Gretchen Cherington revisits the Hormel embezzlement scandal in family memoir

By AI, Created 8:58 PM UTC, May 18, 2026, /AGP/ – Gretchen Cherington’s The Butcher, the Embezzler, and the Fall Guy digs into a 1920s embezzlement case that nearly sank Geo. A. Hormel & Company and examines her grandfather’s role in the company’s rise. The memoir blends historical research with personal investigation into power, myth, and the costs of protecting reputations.

Why it matters: - The book reframes a century-old corporate scandal as both a business story and a family reckoning. - Cherington argues that the Hormel episode still shows how power, loyalty, and myth can shape what people believe about leaders and institutions. - The memoir connects early American industry with broader questions about who gets protected when a scandal threatens a company.

What happened: - Gretchen Cherington says The Butcher, the Embezzler, and the Fall Guy traces a 1920s embezzlement scandal that nearly brought Geo. A. Hormel & Company to its knees. - The story centers on three men: George A. Hormel, her grandfather A.L. Eberhart, and a comptroller who confessed to embezzling a large sum. - Cherington links the case to her grandfather’s recruitment in 1901, when George A. Hormel brought A.L. Eberhart from Chicago to help build a meat company in southern Minnesota. - The company grew over its first 20 years into what Cherington describes as an iconic brand. - Cherington’s book is subtitled A Family Memoir of Scandal and Greed in the Meat Industry.

The details: - Cherington researched historical documents, including A.L. Eberhart’s personal letters. - She made three extended visits to southern Minnesota for reporting. - She also interviewed dozens of people. - The book asks whether Eberhart was complicit or sacrificed to protect the company. - Cherington says the project forced her to revisit family stories she had long trusted. - The memoir also examines George Hormel through the lens of her father’s harsher description of him. - Cherington says the book is informed by her work advising executives and studying leadership up close. - Her background includes a 35-year career advising top executives and teaching in executive education programs at Harvard, Columbia, and Dartmouth. - Her earlier memoir, Poetic License, came out in 2020. - The book won the 2024 Maine Literary Prize, the Axiom Best Business Book Award, and the Best Indie Book Award. - Her debut, Poetic License, was a finalist for the Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Award and a runner-up for the Eric Hoffer Award. - Her essays have appeared in HuffPost, Lit Hub, Electric Lit, and Yankee. - Her essay “Maine Roustabout” was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. - Cherington lives in Portland, Maine, and is working on her first novel. - The book is available in eBook, paperback, and audiobook formats. - Readers can buy the book on Amazon. - More information is available at Gretchen Cherington’s website.

Between the lines: - Cherington is using memoir to challenge a family narrative built on admiration, prestige, and silence. - The book’s larger argument is that corporate history often hides emotional and moral costs behind success stories. - Her background as an executive advisor gives the memoir a management and leadership frame, not just a literary one. - The emphasis on trauma across generations suggests Cherington sees the Hormel scandal as a family story with business consequences, not only a business story with family ties.

What’s next: - Cherington is continuing to promote the memoir and direct readers to purchase and learn more online. - She is also working on her first novel. - The book’s reception from literary organizations and reviewers may help expand its reach beyond business-history readers.

The bottom line: - Cherington turns a long-buried Hormel scandal into a search for truth about family, corporate power, and the stories people choose to protect.