The Nastiest Saloon in Iowa

Murder, Prostitution, and Corruption in the Heartland

David P. Donovan, Rose M. Donovan

• Publisher: The History Press
• Year: 2026
• Topic: History
• eBook ISBN:
  9781467173773
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

"Wickedest place in the wickedest section of Des Moines? ?Des Moines Register In the first decades of the twentieth century, saloon proprietor Erastus Wallace Scott of Des Moines?with his cousins in the infamous Carter Gang?operated a campaign of murder, fraud, corruption, and prostitution from his bar on East Court Avenue. In 1908, the local paper denounced the neighborhood as ?given up almost entirely to houses of prostitution. At one end stands a notorious saloon, the scene of many crimes, even murders, and for years a harbor for criminals and a plotting place for the evil minded." That reviled enterprise was none other than Scott?s seedy shack of sin. Initially, Scott gained the most notoriety, due to a slaying, numerous assaults, and sex trade associated with his establishment. But a subsequent murder brought cousin Will to the forefront. A land fraud scheme involving all three Carter brothers followed, including grand theft and even more deaths. Authors David and Rose Donovan  recount the long-forgotten story of a crime family?s nefarious reach beyond the red-light district.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• 1. The Murder of Edward Gresser: Des Moines’ First Drive-By Shooting
• 2. The Scott Family, Pioneers of Des Moines
• 3. Erastus Wallace Scott and the “Widow” Mary Flynn
• 4. The Death of Morris Shea: “She Marries a Murderer”
• 5. The Worst Red-Light District in Des Moines
• 6. The Carter Family’s Real Estate Empire
• 7. W.L. Carter Faces the Death Penalty
• 8. “Scott to the Rescue”
• 9. W.L. Carter, “Coolest Man in the Courtroom”
• 10. “Trouble in Packages”
• 11. Wallace Scott Sees the Light
• 12. Lulu Scott, Snubbed and Suicidal
• 13. The “Scarlet Monster’s” Red Light Goes Out on East Court Avenue
• 14. The Death of Mary Flynn
• 15. The Carter Crime Family Gives Fraud Another Try
• 16. More Trials, More Troubles
• 17. “A Murderous Assault”
• 18. “Notorious” to the End: Wallace Scott’s Final Chapter
• 19. The Murder of Edward Gresser, Revisited
• 20. Mrs. Count Lulu Nathoo and the Temple of Psychology
• 21. The Carter Gang’s Last Hurrah
• 22. The Murder of Edward Gresser, the Final Chapter
• 23. Loose Ends
• Afterword
• Notes
• About the Authors