Phillip Henson the Southern Union Spy

[L Verge]

(09-01-2015 06:16 PM)Gene C Wrote:  Here is the link to the book on Henson in the Internet Archives.

https://archive.org/stream/philiphensons...0/mode/2up

According to the Wikipedia article, Henson served as a special agent until Grant's death in 1885. If he had this long beard as shown above ("it is the truth that Col. Henson has the longest beard in the world, measuring six feet four inches in length...fully six inches resting on the carpet. This alone makes him a marked figure anywhere..." p13), I would think that would make him a little to conspicuous to be a Special Secret Service Agent. According to Wikipedia, "Grant asked him to conduct a 'confidential and discreet' investigation."

As Laurie mentioned, one of the difficulties regarding verification of Mr. Stelnick's story, is the reference to "Philip Henson Papers and Photos". I am not aware that anyone other than Mr. Stelnick claims publicly to have seen or read any of them. With the reported death of Mr. Stelnick, no one seems to know where his research papers are either.

Perhaps someone knows, or can find, some verifiable source to show Henson worked for the Gov't in some capacity after the war. But what if there is nothing to find....

It's an intriguing story, and one I have serious doubts about.
Phillip Henson remains an elusive individual, but if he turned farmer after the war as the book claims, there may not be much to discover after all.

Do I remember correctly that Henson's long beard was the cause of his death? Was he the one who got his beard caught in a wagon's wheel -- sort of like Isadora Duncan's famous scarf?