Unmaking a Criminal: Representations of Appalachia and the Failed Mobilization of the Edith Maxwell Trials

Abstract

Abstract This article analyzes public responses to the murder trials of Edith Maxwell in 1935–1936. Discourses surrounding the case largely relied on stereotypical views of Appalachia to frame the case and the larger issues of domestic violence and gender-exclusionary jury laws. Edith Maxwell was a young teacher from a small town in Appalachian Virginia tried for the murder of her father, who she claimed was abusive. Using newspaper coverage, petitions for pardon, and materials circulated by the National Woman’s Party (NWP) in support of Maxwell, the article demonstrates that each group used Appalachian stereotypes to displace the problem of domestic violence onto the region. Ultimately, this displacement allowed for Maxwell’s pardon. However, the persistent focus on Appalachia resulted in a failure of the case to induce more lasting legal change concerning domestic violence and gender-exclusionary jury laws.