He brought an umbrella to a knife fight.
In this episode of Stories of Atlanta, part of our Atlanta history series Iron and Ambition, we travel back to 1848—a time when political insults came with real consequences.
When Georgia Superior Court Justice Francis Cone called Alexander Stephens a “traitor,” it wasn’t taken lightly. Stephens, known as “Little Alex,” days earlier, had publicly told bystanders he would slap Cone in the face for insulting him. Days later, at an Atlanta hotel, Cone and Stephens had a chance encounter and, true to his word, Stephens, armed with a cane, did indeed strike Cone. Cone didn’t have a cane, but he did have a knife. What happened next nearly changed Georgia’s political history forever.
👉 Watch what happens when politics turn personal—this week on Stories of Atlanta.
Note: In the video Francis Cone is described as a Georgia Supreme Court Justice. He was actually a justice on Georgia’s Superior Court. Also, in this video, Alexander Stephens was said to have used his umbrella as a weapon. Accounts differ on this question. Stephens may have used a walking stick. Either way, he obviously brought the wrong weapon to a knife fight.
history is very precious
I love this.