Bio: Scranton, F. W.
Contact: Ken Wood
----Source: Marshfield News (Marshfield, Wood Co., Wis., Thursday, March 17, 1898, P. 1
COUNTERFEITER ARRESTED
A CLARK COUNTY CRIMINAL
Deputy U. S. Marshall Meehan Arrests F. W. Scranton for Passing Counterfeit Half Dollars
The town of Loyal came to the front last Thursday as the base of operations of a bold counterfeiter, who was caught in the act of disposing of spurious coins of the denomination of half dollars. He had succeeded in passing several of them in the town before he was caught and arrested. The news of his capture was wired to Deputy U. S. Marshall Meehan at Madison and on Monday Mr. Meehan arrived in this city on his way to Loyal. The same evening he passed through here with the prisoner, whose name is F. W. Scranton, in charge. When Scranton was arrested at Loyal, several of the bogus coins were found on his person as well as a coin which is thought to have been the model from which the spurious ones were cast. The counterfeiting was very poorly done and it seems strange that he could have deceived anyone with such bad imitations of Uncle Sam's silver.
Scranton's claims and excuses are contradictory. He says that he did not make the counterfeit money and knew nothing of passing the bad coins, as he was intoxicated at the time and yet says that he is not the only one who has been "shoving the queer" in that locality. He is a very low type of character in appearance and looks capable of almost anything. The authorities will keep a close watch in the vicinity of Loyal for the purpose of breaking up any other attempts at making and passing bad money, in case there is anything in Scranton's assertions. The latter, it is said, lives on a farm about 8 miles from Loyal and has a wife and two children. He is now confined to jail at Madison to await examination.
Deputy Meehan is the officer who with Deputy U. S. Revenue Collector Pankow, of this city, succeeded in locating a gang of moonshiners or illicit whisky distillers who were running three distilleries in Ashland, and selling their product without paying the lawful tribute to the government.
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