From the Globe and Mail: Truth, identity and theft.
In February 1708, Jonathan Swift assumed one identity in order to effectively assassinate another.
Under the pen name of "Isaac Bickerstaff", a fictitious astrologer and publisher, Swift printed and distributed an almanac in which he predicted, in great meticulous detail, the March 29th death by fever, of the perfectly healthy astrologer and rascal, one John Partridge.
Needless to say, Partridge denounced the prediction to everyone in earshot, but on March 30th Bickerstaff produced a second pamphlet announcing that his prediction had proven true, John Partridge had passed away only a few hours after the predicted time. By April 1st the news had taken hold and it was general knowledge that Partridge had died. He was even woken by a sexton wanting to know the details of his funeral sermon.
While Partridge had loudly decried the original prediction, he claimed even more vehemently that he wasn't dead. Even though some people admitted he bore a striking resemblance to the dead astrologer, he could not convince them he was actually alive. Swift's ruse had worked so well that Partridge stopped publishing his astrological almanacs, since he could not shake the general belief that his death had been accurately predicted.
When reading the many accounts of this historical exchange, it is difficult not to be bemused by the inability of people to decide whether or not someone was alive.
Perhaps the story needs to be placed in proper context. Photography had yet to be invented. It wasn't until 1727 that Johann Heinrich Schulze discovered the permanent effect light had on silver nitrate, and it took until 1814 before Joseph Nicéphore Niépce invented the "camera obscura," a photographic device requiring eight hours of exposure to produce a "photograph".
In 1708, if you had not met someone, then you only had the assurances of those around you that someone was indeed who they said they were, hardly a foolproof method of identification. If a published almanac said you were dead ... then you were dead.
The article continues, but the rest of it is about identity theft in today's world.
Related:
Jonathan ‘Isaac Bickerstaff’ Swift
Jonathan Swift - Wikipedia