BROADCASTS.com

There once was a well just north of Collect Pond (New York\u2019s fetid source of drinking water in the late 18th\xa0century) in a marshy place called Lispenard\u2019s Meadow, in the area of today\u2019s SoHo.\xa0\n\nOne cold day in December \u2013 in the year 1799 -- a boy came across a lady\u2019s article of clothing here matching that in the possession of a missing woman named Elma Sands. Upon looking into the old, boarded-up well, investigators discovered a horrifying sight \u2013 the lifeless body of Ms. Sands, which had been submerged in the well for several days.\n\nSuspicion immediately shifted to the boarding house where she lived and worked, and the unusual tenants there all became suspects \u2013 including Levi Weeks, the brother of a prominent builder. Weeks was soon accused of her murder and thrown into jail.\n\nThis is the tale of the extraordinary trial that occurred in March of 1800 featuring two of the most prominent people in New York City \u2013 Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. Years before their fateful duel in Weehawken, the two lawyers agreed to defend Weeks against charges of brutal murder.\xa0\n\nBut Hamilton and Burr were linked to the case in other ways. A banking institution borne from these early days still thrives today. And, believe it or not, the infamous Manhattan well still exists in the basement of a surprising place.\n\nSupport the show: https://www.patreon.com/boweryboys