The Sunday Dispatch leads with coverage of Wisconsin's Supreme Court election, where Republican Judge Dixon appears to have defeated Democratic candidate Cothren despite initial claims of a 10,000-vote Democratic majority. The decisive factor? Soldiers. Two-thirds of Wisconsin troops voting in the Western theater backed Dixon, while those in the Army of the Rappahannock voted "almost unanimously" for him—a stunning rejection of Cothren, described as a "Democrat of the Chicago Times stripe." The paper frames this as a referendum on war support itself. Below the fold sits perhaps the most sensational story: a lengthy first-person account from a Long Island property owner describing his mansion near Division Avenue as thoroughly haunted. The writer—a skeptical Christian minister—details supernatural phenomena including unexplained sounds, apparitions, mysterious music, "oracular voices," and bizarre odors that have forced his family to abandon the home and made it impossible to sell or lease. He's now offering the property rent-free for a year to any respectable spiritualist or scientist willing to investigate and solve the mystery. The account cuts off mid-sentence, tantalizing readers to continue inside.

This April 1863 edition captures America at a pivotal moment in the Civil War—the Battle of Gettysburg is just two months away. The Wisconsin election story reveals something profound: Union soldiers voting Republican and rejecting peace Democrats weren't abstractions; they were actively shaping politics from the battlefield. This military franchise would prove crucial to Lincoln's 1864 reelection. Equally telling is the haunted house narrative, which reflects the era's obsession with spiritualism. With casualty lists growing daily, Americans were desperate to contact the dead, and spiritualist séances had become mainstream. This mansion story—whether real or fabricated—capitalized on genuine cultural anxiety about loss and the supernatural.

• The Custom House at Nassau and Wall streets cost the government $1,195,000 when completed in 1841—roughly $40 million in today's money for what was essentially a government office building.
• General Tom Thumb (Charles S. Stratton) is noted as exactly 29 inches tall and weighing 24.5 pounds—P.T. Barnum's famous exhibit was still actively touring and apparently newsworthy enough for the Dispatch's advice column.
• The paper casually mentions that Sir Walter Raleigh or Sir Francis Drake introduced tobacco to England 'about three centuries ago'—and that 'the cigar is a comparatively modern invention,' suggesting cigars were a recent fad even by 1863.
• Judge Dixon's supporters included soldiers from the 'Army of the Rappahannock'—this is the Union army under Joseph Hooker, currently camped in Virginia just weeks before marching to Gettysburg, the war's turning point.
• The Tammany Society election was scheduled for Monday night, and the article teases dramatic 'scalping' of leaders Elijah F. Purdy and John Kelly—though a postscript reveals a last-minute 'compromise ticket' and 'pipe of peace,' showing Tammany's Byzantine internal politics even during wartime.

• The haunted house narrative mentions William R. Prince of Flushing, Long Island, as a spiritualist enthusiast—Prince was actually a real, prominent horticulturist and grape breeder who would become known for developing the Catawba and Concord grape varieties. His appearance here suggests even serious scientists were intrigued by spiritualism.
• The writer mentions his pastor's argument against spiritualism was 'drawn from the Divine Word'—in 1863, churches were actively fighting spiritualism as heresy, yet within decades it would become quasi-respectable, influencing figures like Arthur Conan Doyle.
• The paper notes that Charles S. Stratton (Tom Thumb) weighed 24.5 pounds at 29 inches tall—Barnum kept him touring until 1862, and he was about to marry another dwarf performer named Lavinia Warren in February 1863 (just two months before this edition), which became one of the most publicized celebrity weddings in American history.
• The Wisconsin election results mention soldiers voting 'almost unanimously' for the Republican—this military voting would become so significant that Lincoln's 1864 reelection campaign literally depended on it; without soldier votes, he likely would have lost.
• San Marino is described as founded in 441 and having 8,000 people—the writer's interest in this obscure mountain republic reflects the 19th-century obsession with cataloging all world governments, even as America tore itself apart.