Ormond; Or, The Secret Witness. Volume 1 (of 3)

Ormond; Or, The Secret Witness, published in 1799 by Charles Brockden Brown, is a Gothic novel set in post-revolutionary Philadelphia. The story follows Constantia, a young woman facing personal and societal challenges after her father's business is destroyed by a con artist, compounded by a yellow fever epidemic that devastates her community. The novel explores themes of women's education, morality, and the impact of individual fate within a broader social context, making it a significant work in early American literature and Gothic fiction.