is the burned out house and the hint of scandal.
The original Library of Congress was indeed lost during the war of 1812. By most accounts, it was burned by the British, but several pieces of testimony suggest that some if it was removed to a hidden location before the British flames consumed the rest. No trace of it has ever been found.
The Zoo Balloon is one of the Philadelphia Zoo's best known attractions, although to best server the story we took some minor liberties with the specifics of its setup. Both the Christ Church Burial Ground and Wissahickon Valley Park are real. Wissahickon was a popular area for both mystics and grist mills during the eighteenth century, and today is a key piece of the vast Fairmount Park system. It was also the subject of the Poe short story “The Elk.” All the places mentioned in Wissahickon are real, including the Rosicrucian cave. The lost Library of Congress is not located there as far as we know.
The Celtic Cross is a real symbol dating to the first millennium, although its origins are unknown. It has been associated with various groups and conspiracies, including neo-Nazis and the Zodiac killer.
The Society of Cincinnatus was founded during the American Revolution and counted George Washington and Ben Franklin, among others, as members. Both Franklin and Washington developed doubts about the organization, which at one point proposed to serve as a hereditary nobility which could steer the country in the proper direction. The national symbol of the eagle has part of its origins in the logo of this society. It is also true that Ben Franklin once called the turkey a more noble bird than the eagle.
As for the lost Ben Franklin document, that is pure fiction. If such a document were to be discovered, though, we have no doubt that the disruption it would cause more than two centuries later would be very real.
About the Authors
David Wood is the author of the popular action-adventure series, The Dane Maddock Adventures, as well as several stand-alone works and two series for young adults. Under his David Debord pen name he is the author of the Absent Gods fantasy series. When not writing, he co-hosts the Authorcast podcast. David and his family live in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Visit him online at www.davidwoodweb.com.
Edward G. Talbot is the pen name for two authors. Ed Parrot lives in Massachusetts and has long been fascinated with turning ideas into written words. Jason Derrig lives in Maine and likes to tell stories, especially about conspiracies. The two authors have collaborated to create a brand of thriller that keeps the stakes high while not taking itself too seriously.
In addition to Liberty, their work includes the conspiracy thriller novelsNew World Orders and 2012: The Fifth World. Their most recent books are the terrorism thriller short novels Alive from New York and Alive From America. Click here for a sample of Alive from New York.
Visit Edward G. Talbot on the web at www.edwardgtalbot.com