Northern Duty, Southern Heart

Before the Civil War, George Proctor Kane had been a businessman, thespian, political appointee, philanthropist and militiaman. During the war, as Baltimore’s chief of police, he harbored the divided loyalties familiar to the border states—Southern in his sentiments yet Northern in his allegiances. As the city’s top lawman, he sought to reform Baltimore’s “Mobtown” image. He ensured that President-elect Lincoln, passing through on the way to his inauguration, was not assassinated. He protected Union troops marching to defend Washington, D.C. He was eventually imprisoned as a Southern sympathizer, denied habeas corpus as his captors transferred him from prison to prison. This book recounts Kane’s enigmatic public life before and during the Civil War, his Confederate activities after prison and his return to serve as mayor of Baltimore.

H. Leon Greene is a cardiologist living in Bellingham, Washington. As emeritus professor of medicine, he has published two books, authored or co-authored more than 30 book chapters and sections and more than 250 medical scientific articles.ientific articles.

• “[A]…nuanced, expansive, and multi-layered picture of Civil War-era duty and loyalty…[a] thoughtful study…offers significant insights and observations into Baltimore’s turbulent antebellum social and political history.”—Civil War Books and Authors

• “An impressive and unreservedly recommended contribution to personal, community, and academic library American Civil War History & Biography collections and American Civil War curriculum studies lists”—Midwest Book Review

H. Leon Greene
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 301
Bibliographic Info: 55 photos, appendix, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2023
pISBN: 978-1-4766-8961-6
eISBN: 978-1-4766-4795-1
Imprint: McFarland

Illustrations viii
Introduction 1
1. Kane’s Formative Years 3
2. Kane’s Early Career 5
3. Kane’s Connection to Baltimore Theatres and the John Wilkes Booth Family 16
4. Baltimore Militias 27
5. The Hibernian Society of Baltimore 33
6. Baltimore Fire Departments 38
7. Gangs of Baltimore and the Baltimore Elections 44
8. Baltimore Police 57
9. Slavery in Maryland and Baltimore 69
10. The Baltimore Plot 72
11. The Baltimore Riot 108
12. Kane’s Arrest 146
13. Fort McHenry 166
14. Forts Hamilton, Lafayette and Columbus 170
15. Fort Warren 184
16. Kane’s Confederate Activity After Release from Prison 196
17. Return to Baltimore 218
18. A Late Turn as Mayor 227
Epilogue 238
Appendix 241
Chapter Notes 251
Bibliography 275
Index 279