His name was Elijah Skaggs, but he was better known as "Brother Skaggs, the preaching Faro dealer" because of his costume, which never varied throughout his professional life regardless of climate or weather - frock coat and trousers of black broadcloth, black silk vest, white shirt with high-standing collar, white cravat of the choker type wound several times around his scrawny neck, black stove-pipe hat and black patent-leather gaiters.
Peter Skaggs is a common ancestor for many Skaggs, Scaggs and Skeggs families throughout the United States. This site exists as a single point of contact to encourage researchers to work together to uncover his place in their family histories.
Famous Skaggs: "Brother Skaggs" the Gambler
A few years ago I wrote a post about two Skaggs brothers from Western Kentucky who made a living gambling along with other pursuits. One of the brothers, E. H., was evidently quite famous and wealthy from Faro gambling. From the book Sucker’s Progress: An Informal History of Gambling in America by Herbert Asbury:
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