Witnesses

Joseph Allen
Police Constable Joseph Allen, 423H
Witness at Alice McKenzie's inquest.
Born c.1853, Saltash, Cornwall. Married to Anne (b.1852) with one
daughter, Caroline (b.188)!1". #arrant $o. %&8'%.!2"
(C Allen)s beat too* hi+ through Castle Alle, on the night o- Mc.en/ie)s
+urder and at around 12.20a+ he 1aused -or a snac* at the e2act s1ot
where the bod, was -ound 3ust thirt, +inutes later. Allen testi-ied that
he saw nothing out o- the ordinar, at the ti+e.
Allen)s testi+on, was ta*en at the in4uest on 1 5ul, 188'6
Police-constable Joseph Allen, 423 H, deposed, - Last night I was in
Castle-alley. It was then 20 in!tes past "2 when I passed th#o!gh. I
was th#o!gh the alley se$e#al ties. I #eained the#e %o# %i$e in!tes. I
ente#ed the alley th#o!gh the a#chway in &hitechapel-#oad. I had
soething to eat !nde# the lap whe#e the deceased was %o!nd. Ha$ing
#eained in the alley %o# %i$e in!tes, I went into &entwo#th-st#eet.
'he#e was neithe# an no# woan the#e. 'he#e we#e wagons in the
alley - two #ight !nde#neath the lap.
(Co#one#) &o!ld yo! swea# the#e was no one in the wagons* - I wo!ld
not swea# to that, as I did not loo+ into the, one o% the wagons was an
open one. -$e#ything was $e#y .!iet at the tie. 'he bac+s o% soe o%
the ho!ses in /ewcastle-st#eet %aced the alley, and in soe o% the !ppe#
windows we#e lights. 'hat was not an !n!s!al thing at that tie. I
cannot say i% any o% the windows we#e open. /o so!nds cae %#o those
ho!ses. 0n lea$ing the alley I et Constable &alte# And#ews, 212 H, in
&entwo#th-st#eet. It was abo!t "00 ya#ds %#o the alley whe#e I et
And#ews. I spo+e to And#ews, who then went towa#ds 2oldston-st#eet.
(2o!lston 3t#eet)
(Co#one#) How did yo! %i4 the tie* - I loo+ed at y watch. It was
"2530 when I le%t the alley. At the end is a p!blicho!se - the 'h#ee
C#owns - and as I passed the landlo#d was sh!tting !p the ho!se. A%te#
lea$ing And#ews I went towa#ds Coe#cial-st#eet and et 3e#geant
6adla, (6adha) 3" H, who told e a woan had been %o!nd
!#de#ed in Castle-alley, and he di#ected e to go to the station. &hen
the se#geant spo+e to e it was %i$e in!tes to ", and " o7cloc+ when I
got to the station.!3"
A short su++ar, o- (.C. Allen)s testi+on, a11ears in a re1ort -iled b,
Su1erintendent 7ho+as Arnold and dated 1 5ul, 188'6
P.C. 423H Allen passed th#o!gh the Alley at "2.30 a.. and #eained
!nde# the lap, e4actly whe#e the body was %o!nd, %o# %i$e in!tes
whilst pa#ta+ing o% his s!ppe#, he neithe# saw o# hea#d any pe#son in the
alley.!&"
Mararet !ran"lin
!rien# o$ Alice McKenzie an# a %itness at her inquest.
Margaret 8ran*lin, a widow and lodger at the #hite 9ouse, 5% 8lower
and :ean Street, a11eared on the second da, o- the Mc.en/ie in4uest.
She stated6
I ha$e +nown the deceased %o# "8 yea#s. 6etween ""530 and "2 o7cloc+
on '!esday night I saw the deceased and was spea+ing to he#. I was
sitting with two othe#s on the steps o% a ho!se at the top o% 9lowe# and
:ean-st#eet. :eceased was passing and going in the di#ection o% 6#ic+-
lane and &hitechapel. &e e4changed a %ew wo#ds. I do not thin+ she
was !nde# the in%l!ence o% d#in+. I ha$e o%ten seen he# o!t as late as
that, as she did doestic wo#+ %o# the Jews. I did not see he# spea+ to
anyone in 6#ic+-lane on '!esday night. 'he only nae I +new he# by
was Alice. I +new she was li$ing in 2!n-st#eet with a an that I +new by
the nae o% 6#yant. It was the sae one that ga$e e$idence yeste#day.
I ha$e ne$e# seen he# tal+ing with othe# en. 3he wo#+ed ha#d %o# the
Jews and they do not gi$e !ch. It had ;!st beg!n to #ain when
deceased passed.!1"
7he two other wo+en 1resent were Catherine 9ughes and Sarah
Mahone,.
8ran*lin also ga;e a state+ent to Sergeant (earse C<: on 22nd 5ul,
188'6
I li$e at 8< 9lowe# and :ean, I ha$e +nown the deceased woan abo!t
"4 o# "8 yea#s in the neighbo!#hood I cannot say i% she was a##ied,
b!t she !sed to li$e with a blind an, I ha$e only +nown he# as 7Alice7.
I was sitting on a doo#-step in 6#ic+ Lane on '!esday "<th when I saw
he# passing towa#d &hitechapel abo!t 20 in!tes to "2. I as+ed he#
how she was getting on, she said =All #ight I can7t stop now=. 3he did not
appea# to ha$e been d#in+ing. 3he was wea#ing a shawl I did not see he#
again. It coenced to #ain slightly ;!st a%te# she le%t !s.!2"
Annie Chap&an Mur#er
Albert Ca#osch
Witness at Annie Chap&an's inquest.
(Also *nown as Cadoche, Cadosh or Cadosche).
8ull na+e6 Charles Albert Cadosch. Born 18%0, (aris, 8rance, the son o-
a glass cutter (later =lass Merchant) na+ed (aul Ale2andre Cadosch and
his wi-e Marie. Albert Cadosch was a car1enter, resident at 2 9anbur,
Street, S1ital-ields. Married to Alice, the, had -i;e children, <sabella
(b.188), 9annah (b.1880), >thel (b.1882), 8rederic* (b.188&) and
9erbert (b.188%).
Cadosch testi-ied that on the +orning o- 8th Se1te+ber 1888, he got u1
at 5.15a+ and went into the ,ard, 1resu+abl, to relie;e hi+sel-. ?n
going bac* to the house, he heard a ;oice sa, @$oA@ -ro+ behind the
-ence which di;ided the bac*,ards o- $os.2 and 2' 9anbur, Street. A
-ew +inutes later, he needed to use the ,ard again, whereu1on he heard
so+ething touch the -ence -ro+ the other side. 9is sus1icions were not
aroused as he had occasionall, heard 1eo1le in the ,ard o- $o.2' at that
ti+e o- the +orning. 9e did not hear the rustling o- clothes and he did
not loo* to see what was causing the noises.
#hen he le-t the house, he noted that the cloc* o- Christ Church read
5.32a+. 9e did not see an, +an and wo+an together outside, nor did
he see Mrs >li/abeth Bong.
7he Cadosch -a+il, later +o;ed to && Sta+well Street, Colchester,
>sse2, a-ter which three -urther children were born, two na+ed =lad,s,
both o- who+ died in in-anc,, and a third b, the na+e o- $ellie who was
born on 21st A1ril 18'2. <t was 1re;iousl, thought that the +o;e to
>sse2 had ta*en 1lace in 18'0 or 18'1, but the older =lad,s was born in
her +other)s ho+e ;illage o- Coggeshall on 1&th August 188', so it is
li*el, to ha;e ta*en 1lace considerabl, earlier. B, 1'01, the -a+il, were
recorded as li;ing at 1' Sta+well Street, though Albert is +issing.
9owe;er, Alice is listed as )+arried), as o11osed to )widow). Cntil ;er,
recentl, nothing +ore was *nown o- Albert Cadosch, but recent research
has unco;ered his later histor,.
?n 2%th A1ril 18'3, at St Andrew)s Do+an Catholic Church in $ewcastleE
u1onE7,ne, a +an b, the na+e o- Albert Cadosch, a haw*er, who
clai+ed to be a 23E,earEold bachelor, +arried >li/abeth Stobart. 7his
+an)s stated age is a decade ,ounger than the Albert Cadosch who ga;e
e;idence at the Cha1+an in4uest would ha;e been, but the na+e o- the
bridegroo+)s -ather is re;ealing6 @(aul Cadosch E deceased@. ?ccu1ation6
@=lass F China Merchant@. <t would be di--icult to argue, age discre1anc,
notwithstanding, that this was not the sa+e +an. Alice Cadosch still
considered hersel- to be +arried and no record o- an, di;orce has been
located. Albert Cadosch see+s to ha;e le-t his ho+e, wi-e, -a+il, and
business, +o;ed to the $orth o- >ngland and entered into a biga+ous
+arriage. Albert F >li/abeth had one child together E also na+ed Albert E
her -irst and his ninth.Charles Albert Cadosch died in a $ewcastle
in-ir+ar, on 13th March 18'%, the cause o- death, recorded as @Mitral
Degurgitation, Aorta Degurgitation, :ilated le-t Gentricle@ was +assi;e
heart -ailure in la,+an)s ter+s. 9e was three +onths short o- his 3%th
birthda,, but his age is shown as 28. 9is ,oung son sur;i;ed hi+ b, onl,
a -ew +onths.
Mrs. !i##'&ont
(n$or&ant.
Mrs. 8idd,+ont was the wi-e o- the 1ro1rietor o- the (rince Albert 1ub
which stood at the corner o- Brush-ield Street and Steward Street.
She stated that at a+ on 8th Se1te+ber 1888, soon a-ter the death o-
Annie Cha1+an, she was standing in the )-irst co+1art+ent) o- the bar
tal*ing with her -riend Mar, Cha11ell. A +an entered the 1ub (in the
)+iddle co+1art+ent)) whose a11earance -rightened her. 9e was
wearing a brown sti-- hat, a dar* coat, and no waistcoatH his hat was
1ulled down o;er his e,es and with his -ace 1artl, concealed he as*ed -or
hal- a 1int o- )-our ale). She ser;ed the drin* whilst loo*ing at hi+
through the +irror at the bac* o- the bar. As soon as he saw Mar,
Cha11ell watching hi+ -ro+ the other co+1art+ent, he turned his bac*
and got the 1artition between hi+sel- and her. Mrs. 8idd,+ont was
struc* b, the -act that there were blood s1ots on the bac* o- his right
hand. She also noticed that his shirt was torn. 7he +an dran* the beer in
one gul1 and i++ediatel, le-t.!1"
Mar, Cha11ell -ollowed the +an into Brush-ield Street and noting that he
was heading in the direction o- Bisho1sgate, 1ointed hi+ out to a
b,stander, 5ose1h 7a,lor.
Mrs. 8idd,+ont, Cha11ell and 7a,lor later attended two identit, 1arades,
the -irst including sus1ect #illia+ (iggott and the second with 5ohn
(i/er. <n the -irst lineEu1, onl, Cha11ell 1ic*ed out (iggott, but then
stated that she was not sure i- he was the +an seen in the (rince Albert.
#ith (i/er, no identi-ication was +ade.
8ollowing the arrest o- 5acob <sensch+idt, another 1arade was intended
as soon as he was dee+ed to be in a satis-actor, +ental condition to
1artici1ate!2" . <ns1ector 8rederic* Abberline stated in a re1ort that
<sensch+idt was @identical with the +an seen in (rince Albert (.9.@!3" <t
is not clear whether this identit, 1arade e;er went ahead.
)he *icti&s o$ Jac" the +ipper
Below is a list o- ;icti+s belie;ed to ha;e been *illed at the hands o- 5ac*
the Di11er. Although +an, on the list ha;e been disregarded b, +ost
Di11erologists, the, are included here -or ,ou to -or+ulate ,our own
o1inion on their ;icti+ status.
7here are -i;e ;icti+s that ha;e historicall, been @generall, acce1ted@ as
;icti+s o- 5ac* the Di11er. 7hese -i;e are o-ten re-ered to as the
@canonical@ ;icti+s. But there were +an, other grisl, +urders that ca+e
be-ore and a-ter these canonical -i;e which so+e theorists o;er the ,ears
ha;e argued should be included as genuine ;icti+s o- 5ac* the Di11er.
Mar' Ann ,ichols
Mortuar, 1hotogra1h o- Mar, Ann $ichols.
Born Mar, Ann #al*er on August 2%, 18&5 in :awes Court, Shoe Bane,
o-- 8leet Street. She was christened in or so+e ,ears be-ore 1851. At the
ti+e o- her death the >ast Bondon ?bser;er guessed her age at 30E35.
At the in4uest her -ather said @she was nearl, && ,ears o- age, but it
+ust be owned that she loo*ed ten ,ears ,ounger.@
!eatures
5)2@ tallH brown e,esH dar* co+1le2ionH brown hair turning gre,H -i;e
-ront teeth +issing (Du+below)H two botto+Eone to1 -ront (8ido), her
teeth are slightl, discoloured. She is described as ha;ing s+all, delicate
-eatures with high chee*bones and gre, e,es. She has a s+all scar on
her -orehead -ro+ a childhood in3ur,.
She is described b, >+il, 9olland as @a ;er, clean wo+an who alwa,s
see+ed to *ee1 to hersel-.@ 7he doctor at the 1ost +orte+ re+ar*ed on
the cleanliness o- her thighs. She is also an alcoholic.
Histor'
8ather6 >dward #al*er (Blac*s+ith, -or+erl, a loc*s+ith). 9e has gra,
hair and beard and, as a s+ith,, was 1robabl, 1ower-ull, built. At the
ti+e o- (oll,)s death he is li;ing at 1% Maidswood Dd., Ca+berwell.
Mother6 Caroline.
(oll, +arried #illia+ $ichols on 5anuar, 1%, 18%&. She would ha;e been
about 22 ,ears old. 7he +arriage is 1er-or+ed b, Charles Marshall, Gicar
o- Saint Bride)s (arish Church and witnessed b, Seth =eorge 9a;ell, and
Sarah =ood.
#illia+ $ichols is in the e+1lo, o- Messrs. (er*ins, Bacon F Co.,
#hite-riars Dd. and li;ing at Cogburg Dd. o-- ?ld .ent Doad at the ti+e
o- his wi-e)s death.
7he cou1le ha;e -i;e children. >dward 5ohn, born 18%%H (erc, =eorge,
18%8H Alice >sther, 180H >li/a Sarah, 18 and 9enr, Al-red born in
18'. 7he oldest, 21 in 1888, is li;ing with his grand-ather ((oll,)s
-ather) at the ti+e o- her death. 9e had le-t ho+e in 1880 according to
his -ather, on his own accord. 7he other children continued to li;e with
$ichols.
#illia+ and (oll, brie-l, lodged in Bou;erie Street then +o;ed in with
her -ather at 131 7ra-algar Street -or about ten ,ears. 7he, s1end si2
,ears, (no dates) at $o. % : bloc*, (eabod, Buildings, Sta+-ord Street,
Blac*-riars Dd. 7here the, are 1a,ing a rent o- 5 shillings, % 1ence 1er
wee*. <- (eabod, Buildings is their last address then the, would ha;e
li;ed there -ro+ 185E1881, with her -ather -ro+ 18%5 to 185.
(oll, se1arated -ro+ $ichols -or the -inal ti+e in 1881. <t was the last o-
+an, se1arations during 2& ,ears o- +arriage.
<n 1882, #illia+ -ound out that his wi-e was li;ing as a 1rostitute and
discontinued su11ort 1a,+ents to her. (Sugden6 she is li;ing with
another +an, 1robabl, 7ho+as :ew). (arish authorities tried to collect
+aintenance +one, -ro+ hi+. 9e countered that she had deserted hi+
lea;ing hi+ with the children. 9e won his case a-ter establishing that she
was li;ing as a co++on 1rostitute. At the ti+e o- her death, he had not
seen his wi-e in three ,ears.
(oll,)s -ather s1read the stor, that the se1aration had co+e about due to
#illia+ ha;ing an a--air with the nurse who too* care o- (oll, during her
last con-ine+ent. #illia+ does not den, that he had an a--air but states
that it was not the cause o- her lea;ing. @7he wo+an le-t +e -our or -i;e
ti+es, i- not si2.@ 9e clai+s that the a--air too* 1lace a-ter (oll, le-t.
7here is ob;ious dishar+on, in the -a+il, as the eldest son would ha;e
nothing to do with his -ather at his +other)s -uneral.
A-ter the se1aration, (oll, begins a sad litan, o- +o;ing -ro+ wor*house
to wor*house.
4>24>?2-">"?>?3 EE Ba+beth #or*house
">"?>?3-">20>?3 EE Ba+beth <n-ir+ar,
">20>?3-3>24>?3 EE Ba+beth #or*house
3>24>?3-8>2">?3 EE She is li;ing with her -ather in Ca+berwell. 9e
testi-ies at the in4uest into her death that she was @a dissolute character
and drun*ard who+ he *new would co+e to a bad end.@ 9e -ound her
not a sober 1erson but not in the habit o- sta,ing out late at night. 9er
drin*ing caused -riction and the, argued. 9e clai+s that he had not
thrown her out but she le-t the ne2t +orning.
8>2">?3-<>2>?3 EE Ba+beth #or*house
<>2>?3-"0>2<>?1 EE She is said to ha;e been li;ing with a +an na+ed
7ho+as :ew, a blac*s+ith, with a sho1 in Ior* Mews, 15 Ior* St.,
#alworth. <n 5une 188% she had attended the -uneral o- her brother who
had been burned to death b, the e21losion o- a 1ara--in la+1. <t was
re+ar*ed b, the -a+il, that she was res1ectabl, dressed.
"0>28>?1 EE She s1ends one da, in St. =iles #or*house, >ndell Street.
"0>2<>?1-"2>2>?1 EE Strand #or*house, >d+onton
"2>2>?1-"2>"@>?1 EE Ba+beth #or*house
0n "2>2>?1 It is said that she was ca!ght =sleeping #o!gh Ain the openB=
in '#a%alga# 3.!a#e. 3he was %o!nd to be destit!te and with no eans o%
s!stenance and was sent on to Labeth &o#+ho!se.
"2>"@>?1-"2>2@>?1 EE Ba+beth #or*house
"2>2@>?1-">4>?? EE $o record
">4>??-4>"<>?? EE Mitcha+ #or*house, 9olborn and 9olborn <n-ir+ar,.
4>"<>??-8>"2>?? EE Ba+beth #or*house. <t is in Ba+beth #or*house
that she +eets Mar, Ann Mon* who will e;entuall, identi-, (oll,)s bod,
-or the 1olice. Mon* is described as a ,oung wo+an with a @9aught, air
and -lushed -ace.@
(oll, has another -riend in the Ba+beth #or*house, a Mrs. Scorer. She
had been se1arated -ro+ her husband 5a+es Scorer, an assistant
sales+an in S1ital-ields Mar*et, -or ele;en ,ears. 9e clai+ed that he
*new (oll, b, sight but was unable to identi-, the bod, at the +ortuar,.
?n 12 Ma, she le-t Ba+beth to ta*e a 1osition as a do+estic ser;ant in
the ho+e o- Sa+uel and Sarah Cowdr,. 7his was co++on 1ractice at
the ti+e -or #or*houses to -ind do+estic e+1lo,+ent -or -e+ale
in+ates.
7he Cowdr,)s li;e at @<ngleside@, Dose 9ill Dd, #andsworth. Sa+uel (b.
182)is the Cler* o- #or*s in the (olice :e1art+ent. Sarah is one ,ear
,ounger than her husband. 7he, are described as u1right 1eo1le. Both
are religious and both are teetotalers.
(oll, writes her -ather6
=I ;!st #ight to say yo! will be glad to +now that I a settled in y new
place, and going all #ight !p to now. Cy people went o!t yeste#day and
ha$e not #et!#ned, so I a le%t in cha#ge. It is a g#and place inside, with
t#ees and ga#dens bac+ and %#ont. All has been newly done !p. 'hey a#e
teetotale#s and #eligio!s so I o!ght to get on. 'hey a#e $e#y nice people,
and I ha$e not too !ch to do. I hope yo! a#e all #ight and the boy has
wo#+. 3o good bye %o# the p#esent.
%#o yo!#s t#!ly,Polly
Answe# soon, please, and let e +now how yo! a#e.=
#al*er re1lies to the letter but does not hear bac*.
She wor*s -or two +onths and then le-t while stealing clothing worth
three 1ounds, ten shillings.
?>">??-?>2>?? EE =ra,s <nn 7e+1orar, #or*house
-ast A##resses
#il+ott)s Bodging 9ouse at 18 7hrawl Street, S1ital-ields. 7here she
shares a roo+ with -our wo+en including >+il, 9olland. 7he roo+ is
described as being sur1risingl, neat. 7he 1rice o- the roo+ is &d 1er
night.
?n 8J2&J88 (oll, +o;es to a lodging house *nown as the #hite 9ouse at
5% 8lower and :ean Street. <n this dossEhouse +en are allowed to share
a bed with a wo+an.
'h!#sday, A!g!st 30 th#o!gh 9#iday, A!g!st 3", "???.
9ea;, rains ha;e ushered out one o- the coldest and wettest su++ers
on record. ?n the night o- August 30, the rain was shar1 and -re4uent
and was acco+1anied b, 1eals o- thunder and -lashes o- lightning. the
s*, on that night was turned red b, the occasion o- two doc* -ires.
""500 PC EE (oll, is seen wal*ing down #hitecha1el Doad, she is
1robabl, soliciting trade.
"2530 AC EE She is seen lea;ing the 8r,ing (an (ublic 9ouse at the
corner o- Bric* Bane and 7hrawl Street. She returns to the lodging house
at 18 7hrawl Street.
"520 o# "540 AC EE She is told b, the de1ut, to lea;e the *itchen o- the
lodging house because she could not 1roduce her doss +one,. (oll,, on
lea;ing, as*s hi+ to sa;e a bed -or her. @ $e;er MindA@ She sa,s, @<)ll
soon get +, doss +one,. See what a 3oll, bonnet <);e got now.@ She
indicates a little blac* bonnet which no one had seen be-ore.
2530 AC EE She +eets >+il, 9olland, who was returning -ro+ watching
the Shadwell :r, :oc* -ire, outside o- a grocer)s sho1 on the corner o-
#hitecha1el Doad and ?sborn Street. (oll, had co+e down ?sborn
Street. 9olland describes her as @;er, drun* and staggered against the
wall.@ 9olland calls attention to the church cloc* stri*ing 2630. (oll, tells
>+il, that she had had her doss +one, three ti+es that da, and had
drun* it awa,. She sa,s she will return to 8lower and :ean Street where
she could share a bed with a +an a-ter one +ore atte+1t to -ind trade.
@<);e had +, doss +one, three ti+es toda, and s1ent it.@ She sa,s, @<t
won)t be long be-ore <)+ bac*.@ 7he two wo+en tal* -or se;en or eight
+inutes. (oll, lea;es wal*ing east down #hitecha1el Doad.
(C $eil disco;ers $ichols) bod, in Buc*)s Dow, -ro+ 9ao!s C#ies Past and P#esent, 1'03.
At the ti+e, the ser;ices o- a destitute 1rostitute li*e (oll, $ichols could
be had -or 2 or 3 1ence or a stale loa- o- bread. 3 1ence was the going
rate as that was the 1rice o- a large glass o- gin.
35"8 AC EE (C 5ohn 7hain, '%5, 1asses down Buc*)s Dow on his beat. 9e
sees nothing unusual. At a11ro2i+atel, the sa+e ti+e Sgt. .erb, 1asses
down Buc*)s Dow and re1orts the sa+e.
3540 o# 3548 AC EE (oll, $ichols) bod, is disco;ered in Buc*)s Dow b,
Charles Cross, a car+an, on his wa, to wor* at (ic*-ords in the Cit,
Doad., and Dobert (aul who 3oins hi+ at his re4uest. @Co+e and loo*
o;er here, there)s a wo+an.@ Cross calls to (aul. Cross belie;es she is
dead. 9er hands and -ace are cold but the ar+s abo;e the elbow and
legs are still war+. (aul belie;es he -eels a -aint heartbeat. @< thin* she)s
breathing,@ he sa,s @but it is little i- she is.@
7he two +en agree that the, do not want to be late -or wor* and a-ter
arranging $ichols) s*irts to gi;e her so+e decenc,, decide to alert the
-irst 1olice o--icer the, +eet on their wa,. 7he, e;entuall, +eet (C
5onas Mi/en at the 3unction o- 9anbur, Street and Ba*er)s Dow and tell
hi+ o- their -ind.
<n the +eanti+e, $ichols) bod, has been -ound b, (C 5ohn $eil, '5. 9e
signals to (C 7hain who then 3oins hi+ and the two are soon 3oined b,
Mi/en. 7hain calls -or :r. Dees Dal1h Blewell,n, who resides nearb,. 7he
two return a -ew +inutes later (around 3650 A.M.) and :r. Blewell,n
1ronounces li-e to ha;e been e2tinct @but a -ew +inutes.@
Buc*)s Dow is ten +inutes wal* -ro+ ?sborn Street. 7he onl,
illu+ination is -ro+ a single gas la+1 at the -ar end o- the street.
(oll,)s bod, is -ound across -ro+ >sse2 #har- and the Brown and >agle
#ool #arehouse and Schneiders Ca1 8actor, in a gatewa, entrance to
Brown)s stable,ard between a board school (to the west) and terrace
houses (cottages) belonging to better class trades+en. She is al+ost
underneath the window o- Mrs. >++a =reen, a light slee1er, who li;es in
the -irst house ne2t to the stable gates. 9er house is called the )$ew
Cottage). She is a widower with two sons and a daughter li;ing with her.
7hat night, one son goes to bed at '600 (M, the other -ollows at '6&5.
Mrs. =reen and her daughter shared a -irst -loor roo+ at the -ront o- the
house. 7he, went to bed at a11ro2i+atel, 11600 (M. She clai+s she
sle1t undisturbed b, an, unusual sound until she was awa*ened b, the
1olice.
?11osite $ew Cottage li;es #alter (ur*iss, the +anager o- >sse2 #har-
with his wi-e, children and a ser;ant. 9e and his wi-e went to bed at
11600 and 11615 res1ecti;el,. Both clai+ed to ha;e been awa*e at
;arious ti+es in the night and heard nothing.
(oll, $ichols) bod, is identi-ied b, Ba+beth #or*house in+ate Mar, Ann
Mon* and the identi-ication con-ir+ed b, #illia+ $ichols.
An in;entor, o- her clothes is ta*en b, <ns1ector 5ohn S1ratling at the
+ortuar,. She was wearing6 (o;erall i+1ression EE shabb, and stained)
Blac* Straw bonnet tri++ed with blac* ;el;et
Deddish brown ulster with se;en large brass buttons bearing the 1attern
o- a wo+an on horsebac* acco+1anied b, a +an.
Brown linse, -roc* (a11arentl, new according to Sugden. Could this be a
dress she stole -ro+ the Cowdr,sK)
#hite -lannel chest cloth
Blac* ribbed wool stoc*ings
7wo 1etticoats, one gra, wool, one -lannel. Both stenciled on bands
@Ba+beth #or*house@
Brown sta,s (short)
8lannel drawers
Men)s elastic (s1ring) sided boots with the u11ers cut and steel ti1s on
the heels
(ossessions6
Co+b
#hite 1oc*et hand*erchie-
Bro*en 1iece o- +irror (a 1ri/ed 1ossession in a lodging house)
?bser;ations o- :r. Dees Dal1h Blewell,n u1on arri;al at Buc*s row at
&600 AM on the +orning o- August 31st. A-ter onl, a brie- e2a+ination o-
the bod, he 1ronounced (oll, $ichols dead. 9e noted that there was a
wine glass and a hal- o- blood in the gutter at her side but clai+ed that
he had no doubt that she had been *illed where she la,.
<n4uest testi+on, as re1orted in 7he 7i+es6
@8i;e teeth were +issing, and there was a slight laceration o- the tongue.
7here was a bruise running along the lower 1art o- the 3aw on the right
side o- the -ace. 7hat +ight ha;e been caused b, a blow -ro+ a -ist or
1ressure -ro+ a thu+b. 7here was a circular bruise on the le-t side o- the
-ace which also +ight ha;e been in-licted b, the 1ressure o- the -ingers.
?n the le-t side o- the nec*, about 1 in. below the 3aw, there was an
incision about & in. in length, and ran -ro+ a 1oint i++ediatel, below
the ear. ?n the sa+e side, but an inch below, and co++encing about 1
in. in -ront o- it, was a circular incision, which ter+inated at a 1oint
about 3 in. below the right 3aw. 7hat incision co+1letel, se;ered all the
tissues down to the ;ertebrae. 7he large ;essels o- the nec* on both
sides were se;ered. 7he incision was about 8 in. in length. the cuts +ust
ha;e been caused b, a longEbladed *ni-e, +oderatel, shar1, and used
with great ;iolence. $o blood was -ound on the breast, either o- the bod,
or the clothes. 7here were no in3uries about the bod, until 3ust about the
lower 1art o- the abdo+en. 7wo or three inches -ro+ the le-t side was a
wound running in a 3agged +anner. 7he wound was a ;er, dee1 one,
and the tissues were cut through. 7here were se;eral incisions running
across the abdo+en. 7here were three or -our si+ilar cuts running
downwards, on the right side, all o- which had been caused b, a *ni-e
which had been used ;iolentl, and downwards. the in3uries were -or+
le-t to right and +ight ha;e been done b, a le-t handed 1erson. All the
in3uries had been caused b, the sa+e instru+ent.@
<ns1ector 5ose1h 9elson, 5Edi;ision, is noti-ied o- the +urder at %.&5a+
and at the +ortuar, he is shown the bod, and the e2tent o- the
+utilations.
#ith all o- her -aults $ichols see+s to ha;e been wellEli*ed b, all who
*new her. At the in4uest her -ather sa,s, @< don)t thin* she had an,
ene+ies, she was too good -or that.@
Mar, Ann $ichols) gra;e.
!uneral
Mar, Ann @(oll,@ $ichols was buried on 7hursda,, % Se1te+ber, 1888.
7hat a-ternoon, (oll, was trans1orted in a 1olished el+ co--in to Mr
9enr, S+ith, 9anbur, Street underta*er. 7he cortege consisted o- the
hearse and two +ourning coaches, which carried >dward #al*er, #illia+
$ichols, and >dward 5ohn $ichols. (oll, was buried at Cit, o- Bondon
Ce+eter, (Bittle <l-ord) at Manor (ar* Ce+eter,, Sebert Doad, 8orest
=ate, Bondon, >12, (1ublic) gra;e 21052 (on the edge o- the current
Me+orial =arden).
7he -uneral e21enses were 1aid -or b, >dward #al*er ((oll,)s -ather),
#illia+ $ichols ((oll,)s e2Ehusband), and >dward 5ohn $ichols ((oll,)s
son).
<n late 1''%, the ce+eter, authorities decided to +ar* (oll,)s gra;e with
a 1la4ue.
.eath Certi$icate
:eath Certi-icate6 $o. 30, registered 25 Se1te+ber, 1888 (:AL
0&8850)
:eath certi-icate o- Mar, Ann $ichols.
Annie Chap&an a"a .ar" Annie, Annie /i$$e', /ie0e' or /i00e'
6o#n5 Annie >li/a S+ith in Se1te+ber 18&1.
9athe#5 =eorge S+ith o- 9arrow Doad. :escribed on the +arriage
certi-icate as a (ri;ate, 2nd Battalion o- Bi-eguards. At the ti+e o- his
death he was listed as a ser;ant.
Cothe#5 Duth Cha1+an o- Mar*et Street.
Annie)s 1arents were +arried on 8ebruar, 22, 18&2, % +onths a-ter
Annie was born. 7he +arriage too* 1lace in (addington.
She had three sisters, >+il, Batitia (b.18&&), =eorgina (b.185%) and
Miriu+ Duth (b.1858). A brother, 8ountain S+ith was born in 18%1. 7he
sisters a11eared not to get along with Annie.
.escription1
5) tall
& ,ears old at ti+e o- death
(allid co+1le2ion
Blue e,es
:ar* brown wa;, hair
>2cellent teeth (1ossibl, two +issing in lower 3aw)
Strongl, built (stout)
7hic* nose
She was underEnourished and su--ering -ro+ a chronic disease o- the
lungs (tuberculosis) and brain tissue. <t is said that she was d,ing
(these could also be s,+1to+s o- s,1hilis).
Although she has a drin*ing 1roble+ she is not described as an alcoholic.
9er -riend A+elia (al+er described her as @sober, stead, going wo+an
who seldo+ too* an, drin*.@ She was, howe;er, *nown to ha;e a taste
-or ru+.
Histor'1
Annie and 5ohn Cha1+an, c.18%' AChapan %aily>/eal 3heldenB
Annie +arried 5ohn Cha1+an, a coach+an, on Ma, 1, 18%'. She was 28
at the ti+e o- her +arriage.
7heir residence on the +arriage certi-icate is listed as 2' Mont1elier
(lace, Bro+1ton. 7his is also where her +other li;ed until her (+other)s)
death in 18'3. <n 180 the, +o;ed to 1 Broo* Mews in Ba,swater and
then in 183 to 1 South Bruton Mews, Ber*ele, S4uare. <n 1881 the,
+o;ed to #indsor where 5ohn too* a 3ob as a do+estic coach+an.
7he cou1le had three children. >+il, Duth Cha1+an, born 180, Annie
=eorgina Cha1+an, born 183 and 5ohn Al-red Cha1+an, born in 1880.
5ohn was a cri11le and sent to a ho+e and >+il, Duth died o- +eningitis
at the age o- twel;e.
Annie and 5ohn se1arated b, +utual consent in 188& or 1885. 7he
reason is uncertain. A 1olice re1ort sa,s it was because o- her @drun*en
and i++oral wa,s.@ She was arrested se;eral ti+es in #indsor -or
drun*enness and it is belie;ed her husband was also a hea;, drin*er.
5ohn Cha1+an se+iEregularl, 1aid his wi-e 10 shillings 1er wee* b, (ost
?--ice order until his death on Christ+as da, in 188%. At the ti+e o- his
death he was li;ing at =ro;e Doad, #indsor. 9e died o- cirrhosis o- the
li;er and dro1s,. Annie -ound out about his death through her brotherE
inElaw who li;ed in ?2-ord Street, #hitecha1el. ?n telling A+elia (al+er
about it she cried. (al+er said that e;en two ,ears later she see+ed
downcast when s1ea*ing o- her children and how @since the death o- her
husband she see+ed to ha;e gi;en awa, all together.@
So+eti+e during 188% she was li;ing with a sie;e +a*er na+ed 5ohn
Si;;e, (un*nown whether this is a nic*na+e or not) at the co++on
lodging house at 30 :orset Street, S1ital-ields. 9e le-t her soon a-ter her
husband)s death, 1robabl, when the +one, sto11ed co+ing. 9e +o;ed
to $otting 9ill.
8ro+ Ma, or 5une 1888, Annie was li;ing consistentl, at Crossingha+)s
Bodging 9ouse at 35 :orset Street, S1ital-ields, which catered -or
a11ro2i+atel, 300 1eo1le. 7he de1ut, was 7i+oth, :ono;an.
More recentl,, Annie had been ha;ing a relationshi1 with >dward
Stanle,, a bric*la,er)s +ate, *nown as the (ensioner. At the ti+e o-
Annie)s death he was li;ing at 1 ?sborn (lace, #hitecha1el. 9e clai+ed
to be a +e+ber o- the +ilitar, but later ad+itted that he was not and
was not drawing a 1ension -ro+ an, +ilitar, unit.
Stanle, and Annie s1ent wee*ends together at Crossingha+)s. Stanle,
instructed :ono;an to turn Annie awa, i- she tried to enter with another
+an. 9e o-ten 1aid -or Annie)s bed as well as that o- >li/a Coo1er. 7he,
s1ent Saturda,s and Sunda,s together, 1arting between 1600 and 3600
AM on Sunda,s. Stanle, said that he had *nown Annie in #indsor.
Annie didn)t ta*e to 1rostitution until a-ter her husband)s death. (rior to
that she li;ed o-- the allowance he sent her and wor*ed doing crochetE
wor* and selling -lowers.
<n +id to late August o- 1888 she ran into her brother 8ountain S+ith on
Co++ercial Doad. She said she was hard u1 but would not tell hi+
where she was li;ing. 9e ga;e her 2 shillings.
3at!#day, 3eptebe# ", "???
>dward Stanle, returns a-ter ha;ing been awa, since August %. 9e
+eets Annie at the corner o- Brush-ield Street.
So+eti+e close to this date, Annie has a -ight with >li/a Coo1er. 7he
-ight has se;eral di--erent tellings but all re;ol;e around >dward Stanle,.
An argu+ent brea*s out in the Britannia (ublic 9ouse between >li/a
Coo1er and Annie. Also 1resent are Stanle, and 9arr, the 9aw*er.
Coo1er is Annie)s ri;al -or the a--ections o- Stanle,. Coo1er struc* her,
gi;ing her a blac* e,e and bruising her breast.
7he cause is alternatel, gi;en as6
Cha1+an noticed Coo1er 1al+ing a -lorin belonging to 9arr,, who was
drun*, and re1lacing it with a 1enn,. Cha1+an +entions this to 9arr,
and otherwise calls attention to Coo1er)s deceit. Coo1er sa,s she struc*
Annie in the 1ub on Se1te+ber 2nd.
A+elia (al+er sa,s that Annie told her the argu+ent too* 1lace at the
1ub but the -isticu--s too* 1lace at the lodging house, later.
5ohn >;ans, night watch+an at the lodging house sa,s the -ight bro*e
out in the lodging house on Se1te+ber %th. Coo1er also sa,s that the
-ight was not o;er 9arr, but o;er soa1 which Annie had borrowed -or the
(ensioner and not returned. <n one ;ersion o- the stor,, Annie is to ha;e
thrown a hal- 1enn, at Coo1er and sla11ed her in the -ace sa,ing @7hin*
,oursel- luc*, < did not do +ore.@
:ono;an states that on August 30th he noticed she had a blac* e,e.
@7i+, this is lo;el,, aint it.@ She is to ha;e said to hi+. Stanle, noticed
that she had a blac* e,e on the e;ening o- Se1te+ber 2nd and on the
3rd Annie showed her bruises to A+elia (al+er.
:ono;an will tell the in4uest into her death that she was not at the
lodging house during the wee* 1rior to her death. So it a11ears -ro+ the
bul* o- the e;idence that the -ight too* 1lace in the last -ew da,s o-
August and 1robabl, in the lodging house.
Cha1+an sa,s that she +a, ha;e to go to the in-ir+ar, but there is no
record o- an, wo+an being ad+itted to either #hitecha1el or S1ital-ields
wor*house in-ir+aries. She +a, ha;e 1ic*ed u1 +edication though.
Conday, 3eptebe# 35
She +eets A+elia (al+er in :orset Street. @9ow did ,ou get thatK@ as*s
(al+er, noticing the bruise on her right te+1le. B, wa, o- answer, Annie
o1ened her dress. @Ies,@ Annie said @loo* at +, chest.@ Annie co+1lains
o- -eeling unwell and sa,s she +a, go see her sister. @<- < can get a 1air
o- boots -ro+ +, sister,@ she sa,s @< +a, go ho1 1ic*ing.@
'!esday, 3eptebe# 45
A+elia (al+er again sees Annie near Christ Church. Cha1+an again
co+1lains she is -eeling ill and sa,s she +a, go the casual ward -or a
da, or two. She sa,s she has had nothing to eat or drin* all da,. (al+er
gi;es her 2d -or tea and warns her not to s1end it on ru+.
&ednesday-'h!#sday, 3eptebe# 8-<5
(ossibl, she is in the casual ward although there are no records to
su11ort the assu+1tion. 9owe;er, -ollowing her death, :ono;an -inds a
bottle o- +edicine in her roo+.
9#iday, 3eptebe# 1, 3at!#day, 3eptebe# ?th5
2133 PM1 A+elia (al+er again sees Annie in :orset Street. Cha1+an is
sober and (al+er as*s her i- she is going to Strat-ord (belie;ed to be the
territor, where Annie 1lied her trade). Annie sa,s she is too ill to do
an,thing. 8ar+er le-t but returned a -ew +inutes later onl, to -ind
Cha1+an not ha;ing +o;ed. <t)s no use +, gi;ing wa,,@ Annie sa,s @<
+ust 1ull +,sel- together and go out and get so+e +one, or < shall
ha;e no lodgings.@
44133 PM1 Annie returns to the lodging house and as*s 1er+ission to go
into the *itchen.
42143 AM1 8rederic* Ste;ens, also a lodger at Crossingha+)s sa,s he
dran* a 1int o- beer with Annie who was alread, slightl, the worse -or
drin*. 9e states that she did not lea;e the lodging house until 1600 AM.
42142 AM1 #illia+ Ste;ens (a 1rinter), another lodger, enters the
*itchen and sees Cha1+an. She sa,s that she has been to Gau2hall to
see her sister, that she went to get so+e +one, and that her -a+il, had
gi;en her 5 1ence. (<- this is so, she s1ent it on drin*.) Ste;ens sees her
ta*e a bro*en bo2 o- 1ills -ro+ her 1oc*et. 7he bo2 brea*s and she ta*es
a torn 1iece o- en;elo1e -ro+ the +antel1iece and 1laces the 1ills in it.
Cha1+an lea;es the *itchen. Ste;ens thin*s she has gone to bed.
<t a11ears ob;ious that she did 1ic* u1 +edication at the casual ward.
7he lotion -ound in her roo+ +a, ha;e brought u1 there at this ti+e.
7his would reEen-orce Ste;ens) i+1ression that she had gone to bed. She
certainl, shows e;er, sign o- intending to return to Crossingha+)s.
4132 AM1 Annie returns to the lodging house again. She is eating a
ba*ed 1otato. 5ohn >;ans, the night watch+an, has been sent to collect
her bed +one,. She goes u1stairs to see :ono;an in his o--ice. @<
ha;en)t su--icient +one, -or +, bed,@ she tells hi+, @but don)t let it. <
shall not be long be-ore <)+ in.@ :ono;an chastises her, @Iou can -ind
+one, -or ,our beer and ,ou can)t -ind +one, -or ,our bed.@ Annie is
not dis+a,ed. She ste1s out o- the o--ice and stands in the doorwa, -or
two or three +inutes. @$e;er +ind, 7i+.@ she states, @<)ll soon be bac*.@
And to >;ans she sa,s, @< won)t be long, Bru++, (his nic*na+e). See
that 7i+ *ee1s the bed -or +e.@ 9er regular bed in the lodging house is
nu+ber 2'. >;ans sees her lea;e and enter Bittle (aternoster Dow going
in the direction o- Brush-ield Street and then turn towards S1ital-ields
Mar*et.
4142 AM1 Mr. 5ohn Dichardson enters the bac*,ard o- 2' 9anbur, St. on
his wa, to wor*, and sits down on the ste1s to re+o;e a 1iece o- leather
which was 1rotruding -ro+ his boot. Although it was 4uite dar* at the
ti+e, he was sitting no +ore than a ,ard awa, -ro+ where the head o-
Annie Cha1+an would ha;e been had she alread, been *illed. 9e later
testi-ied to ha;e seen nothing o- e2traordinar, nature.
2133 AM1 >li/abeth Bong sees Cha1+an with a +an, hard against the
shutters o- 2' 9anbur, Street. the, are tal*ing. Bong hears the +an sa,
@#ill ,ouK@ and Annie re1lies @Ies.@ Bong is certain o- the ti+e as she
had heard the cloc* on the Blac* >agle Brewer,, Bric* Bane, stri*e the
hal- hour 3ust as she had turned onto the street. 7he wo+an (Cha1+an)
had her bac* towards S1ital-ields Mar*et and, thus, her -ace towards
Bong. 7he +an had his bac* towards Bong.
A -ew +o+ents a-ter the Bong sighting, Albert Cadosch, a ,oung
car1enter li;ing at 2 9anbur, Street wal*s into his bac* ,ard 1robabl,
to use the outhouse. (assing the -i;e -oot tall wooden -ence which
se1arates his ,ard -ro+ that o- nu+ber 2', he hears ;oices 4uite close.
7he onl, word he can +a*e out is a wo+an sa,ing @$oA@ 9e then heard
so+ething -alling against the -ence.
Mortuar, 1hotogra1h o- Annie Cha1+an.
Annie)s bod, was disco;ered a little be-ore %.00a+ b, 5ohn :a;is, a
car+an who li;ed on the third -loor o- $o.2' with his -a+il,. A-ter
alerting 5a+es =reen, 5a+es .ent and 9enr, 9olland in 9anbur, Street,
:a;is went to Co++ercial Street (olice Station be-ore returning to
$o.2'.
Annie's Clothes an# Possessions1
Bong blac* -igured coat that ca+e down to her *nees.
Blac* s*irt
Brown bodice
Another bodice
2 1etticoats
A large 1oc*et worn under the s*irt and tied about the waist with strings
(e+1t, when -ound)
Bace u1 boots
Ded and white stri1ed woolen stoc*ings
$ec*erchie-, white with a wide red border (-olded triEcorner and *notted
at the -ront o- her nec*. she is wearing the scar- in this +anner when
she lea;es Crossingha+)s)
9ad three recentl, ac4uired brass rings on her +iddle -inger (+issing
a-ter the +urder)
Scra1 o- +uslin
?ne s+all tooth co+b
?ne co+b in a 1a1er case
Scra1 o- en;elo1e she had ta*en -or+ the +antel1iece o- the *itchen
containing two 1ills. <t bears the seal o- the Susse2 Degi+ent. <t is
1ostal sta+1ed @Bondon, 28,Aug., 1888@ inscribed is a 1artial address
consisting o- the letter M, the nu+ber 2 as i- the beginning o- an
address and an S.
:r. =eorge Bagster (hilli1s describes the bod, o- Annie Cha1+an as he
saw it at %630 AM in the bac* ,ard o- the house at 2' 9anbur, Street.
7his is in4uest testi+on,.
@7he le-t ar+ was 1laced across the le-t breast. 7he legs were drawn u1,
the -eet resting on the ground, and the *nees turned outwards. 7he -ace
was swollen and turned on the right side. 7he tongue 1rotruded between
the -ront teeth, but not be,ond the li1s. 7he tongue was e;identl, +uch
swollen. 7he -ront teeth were 1er-ect as -ar as the -irst +olar, to1 and
botto+ and ;er, -ine teeth the, were. 7he bod, was terribl,
+utilated...the sti--ness o- the li+bs was not +ar*ed, but was e;identl,
co++encing. 9e noticed that the throat was disse;ered dee1l,.H that the
incision through the s*in were 3agged and reached right round the
nec*...?n the wooden 1aling between the ,ard in 4uestion and the ne2t,
s+ears o- blood, corres1onding to where the head o- the deceased la,,
were to be seen. 7hese were about 1& inches -ro+ the ground, and
i++ediatel, abo;e the 1art where the blood -ro+ the nec* la,.
9e should sa, that the instru+ent used at the throat and abdo+en was
the sa+e. <t +ust ha;e been a ;er, shar1 *ni-e with a thin narrow blade,
and +ust ha;e been at least % in. to 8 in. in length, 1robabl, longer. 9e
should sa, that the in3uries could not ha;e been in-licted b, a ba,onet or
a sword ba,onet. 7he, could ha;e been done b, such an instru+ent as a
+edical +an used -or 1ostE+orte+ 1ur1oses, but the ordinar, surgical
cases +ight not contain such an instru+ent. 7hose used b, the
slaughter+en, well ground down, +ight ha;e caused the+. 9e thought
the *ni;es used b, those in the leather trade would not be long enough
in the blade. 7here were indications o- anato+ical *nowledge...he should
sa, that the deceased had been dead at least two hours, and 1robabl,
+ore, when he -irst saw herH but it was right to +ention that it was a
-airl, cool +orning, and that the bod, would be +ore a1t to cool ra1idl,
-ro+ its ha;ing lost a great 4uantit, o- blood. 7here was no e;idence...o-
a struggle ha;ing ta*en 1lace. 9e was 1ositi;e the deceased entered the
,ard ali;e...
A hand*erchie- was round the throat o- the deceased when he saw it
earl, in the +orning. 9e should sa, it was not tied on a-ter the throat
was cut.@
De1ort -ollowing the 1ost +orte+ e2a+ination6
@9e noticed the sa+e 1rotrusion o- the tongue. 7here was a bruise o;er
the right te+1le. ?n the u11er e,elid there was a bruise, and there were
two distinct bruises, each the si/e o- a +an)s thu+b, on the -ore1art o-
the to1 o- the chest. 7he sti--ness o- the li+bs was now well +ar*ed.
7here was a bruise o;er the +iddle 1art o- the bone o- the right hand.
7here was an old scar on the le-t o- the -rontal bone. 7he sti--ness was
+ore noticeable on the le-t side, es1eciall, in the -ingers, which were
1artl, closed. 7here was an abrasion o;er the ring -inger, with distinct
+ar*ings o- a ring or rings. 7he throat had been se;ered as be-ore
described. the incisions into the s*in indicated that the, had been +ade
-ro+ the le-t side o- the nec*. 7here were two distinct clean cuts on the
le-t side o- the s1ine. 7he, were 1arallel with each other and se1arated
b, about hal- an inch. 7he +uscular structures a11eared as though an
atte+1t had +ade to se1arate the bones o- the nec*. 7here were ;arious
other +utilations to the bod,, but he was o- the o1inion that the,
occurred subse4uent to the death o- the wo+an, and to the large esca1e
o- blood -ro+ the di;ision o- the nec*.
7he deceased was -ar ad;anced in disease o- the lungs and +e+branes
o- the brain, but the, had nothing to do with the cause o- death. 7he
sto+ach contained little -ood, but there was not an, sign o- -luid. 7here
was no a11earance o- the deceased ha;ing ta*en alcohol, but there were
signs o- great de1ri;ation and he should sa, she had been badl, -ed. 9e
was con;inced she had not ta*en an, strong alcohol -or so+e hours
be-ore her death. 7he in3uries were certainl, not sel-Ein-licted. 7he
bruises on the -ace were e;identl, recent, es1eciall, about the chin and
side o- the 3aw, but the bruises in -ront o- the chest and te+1le were o-
longer standing E 1robabl, o- da,s. 9e was o- the o1inion that the 1erson
who cut the deceased throat too* hold o- her b, the chin, and then
co++enced the incision -ro+ le-t to right. 9e thought it was highl,
1robable that a 1erson could call out, but with regard to an idea that she
+ight ha;e been gagged he could onl, 1oint to the swollen -ace and the
1rotruding tongue, both o- which were signs o- su--ocation.
7he abdo+en had been entirel, laid o1en6 the intestines, se;ered -ro+
their +esenteric attach+ents, had been li-ted out o- the bod, and 1laced
on the shoulder o- the cor1seH whilst -ro+ the 1el;is, the uterus and its
a11endages with the u11er 1ortion o- the ;agina and the 1osterior two
thirds o- the bladder, had been entirel, re+o;ed. $o trace o- these 1arts
could be -ound and the incisions were cleanl, cut, a;oiding the rectu+,
and di;iding the ;agina low enough to a;oid in3ur, to the cer;i2 uteri.
?b;iousl, the wor* was that o- an e21ertE o- one, at least, who had such
*nowledge o- anato+ical or 1athological e2a+inations as to be enabled
to secure the 1el;ic organs with one swee1 o- the *ni-e, which +ust
there-ore +ust ha;e at least 5 or % inches in length, 1robabl, +ore. 7he
a11earance o- the cuts con-ir+ed hi+ in the o1inion that the instru+ent,
li*e the one which di;ided the nec*, had been o- a ;er, shar1 character.
7he +ode in which the *ni-e had been used see+ed to indicate great
anato+ical *nowledge.
9e thought he hi+sel- could not ha;e 1er-or+ed all the in3uries he
described, e;en without a struggle, under a 4uarter o- an hour. <- he had
down it in a deliberate wa, such as would -all to the duties o- a surgeon
it 1robabl, would ha;e ta*en hi+ the best 1art o- an hour.@
!uneral
Annie Cha1+an was buried on 8rida,, 1& Se1te+ber, 1888.
At 600a+, a hearse, su11lied b, a 9anbur, Street Cnderta*er, 9.
S+ith, went to the #hitecha1el Mortuar,. Annie)s bod, was 1laced in a
blac*Edra1ed el+ co--in and was then dri;en to 9arr, 9awes, a
S1ital-ields Cnderta*er who arranged the -uneral, at 1' 9unt Street.
At '600a+, the hearse (without +ourning coaches) too* Annie)s bod, to
Cit, o- Bondon Ce+eter, (Bittle <l-ord) at Manor (ar* Ce+eter,, Sebert
Doad, 8orest =ate, Bondon, >12, where she was buried at (1ublic) gra;e
8, s4uare 1&8.
Annie)s relati;es, who 1aid -or -or the -uneral, +et the hearse at the
ce+eter,, and, b, re4uest, *e1t the -uneral a secret and were the onl,
ones to attend.
Co1, o- Annie Cha1+an)s death certi-icate.
'he %!ne#al o% Annie Chapan too+ place ea#ly yeste#day o#ning ("4
3ep), the !tost sec#ecy ha$ing been obse#$ed, and none b!t the
!nde#ta+e#, police, and #elati$es o% the deceased +new anything abo!t
the a##angeents. 3ho#tly a%te# se$en o7cloc+ a hea#se d#ew !p o!tside
the o#t!a#y in Contag!e-st#eet, and the body was .!ic+ly #eo$ed. At
nine o7cloc+ a sta#t was ade %o# Cano# Pa#+ Ceete#y. /o coaches
%ollowed, as it was desi#ed that p!blic attention sho!ld not be att#acted.
C#. 3ith and othe# #elati$es et the body at the ceete#y. 'he blac+-
co$e#ed el co%%in bo#e the wo#ds =Annie Chapan, died 3ept. ?, "???,
aged 4? yea#s.= (7he :ail, 7elegra1h, Se1te+ber 15 1888, 1age 3)
Cha1+an)s gra;e no longer e2istsH it has since been buried o;er.
.eath Certi$icate
:eath Certi-icate6 $o. 281, registered 20 Se1te+ber, 1888 (9C 08&&%%).
7he certi-icate does not list the in4uest -ro+ 13 Se1te+ber.
5lizabeth /tri#e
5lizabeth /tri#e a"a '-on -iz'
>li/abeth Stride was born >lisabeth =usta-sdotter on $o;e+ber 2, 18&3
on a -ar+ called Stora 7u+lehed in 7orslanda 1arish, north o-
=othenburg, Sweden. She was ba1ti/ed on :ece+ber 5 o- that ,ear and
con-ir+ed in a church in 7orslanda.
At the ti+e o- her death she was &5 ,ears old. She had a 1ale
co+1le2ion, light gra, e,es and had curl, dar* brown hair. All the teeth
in her lower le-t 3aw were +issing and she stood -i;e -oot -i;e inches tall.
?n a Certi-icate o- Change notice -iled in Sweden at the ti+e that Bi/
+o;ed to Bondon it is stated that she could read tolerabl, well but had
little understanding o- the Bible or catechis+.
Bodgers described her as a 4uiet wo+an who would do a @good turn -or
an,one.@ 9owe;er she had -re4uentl, a11eared be-ore the 7ha+es
Magistrate Court on charges o- being drun* and disorderl,, so+eti+es
with obscene language.
She +ade +one, b, sewing and charring, recei;ed +one, -ro+ Michael
.idne, and was an occasional 1rostitute.
Histor'1
9er -ather was =usta- >ricsson and her +other Beatta Carlsdotter. ?n
?ctober 1&, 18%0 she +o;ed to the 1arish o- Carl 5ohan in =othenburg.
#hile there she wor*ed as a do+estic -or Bars 8rederic* ?lo-sson, a
wor*+an with & children.
8ebruar, 2nd o- 18%2 -inds her +o;ing to Cathedral 1arish in
=othenburg.
<n March 18%5 she is registered b, 1olice as a 1rostitute and on A1ril 21
o- that ,ear she gi;es birth to a stillborn bab, girl.
According to the o--icial ledger wherein she is entr, nu+ber ', she is
li;ing in (hilgaten in ?stra 9aga, a suburb o- =othenburg in ?ctober
18%5.
:uring ?ctober and $o;e+ber she is treated at the s1ecial hos1ital
.urhuset -or ;enereal disease. 7he ?ctober 1 entr, states that she is
treated -or a ;enereal chancre. She is re1orted as health, in the
$o;e+ber 3, , 10, 1& entries and a-ter the last entr, she is told she will
no longer ha;e to re1ort to the 1olice.
?n 8ebruar, th o- 18%% she a11lies to +o;e to the Swedish 1arish in
Bondon, >ngland. She enters the Bondon register as an un+arried
wo+an on 5ul, 10, 18%%.
According to testi+on, b, Charles (reston, who li;ed at the sa+e
lodging house, she ca+e to Bondon in the ser;ice o- a @-oreign
gentle+an.@
Michael .idne,, with who+ she li;ed on and o-- 1rior to her death, sa,s
she told hi+ that she wor*ed -or a -a+il, in 9,de (ar* and that she
@ca+e to see the countr,.@ 9e also belie;es that she had -a+il, in
Bondon.
5ul, 10, 188% EE she is registered as an un+arried wo+an at the
Swedish Church in (rince)s S4uare, St. =eorge in the >ast.
?n March , 18%' she +arries 5ohn Stride at the 1arish church, St. =iles
in the 8ields. 7he Ser;ice is conducted b, De;. #ill (owell and witnessed
b, :aniel 9. #,att and $. 7a,lor. Stride gi;es her address as % =ower
Street.
Soon a-ter the +arriage 5ohn and Bi/ are li;ing in >ast <ndia :oc* road in
(o1lar. 7he, *ee1 a co--ee sho1 at Chris1 Street, (o1lar and in 180 in
C11er $orth Street, (o1lar. 7he, +o;e the+sel;es and the business to
18 (o1lar 9igh Street and re+ain there until the business is ta*en o;er
b, 5ohn :ale in 185.
<n 188 the P#incess Alice, a saloon stea+ shi1 collides with the stea+er
6ywell Castle in the 7ha+es. 7here is a loss o- %00E00 li;es. Bi/ will
clai+ that her husband and children were *illed in this disaster and that
her 1alate was in3ured b, being *ic*ed in the +outh while cli+bing the
+ast to esca1e. $o corroborati;e e;idence e2ists -or this state+ent and
we *now that her husband actuall, died in 188&. 7he 1ost +orte+ re1ort
on her s1eci-icall, states that there was no da+age to either her hard or
so-t 1alate. 7his stor, +a, ha;e been told b, her to elicit s,+1ath,
when as*ing -or -inancial aid -ro+ the Swedish Church.
?n :ece+ber 28, 1881 through 5anuar, &, 1882 she is treated at the
#hitecha1el <n-ir+ar, -or bronchitis. 8ro+ the <n-ir+ar, she +o;es
directl, into the #hitecha1el #or*house.
8ro+ 1882 onwards she lodges on and o-- at the co++on lodging house
at 32 8lower and :ean Street. As her husband is still ali;e at this ti+e it
is reasonable to assu+e that the +arriage has irre;ocabl, -allen a1art.
?n ?ctober 2&, 188&, 5ohn Stride dies o- heart disease.
<n 1885 she is li;ing with Michael .idne,. 7he, li;e together -or three
,ears although she o-ten lea;es hi+ -or 1eriods o- ti+e to go o-- on the
town.
Michael .idne, is a waterside laborer. 9e is born in 1852 and is ,ears
,ounger than Bi/. the, li;e at 35 :e;onshire Street, +o;ing to 3%
:e;onshire Street -i;e +onths 1rior to her +urder. At the ti+e o- the
+urder .idne, is li;ing at 33 :orset Street.
7heir relationshi1 is best described as stor+,. 9e sa,s that she was
-re4uentl, absent when she was drin*ing and he e;en tried,
unsuccess-ull,, to 1adloc* her in (see list o- 1ossession at ti+e o- death).
?n Ma, 20 and again on the 23rd o- 188% She recei;es al+s -ro+ the
Swedish Church. S;en ?lsson, Cler* o- the Church re+e+bers her as
@;er, 1oor.@ She gi;es her address as :e;onshire Street o-- Co++ercial
Doad.
?n March 21, 188 she is registered as an in+ate at the (o1lar
#or*house.
<n A1ril o- 188 she charges .idne, with assault but then -ails to a11ear
at 7ha+es Magistrate Court.
<n 5ul, o- 1888 .idne, is sent down -or three da,s charges with being
drun* and disorderl, and using obscene language.
?n Se1te+ber 15 and 20 o- 1888 she again recei;es -inancial assistance
-ro+ the Swedish Church.
Charles (reston, a barber, had li;ed at 32 8lower and :ean Street -or 18
+onths sa,s that Bi/ Stride had been arrested one Saturda, night -or
being drun* and disorderl, at the Mueen)s 9ead (ublic 9ouse on
Co++ercial Street. She was released on bail the -ollowing da,. :uring
the 20 +onths 1rior to her death she a11eared 8 ti+es be-ore the
Magistrate on si+ilar charges.
?n 7uesda,, Se1te+ber 25, 1888, Michael .idne, sees her -or the last
ti+e. 9e e21ects her to be ho+e when he arri;es -ro+ wor* but she is
not. .idne, is unconcerned as she has done this o-ten. @<t was drin* that
+ade her go awa,,@ he said. @She alwa,s returned without +e going
a-ter her. < thin* she li*ed +e better than an, other +an.@
#ednesda,, Se1te+ber 2% -inds her at the lodging house at 32 8lower
and :ean Street. She had not been there in the last three +onths. She
tells Catherine Bane that she had words with the +an she was li;ing
with. 9er being at the lodging house is con-ir+ed b, none other than :r.
7ho+as Barnardo, a doctor who had ta*en to street 1reaching and then
o1ened a -a+ous ho+e -or destitute bo,s.
:r. Barnardo had ;isited the lodging house to get o1inions on his sche+e
)b, which children at all e;ents could be sa;ed at least -ro+ the
conta+ination o- the co++on lodging houses and the street.) ?n
entering the *itchen at 32 8lower and :ean he -ound the wo+en and
girls there @...thoroughl, -rightened.@ 7he, were discussing the +urders.
?ne wo+an, 1robabl, drun* cried bitterl, @#e)re all u1 to no good, no
one cares what beco+es o- usA (erha1s so+e o- us will be *illed ne2tA@
?n ;iewing the bod,, Barnardo will recogni/e Bi/ instantl, as one o- the
wo+en in the *itchen.
'h!#sday-9#iday, 3eptebe# 21-2?. Bi/ continues to lodge at 32 8lower
and :ean Street. According to >li/abeth 7anner, the lodging house
de1ut,, she arri;ed at the house a-ter a 4uarrel with .idne,. .idne, will
den, this.
3at!#day-3!nday, 3eptebe# 2@-30, "???. 7he weather this e;ening is
shower, and wind,. >li/abeth s1ends the a-ternoon cleaning two roo+s
at the lodging house. 8or her ser;ices she is 1aid %d b, >li/abeth 7anner.
/epte&ber 33th, 4666
<530 PC5 7anner sees her again at the Mueen)s 9ead (ublic 9ouse. 7he,
dran* together and then wal*ed bac* to the lodging house.
1500-?500 PC5 She is seen lea;ing the lodging house b, Charles (reston
and Catherine Bane. She gi;es Bane a large 1iece o- green ;el;et and
as*s her to hold it -or her until she returns. She as* (reston to borrow
his clothes brush but he has +islaid it. She then lea;es 1assing b,
7ho+as Bates, watch+an at the lodging house who sa,s she loo*ed
4uite cheer-ul. Bane will later state that @< *now the deceased had %d
when she le-t, she showed it to +e, stating that the de1ut, had gi;en it
to her.@
""500 PC5 7wo laborers, 5. Best and 5ohn =ardner were going into the
Bric*la,er)s Ar+s (ublic 9ouse on Settles street, north o- Co++ercial
Doad and al+ost o11osite Berner Street. As the, went in Stride was
lea;ing with a short +an with a dar* +ustache and sand, e,elashes. 7he
+an was wearing a bill,coc* hat, +ourning suit and coat. Best sa,s
@7he, had been ser;ed in the 1ublic house and went out when +e and
+, -riends ca+e in. <t was raining ;er, -ast and the, did not a11ear
willing to go out. 9e was hugging and *issing her, and as he see+ed a
res1ectabl, dressed +an, we were rather astonished at the wa, he was
going on at the wo+an.@ Stride and her +an stood in the doorwa, -or
so+e ti+e hugging and *issing. 7he wor*+en tried to get the +an to
co+e in -or a drin* but he re-used. 7he, then called to Stride. @7hat)s
Beather A1ron getting )round ,ou.@ 7he +an and Stride +o;ed o--
towards Co++ercial Doad and Berner Street. @9e and the wo+an went
o-- li*e a shot soon a-ter ele;en.@
""548 PC5 #illia+ Marshall, a laborer, sees her on Berner Street. 9e is
standing in the doorwa, o- %& Berner Street on the west side o- the
street between 8airclough and Bo,d Streets. 9e notices her tal*ing to a
+an in a short blac* cutawa, coat and sailor)s hat outside nu+ber %3.
7he, are *issing and carr,ing on. 9e hears the +an sa, @Iou would sa,
an,thing but ,our 1ra,ers.@
"2500 AC5 Matthew (ac*er clai+s to sell Stride and a +an gra1es. 7his
is a ;er, dubious 1iece o- e;idence. See Sugden)s 'he Coplete Histo#y
o% Jac+ the Dippe# -or the 1ros and cons o- this stor,.
"2538 AC5 (olice Constable #illia+ S+ith sees Stride with a ,oung +an
on Berner Street o11osite the <nternational #or*ing Men)s >ducational
Club. 7he +an is described as 28 ,ears old, dar* coat and hard
deerstal*er hat. 9e is carr,ing a 1arcel a11ro2i+atel, % inches high and
18 inches in length. the 1ac*age is wra11ed in news1a1er.
"2548 AC Aapp#o4iatelyB5 E!oting Hoe 0%%ice 9ile5
@<srael Schwart/ o- 22 9elen Street, Bac*church Bane, stated that at this
hour, turning into Berner Street -ro+ Co++ercial Doad, and ha;ing
gotten as -ar as the gatewa, where the +urder was co++itted, he saw a
+an sto1 and s1ea* to a wo+an, who was standing in the gatewa,. 9e
tried to 1ull the wo+an into the street, but he turned her round and
threw her down on the -ootwa, and the wo+an screa+ed three ti+es,
but not ;er, loudl,. ?n crossing to the o11osite side o- the street, he
saw a second +an lighting his 1i1e. 7he +an who threw the wo+an
down called out, a11arentl, to the +an on the o11osite side o- the road,
@Bi1s*i@, and then Schwart/ wal*ed awa,, but -inding that he was
-ollowed b, the second +an, he ran as -ar as the railwa, arch, but the
+an did not -ollow so -ar.
Schwart/ cannot sa, whether the two +en were together or *nown to
each other. C1on being ta*en to the +ortuar, Schwart/ identi-ied the
bod, as that o- the wo+an he had seen.@
7he disco;er, o- >li/abeth Stride)s bod, in :ut-ield)s Iard, -ro+ 7he (ictorial $ews, %th ?ctober
1888.
Late# in the deposition5
@<t will be obser;ed that allowing -or di--erences o- o1inion between (C
S+ith and Schwart/ as to the a11arent age and height o- the +an each
saw with the wo+an whose bod, the, both identi-ied, there are serious
di--erences in the descri1tion o- the dress...so at least it is rendered
doubt-ul that the, are describing the sa+e +an.
<- Schwart/ is to be belie;ed, and the 1olice re1ort o- his state+ent casts
no doubt u1on it, it -ollows that i- the, are describing di--erent +en that
the +an Schwart/ saw is the +ore 1robable o- the two to be the
+urderer...@
Schwart/ describes the +an as about 30 ,ears old, 5) 5@ tall with a -resh
co+1le2ion, dar* hair and s+all brown +ustache. 9e is dressed in an
o;ercoat and an old blac* -elt hat with a wide bri+.
At the sa+e ti+e, 5a+es Brown sa,s he sees Stride with a +an as he
was going ho+e with his su11er down 8airclough Street. She was
leaning against the wall tal*ing to a stoutish +an about 5) @ tall in a
long blac* coat that reached to his heels. 9e has his ar+ against the
wall. Stride is sa,ing @$o, not tonight, so+e other night.@
"500 AC5 Bouis :ie+schut/, a sales+an o- 3ewelr,, entered :ut-ield)s
Iard dri;ing his cart and 1on,. <++ediatel, at the entrace, his 1on,
shied and re-used to 1roceed EE :ie+schut/ sus1ected so+ething was in
the wa, but could not see since the ,ard was utterl, 1itch blac*. 9e
1robed -orward with his whi1 and ca+e into contact with a bod,, who+
he initiall, belie;ed to be either drun* or aslee1.
9e entered the <nternational #or*ing Men)s >ducational Club to get
so+e hel1 in rousing the wo+an, and u1on returning to the ,ard with
<saac .o/ebrods*, and Morris >agle, the three disco;er that she was
dead, her throat cut.
<t was belie;ed that :ie+schut/)s arri;al -rightened the Di11er, causing
hi+ to -lee be-ore he 1er-or+ed the +utilations. :ie+schut/ hi+sel-
stated that he belie;ed the Di11er was still in the ,ard when he had
entered, due to the war+ te+1erature o- the bod, and the continuingl,
odd beha;ior o- his 1on,.
:r. 8rederic* Blac*well o- 100 Co++ercial Doad was calledH he arri;ed at
1.1%a+ and 1ronounced Stride dead at the scene.
(nternational Wor"er's 5#ucational Club1
A two stor, wooden building, barn li*e. 7he club was s1acious with a
ca1acit, o- o;er two hundred 1eo1le and contained a stage. 9ere
a+ateurs 1er-or+ed, +ostl, in the Dussian language, 1la,s b, wellE
*nown Dussian re;olutionists. ?n Saturda, and Sunda, e;enings there
would be an international gathering o- Dussian, 5ewish, British, 8rench,
<talian, C/ech, and (olish radicals. Me+bers thought o- the club as the
@cradle o- Bibert,) -or the wor*er)s +anu+ission.
>rror creating thu+bnail6 Cnable to sa;e thu+bnail to destination
>li/aeth Stride, +ortuar, 1hotogra1h.
At the ti+e o- her death >li/abeth Stride was wearing6
Bong blac* cloth 3ac*et, -ur tri++ed around the botto+ with a red rose
and white +aiden hair -ern 1inned to it. (She was not wearing the
-lowers when she le-t the lodging house.)
Blac* s*irt
Blac* cre1e bonnet
Chec*ed nec* scar- *notted on le-t side
:ar* brown ;el;eteen bodice
2 light serge 1etticoats
1 white che+ise
#hite stoc*ings
S1ring sided boots
2 hand*erchie-s (one, the larger, is noticed at the 1ostE+orte+ to ha;e
-ruit stains on it.)
A thi+ble
A 1iece o- wool wound around a card
<n the 1oc*et in her unders*irt6
A *e, (as o- a 1adloc*)
A s+all 1iece o- lead 1encil
Si2 large and one s+all button
A co+b
A bro*en 1iece o- co+b
A +etal s1oon
A hoo* (as -ro+ a dress)
A 1iece o- +uslin
?ne or two s+all 1ieces o- 1a1er
She is -ound clutching a 1ac*et o- Cachous in her hand. Cachous is a 1ill
used b, s+o*ers to sweeten their breath.
Post7&orte&
:r. =eorge Bagster (hilli1s (who also handled the Cha1+an and .ell,
+urders) 1er-or+ed the 1ost +orte+ on Stride. 9e was also 1resent at
the scene and, a-ter e2a+ining the bod,, asserts the deceased had not
eaten an, gra1es. 9is re1ort is as -ollows6
@7he bod, was l,ing on the near side, with the -ace turned toward the
wall, the head u1 the ,ard and the -eet toward the street. 7he le-t ar+
was e2tended and there was a 1ac*et o- cachous in the le-t hand.
7he right ar+ was o;er the bell,, the bac* o- the hand and wrist had on
it clotted blood. 7he legs were drawn u1 with the -eet close to the wall.
7he bod, and -ace were war+ and the hand cold. 7he legs were 4uite
war+.
:eceased had a sil* hand*erchie- round her nec*, and it a11eared to be
slightl, torn. < ha;e since ascertained it was cut. 7his corres1onded with
the right angle o- the 3aw. 7he throat was dee1l, gashed and there was
an abrasion o- the s*in about one and a hal- inches in dia+eter,
a11arentl, stained with blood, under her right ar+.
At three o)cloc* 1.+. on Monda, at St. =eorge)s Mortuar,, :r. Blac*well
and < +ade a 1ost +orte+ e2a+ination. Digor +ortis was still thoroughl,
+ar*ed. 7here was +ud on the le-t side o- the -ace and it was +atted in
the head.H
7he Bod, was -airl, nourished. ?;er both shoulders, es1eciall, the right,
and under the collarbone and in -ront o- the chest there was a bluish
discoloration, which < ha;e watched and ha;e seen on two occasions
since.
>li/abeth Stride)s gra;e at >ast Bondon Ce+eter,.
7here was a clearEcut incision on the nec*. <t was si2 inches in length
and co++enced two and a hal- inches in a straight line below the angle
o- the 3aw, one hal- inch in o;er an undi;ided +uscle, and then beco+ing
dee1er, di;iding the sheath. 7he cut was ;er, clean and de;iated a little
downwards. 7he arteries and other ;essels contained in the sheath were
all cut through.
7he cut through the tissues on the right side was +ore su1er-icial, and
tailed o-- to about two inches below the right angle o- the 3aw. 7he dee1
;essels on that side were unin3ured. 8ro+ this is was e;ident that the
he+orrhage was caused through the 1artial se;erance o- the le-t carotid
arter,.
:eco+1osition had co++enced in the s*in. :ar* brown s1ots were on
the anterior sur-ace o- the le-t chin. 7here was a de-or+it, in the bones
o- the right leg, which was not straight, but bowed -orwards. 7here was
no recent e2ternal in3ur, sa;e to the nec*.
7he bod, being washed +ore thoroughl, < could see so+e healing sores.
7he lobe o- the le-t ear was torn as i- -ro+ the re+o;al or wearing
through o- an earring, but it was thoroughl, healed. ?n re+o;ing the
scal1 there was no sign o- e2tra;asation o- blood.
7he heart was s+all, the le-t ;entricle -ir+l, contracted, and the right
slightl, so. 7here was no clot in the 1ul+onar, arter,, but the right
;entricle was -ull o- dar* clot. 7he le-t was -ir+l, contracted as to be
absolutel, e+1t,.
7he sto+ach was large and the +ucous +e+brane onl, congested. <t
contained 1artl, digested -ood, a11arentl, consisting o- cheese, 1otato,
and -arinaceous 1owder. All the teeth on the lower le-t 3aw were absent.@
7he da, a-ter the +urder, a citi/en +ob -or+ed outside o- Berner Street
1rotesting the continuation o- the +urders and the see+ingl, sli1shod
wor* o- the 1olice to catch the Di11er. 8ro+ here on in, the Di11er is
1ublic ene+, nu+ber one, and 9o+e ?--ice begins to consider o--ering
awards -or his ca1ture and arrest.
Co1, o- >li/abeth Stride)s death certi-icate.
!uneral
>li/abeth stride was buried on Saturda,, % ?ctober, 1888.
>li/abeth was buried at >ast Bondon Ce+eter, Co. Btd., (laistow,
Bondon, >13. =ra;e 1550', s4uare 3. 7he s1arse 8uneral was 1aid at
the e21ense o- the 1arish b, underta*er, Mr 9aw*es.
.eath Certi$icate
:eath Certi-icate6 $o. &', registered 2& ?ctober, 1888 (9C 08&&%)
Catherine 5##o%es
Catherine >ddowes, conte+1orar, illustration.
Catherine 5##o%es a.".a. Kate Kell'
Catherine >ddowes is born on A1ril 1&, 18&2 in =raisle, =reen,
#ol;erha+1ton. At the ti+e o- her death she is 5 -eet tall, has ha/el
e,es and dar* auburn hair. She has a tattoo in blue in* on her le-t
-orear+ @7C.@
At the ti+e o- her death, Catherine >ddowes is su--ering -ro+ Bright)s
:isease, a -or+ o- Cre+ia. 8riends s1o*e o- Catherine as an intelligent,
scholarl, wo+an but one who was 1ossessed o- a -ierce te+1er.
#earing at the ti+e o- her +urder6
Blac* straw bonnet tri++ed in green and blac* ;el;et with blac* beads.
Blac* strings, worn tied to the head.
Blac* cloth 3ac*et tri++ed around the collar and cu--s with i+itation -ur
and around the 1oc*ets in blac* sil* braid and -ur. Barge +etal
buttons.
:ar* green chint/ s*irt, 3 -lounces, brown button on waistband. 7he s*irt
is 1atterned with Michael+as daisies and golden lilies.
Man)s white ;est, +atching buttons down -ront.
Brown linse, bodice, blac* ;el;et collar with brown buttons down -ront
=re, stu-- 1etticoat with white waistband
Ger, old green al1aca s*irt (worn as undergar+ent)
Ger, old ragged blue s*irt with red -lounces, light twill lining (worn as
undergar+ent)
#hite calico che+ise
$o drawers or sta,s
(air o- +en)s lace u1 boots, +ohair laces. Dight boot re1aired with red
thread
1 1iece o- red gau/e sil* worn as a nec*erchie-
1 large white 1oc*et hand*erchie-
1 large white cotton hand*erchie- with red and white bird)s e,e border
2 unbleached calico 1oc*ets, ta1e strings
1 blue stri1e bed tic*ing 1oc*et
Brown ribbed *nee stoc*ings, darned at the -eet with white cotton
Possessions
2 s+all blue bags +ade o- bed tic*ing
2 short blac* cla, 1i1es
1 tin bo2 containing tea
1 tin bo2 containing sugar
1 tin +atchbo2, e+1t,
12 1ieces white rag, so+e slightl, bloodstained
1 1iece coarse linen, white
1 1iece o- blue and white shirting, 3 cornered
1 1iece red -lannel with 1ins and needles
% 1ieces soa1
1 s+all tooth co+b
1 white handle table *ni-e
1 +etal teas1oon
1 red leather cigarette case with white +etal -ittings
1 ball he+1
1 1iece o- old white a1ron with re1air
Se;eral buttons and a thi+ble
Mustard tin containing two 1awn tic*ets, ?ne in the na+e o- >+il, Birrell,
52 #hite)s Dow, dated August 31, 'd -or a +an)s -lannel shirt. 7he
other is in the na+e o- 5ane .ell, o- % :orset Street and dated
Se1te+ber 28, 2S -or a 1air o- +en)s boots. Both addresses are -alse.
(rinted handbill and according to a 1ress re1ortE a 1rinted card -or )8ran*
Carter,305,Bethnal =reen Doad
(ortion o- a 1air o- s1ectacles
1 red +itten
Histor'1
9er -ather was =eorge >ddowes, a tin 1late wor*er wor*ing or
a11renticed at the ?ld 9all #or*s in #ol;erha+1ton. 9er +other is
Catherine (nee >;ans). She has two sisters, >li/abeth 8isher and >li/a
=old (their +arried na+es). She also has an uncle na+ed #illia+
>ddowes.
?ne conte+1orar, news1a1er re1ort gi;es her histor, as -ollows6
@9er -ather and his brother #illia+ le-t their 3obs as tin1late wor*ers in
#ol;erha+1ton during the tin+en)s stri*e, about 18&8. 7he, and their
-a+ilies wal*ed to Bondon. <n Bondon the, e;entuall, -ound
e+1lo,+ent. =eorge and his -a+il, sta,ed, while #illia+ too* his -a+il,
bac* to #ol;erha+1ton and resu+ed wor* at ?ld 9all #or*s. <n the
earl, 18%0s Catherine returned to #ol;erha+1ton to ;isit her -a+il,. 9er
relati;es recalled the ;isit and described her @as ;er, good loo*ing and
3oll, sort o- girl.@
Catherine is educated at St. 5ohn)s Charit, School, (otter)s 8ield, 7oole,
Street until her +other dies in 1855, when +ost o- her siblings entered
Ber+ondse, #or*house and <ndustrial School.
9er education continues when she returns to the care o- her aunt in
Bison Street, #ol;erha+1ton. She attends :owgate Charit, School. B,
18%1E18%3 she lea;es ho+e with 7ho+as Conwa,.
7he #ol;erha+1ton 1a1er su++ari/es her histor, so+ewhat di--erentl,6
=eorge >ddowes co+1letes his a11renticeshi1 at ?ld 9all #or*s and
+arries Catherine >;ans, a coo* at the local hostelr,. 7he two go to
Bondon in search o- their -ortunes. #hile there, =eorge -athers 12
children. 9is wi-e, Catherine, dies in 1851 and =eorge a -ew +onths
later. Catherine is returned to #ol;erha+1ton into the care o- an aunt
who li;ed in Bison Street. 7his +a, be the aunt who, according to an
article in the 5anuar, 1''5 Blac* Countr, Bugle, +ade a gi-t o- a
+iniature 1ortrait to Catherine which beca+e the basis -or the 1ortrait
which a11ears in the (enn, <llustrated (a1er at the ti+e o- her death.
At the age o- 21, Catherine is still li;ing with her aunt but beco+es
in;ol;ed with 7ho+as Conwa,, a 1ensioner -ro+ the 18th Do,al <rish
(though he was not old). Conwa, enlisted and drew his 1ension under
the na+e 7ho+as Muinn. 7he cou1le went to Bir+ingha+ and other
towns +a*ing a li;ing selling chea1 boo*s o- li;es written b, the
1ensioner. Again, according to the article in the 5anuar, 1''5 Blac*
Countr, Bugle, the, also s1eciali/ed in the 1roduction o- gallows ballads.
?n one occasion she haw*ed such a ballad at the e2ecution o- her
cousin, Christo1her Dobinson, hanged at Stra--ord in 5anuar, 18%%.
<n the course o- their tra;els the, returned to #ol;erha+1ton where
Catherine ga;e birth to a child. 7he, return to Bondon but .ate tries to
return to her aunt)s house a-ter @running awa, -ro+ the 1ensioner.@ 9er
aunt re-used her ad+ittance and .ate too* re-uge in a lodging house on
Bison Street.
7here is no e;idence to suggest that she and Conwa, were e;er +arried.
As a cou1le the, had three children. Annie, born 18%5 (later Annie
(hilli1s), =eorge, born around 18%8 and another son born around 183.
Conwa, and >ddowes s1lit in 1881 with .ate ta*ing Annie and Conwa,
the bo,.
<n 1881 Catherine +o;ed to Coone,)s Bodging 9ouse, 55 8lower and
:ean Street and +et 5ohn .ell,. .ell, 3obbed around the +ar*ets but
had been +ore or less regularl, e+1lo,ed b, a -ruit sales+an na+ed
Bander. So+ewhere in this 1eriod Catherine)s daughter Annie +arries
Bouis (hilli1s and begins to +o;e around Ber+ondse, and Southwar* to
a;oid her +other)s scrounging.
8rederic* #il*inson, de1ut, at Coone,)s, sa,s Catherine @was not o-ten
in drin* and was a ;er, 3oll, wo+an, o-ten singing.@ She was generall, in
the lodging house -or the night between ' and 10 (M. 9e sa,s she
wasn)t in the habit o- wal*ing the streets and he had ne;er heard o- or
seen her being inti+ate with an,one other than .ell,. .ell, hi+sel-
clai+ed no *nowledge o- her e;er wal*ing the streets. 9e sa,s that she
so+eti+es dran* to e2cess but wasn)t in the habit. Another sister, >li/a
=old, said that Catherine was o- sober habits.
>;er, ,ear, during the season, .ell, and >ddowes went ho1 1ic*ing. <n
1888 the, went to 9unton near Maidstone in .ent. @#e didn)t get along
too well and started to hoo- it ho+e,@ .ell, sa,s, @#e ca+e along in
co+1an, with another +an and wo+an who had wor*ed in the sa+e
-ields, but who 1arted -ro+ us to go to Cheltenha+ when we turned o--
towards Bondon. 7he wo+an, +ore than li*el, >+il, Birrell, said to .ate,
)<);e got a 1awn tic*et -or a -lannel shirt. < wish ,ou)d ta*e it since ,ou)re
going u1 to town. <t is onl, -or 2d, and it +a, -it ,our old +an.) .ate
too* it and we trudged along... #e did not ha;e +one, enough to *ee1
us going till we got to town, but we did get there, and ca+e straight to
this house (55 8lower and :ean Street). Buc* was dead against us... we
were both done u1 -or cash.@
7he, reached Bondon on 8rida,, Se1te+ber 28. 5ohn +anaged to earn
%d. .ate too* 2d and told .ell, to ta*e the &d and get a bed at Coone,)s.
She said she would get a bed at the casual ward in Shoe Bane.
7he su1erintendent o- the casual ward said that .ate was well *nown
there, but that this was the -irst ti+e she had been there -or a long ti+e.
>ddowes e21lained that she had been ho11ing in the countr, but @< ha;e
co+e bac* to earn the reward o--ered -or the a11rehension o- the
#hitecha1el +urderer. < thin* < *now hi+.@ 7he su1erintendent warned
her to be care-ul he didn)t +urder her. @?h, no -ear o- that.@ she re1lied.
(7here is no corroborati;e e;idence -or this stor, and it should be treated
with a great deal o- sce1ticis+.)
/atur#a' an# /un#a', /epte&ber 287331
At 8600 AM on Se1te+ber 2' she returns to Coone,)s Bodging 9ouse and
sees .ell,. She has been turned out o- the Casual #ard -or so+e
uns1eci-ied trouble. .ell, decided to 1awn a 1air o- boots he had. 9e
does this with a 1awnbro*er na+ed 5ones in Church Street. <t was .ate
who too* the+ into the sho1 and 1ledged the+ under the na+e o- 5ane
.ell,. She recei;es 2J% -or the boots and she and .ell, ta*e the +one,
and bu, so+e -ood, tea and sugar. Between 10 and 11 AM the, were
seen b, 8rederic* #il*inson eating brea*-ast in the lodging house
*itchen.
B, a-ternoon the, were again without +one,. >ddowes sa,s she is going
to see i- she can get so+e +one, -ro+ her daughter in Ber+ondse,. She
1arts with .ell, in 9oundsditch at 2600 (M, 1ro+ising to be bac* no later
than &600 (M. @< ne;er *new i- she went to her daughter)s at all,@ .ell,
sa,s at the in4uest. @< onl, wish she had, -or we had li;ed together -or
so+e ti+e and ne;er had a 4uarrel.@ .ate could not ha;e seen her
daughter who had +o;ed since the last ti+e .ate saw her.
?500 PC5 Cit, (C Bouis Dobinson co+es across >ddowes surrounded b, a
crowd outside 2' Aldgate 9igh Street. She is ;er, drun* and la,ing in a
hea1 on the 1a;e+ent. Dobinson as*s those in the crowd i- an,one *new
her, no one re1lied. 9e 1ulled her u1 to her -eet and leaned her against
the building)s shutters but she sli11ed sidewa,s. #ith the aid o- Cit, (C
'5' =eorge Si++ons the, brought her to Bisho1sgate (olice
Station.Bouis Dobinson Cit, (olice Constable '31 said at .ate)s in4uest
)?n the 2'th at 8.30 < was on dut, in Aldgate 9ight Street, < saw a
crowd o- 1ersons outside $o. 2' E < saw there a wo+an who+ < ha;e
since recognised as the :eceased l,ing on the -ootwa, drun*. < as*ed i-
there was one that *new her or *new where she li;ed but < got no
answer.)
?548 PC5 Bisho1sgate (olice Station Sergeant 5a+es B,-ield notes
>ddowes arri;al at the station. Su11orted b, (Cs Dobinson and
Si++ons, >ddowes was as*ed her na+e and she re1lied @$othing.@ At
8650 (M (C Dobinson loo*ed in on her in her cell. She was aslee1 and
s+elled o- drin*. At '6&5 (M 7he =aoler, Cit, (C '%8 =eorge 9utt, too*
charge o- the 1risoners. 9e ;isited the cell e;er, hal- hour during the
night u1on the directi;e o- Sergeant B,-ield.
@548 PC5 Cit, (Cs on night beat lea;e Bisho1sgate Station. 7he, are
+arched behind their Beat Sergeants -ro+ Bisho1sgate Station to their
res1ecti;e beats. <n a+ongst these +en were Cit, (Cs >dward #at*ins
and 5a+es 9ar;e,.
App#o4 "0500 PC5 Cit, (C 881 >dward #at*ins co++enced his -irst -ull
round o- his beat. 7his consisted o- :u*e Street through 9eneage Bane,
through a 1ortion o- Bur, Street, then through Creechurch Bane, into
Beadenhall Street, along Beadenhall Street into Mitre Street, then into
Mitre S4uare, around the s4uare, bac* into Mitre Street, then into .ing
Street, along .ing Street, into St 5a+es (lace, around St 5a+es (lace,
thence into :u*e Street to continue another 1atrol.
App#o4 "0500 PC5 Cit, (C '%& 5a+es 9ar;e, co++enced his beat. 8ro+
Be;is Mar*s he +o;ed to :u*e Street, into Bittle :u*e Street, to
9oundsditch, -ro+ 9oundsditch bac* to :u*e Street, along :u*e Street
to Church (assage, bac* again into :u*e Street, to Aldgate, -ro+ there
to Mitre Street, bac* again to 9oundsditch, u1 9oundsditch, to Bittle
:u*e Street, again bac* to 9oundsditch, to =oring Street, u1 =oring
Street and bac* to Be;is Mar*s.
"25"8 AC5 .ate is heard singing so-tl, to hersel- in the cell. "2530 AC5
She calls out to as* when she will be released. @#hen ,ou are ca1able o-
ta*ing care o- ,oursel-.@ 9utt re1lies. @< can do that now.@ .ate in-or+s
hi+.
"2588 AC5 Sergeant B,-ield instructs (C 9utt to see i- an, 1risoners
were -it to be released. .ate was -ound to be sober. She gi;es her na+e
as Mar, Ann .ell,, and her address as % 8ashion Street. .ate is released.
She lea;es the station at 1600 AM.@#hat ti+e is itK@ she as*s 9utt. @7oo
late -or ,ou to get an,thing to drin*.@ he re1lies.@< shall get a da+n -ine
hiding when < get ho+e.@ She tells hi+.9utt re1lies, @ And ser;e ,ou
right, ,ou had no right to get drun*.@9utt 1ushes o1en the swinging door
o- that station. @7his wa, +issus,@ he sa,s, @1lease 1ull it to.@@All right)@
.ate re1lies, @=oodnight, old coc*.@
She turned le-t out the doorwa, which too* her in the o11osite direction
o- what would ha;e been the -astest wa, bac* to 8lower and :ean
Street. She a11ears to be heading bac* toward Aldgate 9igh Street
where she had beco+e drun*. ?n going down 9oundsditch she would
ha;e 1assed the entrance to :u*e Street, at the end o- which was
Church (assage which led into Mitre S4uare.
<t is esti+ated that it would ha;e ta*en less than ten +inutes to reach
Mitre S4uare. 7his lea;es a thirt, +inute ga1 -ro+ the ti+e she lea;es
the 1olice station to the ti+e she is seen outside o- Mitre S4uare.
"538 AC5 5ose1h Bawende, a co++ercial tra;eler in the cigarette trade,
5ose1h 9,a+ Be;,, a butcher and 9arr, 9arris, a -urniture dealer lea;e
the <+1erial Club at 1%E1 :u*e Street. At the corner o- :u*e Street and
Church (assage the, see >ddowes and a +an tal*ing. She is standing
-acing the +an with her hand on his chest, but not in a +anner to
suggest that she is resisting hi+. Bawende describes the +an as 30
,ears old, 5 -oot inches tall, -air co+1le2ion and +ustache with a
+ediu+ build. 9e is wearing a 1e11er and salt colored 3ac*et which -its
loosel,, a gre, cloth ca1 with a 1ea* o- the sa+e color. 9e has a reddish
hand*erchie- *notted around his nec*. ?;er all he gi;es the a11earance
o- being a sailor. Bawende will later identi-, Catherine >ddowes clothes
as the sa+e as those worn b, the wo+an he saw that night.
App#o4 "548 PC5 (C >dward #at*ins disco;ers >ddowes) bod, in Mitre
S4uare.
Post7&orte&
Catherine >ddowes) bod, in the +ortuar,.
Catherine >ddowes) bod, in the +ortuar, a-ter post-o#te stitching.
:r. 8rederic* =ordon Brown, Bondon 1olice surgeon called in at the
+urder, arri;ed at Mitre S4uare around 2600 AM. 9is re1ort is as -ollows.
@7he bod, was on its bac*, the head turned to le-t shoulder. 7he ar+s b,
the side o- the bod, as i- the, had -allen there. Both 1al+s u1wards, the
-ingers slightl, bent. 7he le-t leg e2tended in a line with the bod,. 7he
abdo+en was e21osed. Dight leg bent at the thigh and *nee. 7he throat
cut across.
7he intestines were drawn out to a large e2tent and 1laced o;er the right
shoulder EE the, were s+eared o;er with so+e -eculent +atter. A 1iece
o- about two -eet was 4uite detached -ro+ the bod, and 1laced between
the bod, and the le-t ar+, a11arentl, b, design. 7he lobe and auricle o-
the right ear were cut obli4uel, through.
7here was a 4uantit, o- clotted blood on the 1a;e+ent on the le-t side o-
the nec* round the shoulder and u11er 1art o- ar+, and -luid bloodE
coloured seru+ which had -lowed under the nec* to the right shoulder,
the 1a;e+ent slo1ing in that direction.
Bod, was 4uite war+. $o death sti--ening had ta*en 1lace. She +ust
ha;e been dead +ost li*el, within the hal- hour. #e loo*ed -or
su1er-icial bruises and saw none. $o blood on the s*in o- the abdo+en or
secretion o- an, *ind on the thighs. $o s1urting o- blood on the bric*s or
1a;e+ent around. $o +ar*s o- blood below the +iddle o- the bod,.
Se;eral buttons were -ound in the clotted blood a-ter the bod, was
re+o;ed. 7here was no blood on the -ront o- the clothes. 7here were no
traces o- recent conne2ion.
#hen the bod, arri;ed at =olden Bane, so+e o- the blood was dis1ersed
through the re+o;al o- the bod, to the +ortuar,. 7he clothes were
ta*en o-- care-ull, -ro+ the bod,. A 1iece o- deceased)s ear dro11ed
-ro+ the clothing.
< +ade a 1ost +orte+ e2a+ination at hal- 1ast two on Sunda,
a-ternoon. Digor +ortis was well +ar*edH bod, not 4uite cold. =reen
discoloration o;er the abdo+en.
A-ter washing the le-t hand care-ull,, a bruise the si/e o- a si21ence,
recent and red, was disco;ered on the bac* o- the le-t hand between the
thu+b and -irst -inger. A -ew s+all bruises on right shin o- older date.
7he hands and ar+s were bron/ed. $o bruises on the scal1, the bac* o-
the bod,, or the elbows.
7he -ace was ;er, +uch +utilated. 7here was a cut about a 4uarter o-
an inch through the lower le-t e,elid, di;iding the structures co+1letel,
through. 7he u11er e,elid on that side, there was a scratch through the
s*in on the le-t u11er e,elid, near to the angle o- the nose. 7he right
e,elid was cut through to about hal- an inch.
7here was a dee1 cut o;er the bridge o- the nose, e2tending -ro+ the
le-t border o- the nasal bone down near the angle o- the 3aw on the right
side o- the chee*. 7his cut went into the bone and di;ided all the
structures o- the chee* e2ce1t the +ucous +e+brane o- the +outh.
7he ti1 o- the nose was 4uite detached b, an obli4ue cut -ro+ the
botto+ o- the nasal bone to where the wings o- the nose 3oin on to the
-ace. A cut -ro+ this di;ided the u11er li1 and e2tended through the
substance o- the gu+ o;er the right u11er lateral incisor tooth.
About hal- an inch -ro+ the to1 o- the nose was another obli4ue cut.
7here was a cut on the right angle o- the +outh as i- the cut o- a 1oint o-
a *ni-e. 7he cut e2tended an inch and a hal-, 1arallel with the lower li1.
7here was on each side o- chee* a cut which 1eeled u1 the s*in, -or+ing
a triangular -la1 about an inch and a hal-. ?n the le-t chee* there were
two abrasions o- the e1itheliu+ under the le-t ear.
7he throat was cut across to the e2tent o- about si2 or se;en inches. A
su1er-icial cut co++enced about an inch and a hal- below the lobe
below, and about two and a hal- inches behind the le-t ear, and e2tended
across the throat to about three inches below the lobe o- the right ear.
7he big +uscle across the throat was di;ided through on the le-t side.
7he large ;essels on the le-t side o- the nec* were se;ered. 7he lar,n2
was se;ered below the ;ocal chord. All the dee1 structures were se;ered
to the bone, the *ni-e +ar*ing inter;ertebral cartilages. 7he sheath o-
the ;essels on the right side was 3ust o1ened.
7he carotid arter, had a -ine hole o1ening, the internal 3ugular ;ein was
o1ened about an inch and a hal- EE not di;ided. 7he blood ;essels
contained clot. All these in3uries were 1er-or+ed b, a shar1 instru+ent
li*e a *ni-e, and 1ointed.
7he cause o- death was hae+orrhage -ro+ the le-t co++on carotid
arter,. 7he death was i++ediate and the +utilations were in-licted a-ter
death.
#e e2a+ined the abdo+en. 7he -ront walls were laid o1en -ro+ the
breast bones to the 1ubes. 7he cut co++enced o11osite the enci-or+
cartilage. 7he incision went u1wards, not 1enetrating the s*in that was
o;er the sternu+. <t then di;ided the enci-or+ cartilage. 7he *ni-e +ust
ha;e cut obli4uel, at the e21ense o- that cartilage.
Behind this, the li;er was stabbed as i- b, the 1oint o- a shar1
instru+ent. Below this was another incision into the li;er o- about two
and a hal- inches, and below this the le-t lobe o- the li;er was slit
through b, a ;ertical cut. 7wo cuts were shewn b, a 3agging o- the s*in
on the le-t side.
7he abdo+inal walls were di;ided in the +iddle line to within a 4uarter o-
an inch o- the na;el. 7he cut then too* a hori/ontal course -or two inches
and a hal- towards the right side. <t then di;ided round the na;el on the
le-t side, and +ade a 1arallel incision to the -or+er hori/ontal incision,
lea;ing the na;el on a tongue o- s*in. Attached to the na;el was two and
a hal- inches o- the lower 1art o- the rectus +uscle on the le-t side o- the
abdo+en. 7he incision then too* an obli4ue direction to the right and
was shel;ing. 7he incision went down the right side o- the ;agina and
rectu+ -or hal- an inch behind the rectu+.
7here was a stab o- about an inch on the le-t groin. 7his was done b, a
1ointed instru+ent. Below this was a cut o- three inches going through
all tissues +a*ing a wound o- the 1eritoneu+ about the sa+e e2tent.
An inch below the crease o- the thigh was a cut e2tending -ro+ the
anterior s1ine o- the iliu+ obli4uel, down the inner side o- the le-t thigh
and se1arating the le-t labiu+, -or+ing a -la1 o- s*in u1 to the groin. 7he
le-t rectus +uscle was not detached.
7here was a -la1 o- s*in -or+ed b, the right thigh, attaching the right
labiu+, and e2tending u1 to the s1ine o- the iliu+. 7he +uscles on the
right side inserted into the -rontal liga+ents were cut through.
7he s*in was retracted through the whole o- the cut through the
abdo+en, but the ;essels were not clotted. $or had there been an,
a11reciable bleeding -ro+ the ;essels. < draw the conclusion that the act
was +ade a-ter death, and there would not ha;e been +uch blood on
the +urderer. 7he cut was +ade b, so+eone on the right side o- the
bod,, *neeling below the +iddle o- the bod,.
< re+o;ed the content o- the sto+ach and 1laced it in a 3ar -or -urther
e2a+ination. 7here see+ed ;er, little in it in the wa, o- -ood or -luid, but
-ro+ the cut end 1artl, digested -arinaceous -ood esca1ed.
7he intestines had been detached to a large e2tent -ro+ the +esenter,.
About two -eet o- the colon was cut awa,. 7he sig+oid -le2ure was
in;aginated into the rectu+ ;er, tightl,.
Dight *idne, was 1ale, bloodless with slight congestion o- the base o- the
1,ra+ids.
7here was a cut -ro+ the u11er 1art o- the slit on the under sur-ace o-
the li;er to the le-t side, and another cut at right angles to this, which
were about an inch and a hal- dee1 and two and a hal- inches long. Bi;er
itsel- was health,.
7he gall bladder contained bile. 7he 1ancreas was cut, but not through,
on the le-t side o- the s1inal colu+n. 7hree and a hal- inches o- the lower
border o- the s1leen b, hal- an inch was attached onl, to the
1eritoneu+.
7he 1eritoneal lining was cut through on the le-t side and the le-t *idne,
care-ull, ta*en out and re+o;ed. 7he le-t renal arter, was cut through. <
would sa, that so+eone who *new the 1osition o- the *idne, +ust ha;e
done it.
7he lining +e+brane o;er the uterus was cut through. 7he wo+b was
cut through hori/ontall,, lea;ing a stu+1 o- three 4uarters o- an inch.
7he rest o- the wo+b had been ta*en awa, with so+e o- the liga+ents.
7he ;agina and cer;i2 o- the wo+b was unin3ured.
7he bladder was health, and unin3ured, and contained three or -our
ounces o- water. 7here was a tongueEli*e cut through the anterior wall o-
the abdo+inal aorta. 7he other organs were health,. 7here were no
indications o- conne2ion.
< belie;e the wound in the throat was -irst in-licted. < belie;e she +ust
ha;e been l,ing on the ground.
7he wounds on the -ace and abdo+en 1ro;e that the, were in-licted b, a
shar1, 1ointed *ni-e, and that in the abdo+en b, one si2 inches or
longer.
< belie;e the 1er1etrator o- the act +ust ha;e had considerable
*nowledge o- the 1osition o- the organs in the abdo+inal ca;it, and the
wa, o- re+o;ing the+. <t re4uired a great deal o- +edical *nowledge to
ha;e re+o;ed the *idne, and to *now where it was 1laced. 7he 1arts
re+o;ed would be o- no use -or an, 1ro-essional 1ur1ose.
< thin* the 1er1etrator o- this act had su--icient ti+e, or he would not
ha;e nic*ed the lower e,elids. <t would ta*e at least -i;e +inutes.
< cannot assign an, reason -or the 1arts being ta*en awa,. < -eel sure
that there was no struggle, and belie;e it was the act o- one 1erson.
7he throat had been so instantl, se;ered that no noise could ha;e been
e+itted. < should not e21ect +uch blood to ha;e been -ound on the
1erson who had in-licted these wounds. 7he wounds could not ha;e been
sel-Ein-licted.
M, attention was called to the a1ron, 1articularl, the corner o- the a1ron
with a string attached. 7he blood s1ots were o- recent origin. < ha;e seen
the 1ortion o- an a1ron 1roduced b, :r. (hilli1s and stated to ha;e been
-ound in =oulston Street. <t is i+1ossible to sa, that it is hu+an blood on
the a1ron. < -itted the 1iece o- a1ron, which had a new 1iece o- +aterial
on it (which had e;identl, been sewn on to the 1iece < ha;e), the sea+s
o- the borders o- the two actuall, corres1onding. So+e blood and
a11arentl, -aecal +atter was -ound on the 1ortion that was -ound in
=oulston Street.
Catherine >ddowes) gra;e.
!uneral
Catherine >ddowes was buried on Monda,, 8 ?ctober, 1888
.ate was buried in an un+ar*ed gra;e in an el+ co--in in Cit, o- Bondon
Ce+eter,, (Bittle <l-ord) at Manor (ar* Ce+eter,, Sebert Doad, 8orest
=ate, Bondon, >12, in (1ublic) gra;e &'33%, s4uare 318.
7he 7i+es said6
7he bod, o- the MitreEs4uare ;icti+ E Catherine >ddowes, alias Conwa,,
alias .ell, E still lies in the Cit, Mortuar,, =oldenElane. At hal-E1ast one
o)cloc* toEda, !8 ?ct" it will be re+o;ed -or burial in the <l-ord Ce+eter,.
7he -uneral o- the ;icti+ o- the MitreEs4uare traged, too* 1lace
,esterda, a-ternoon. <n the ;icinit, o- the Cit, +ortuar, in =oldenElane
4uite a +ultitude o- 1ersons asse+bled to witness the de1arture o- the
cortNOge -or the <l-ord ce+eter,. $ot onl, was the thorough-are itsel-
thronged with 1eo1le, but the windows and roo-s o- ad3oining buildings
were occu1ied b, grou1s o- s1ectators. 7he 1rocession le-t the +ortuar,
shortl, a-ter hal-E1ast one o)cloc*. <t consisted o- a hearse o- i+1ro;ed
descri1tion, a +ourning coach, containing relati;es and -riends o- the
deceased, and a brougha+ con;e,ing re1resentati;es o- the 1ress. 7he
co--in was o- 1olished el+, with oa* +ouldings, and bore a 1late with the
inscri1tion, in gold letters, @Catherine >ddowes, died Se1t. 30, 1888,
aged &3 ,ears.@ ?ne o- the sisters o- the deceased laid a beauti-ul
wreath on the co--in as it was 1laced in the hearse, and at the gra;eside
a wreath o- +arguerites was added b, a s,+1athetic *inswo+an. 7he
+ourners were the -our sisters o- the +urdered wo+an, 9arriet 5ones,
>++a >ddowes, >li/a =old, and >li/abeth 8isher, her two nieces >++a
and 9arriet 5ones, and 5ohn .ell,, the +an with who+ she had li;ed. As
the -uneral 1rocession 1assed through =oldenElane and ?ldEstreet the
thousands o- 1ersons who -ollowed it nearl, into #hitecha1el rendered
loco+otion e2tre+el, di--icult. ?rder was, howe;er, ad+irabl,
+aintained b, a bod, o- 1olice under Su1erintendent 8oster and
<ns1ector #oollett o- the Cit, -orce, and be,ond the boundaries o- the
Cit, b, a -urther contingent under Su1erintendent 9unt and <ns1ector
Burnha+ o- the = :i;ision. 7he route ta*en a-ter lea;ing ?ldEstreet was
b, wa, o- =reat >asternEstreet, Co++ercialEstreet, #hitecha1elEroad,
MileEendEroad, through Strat-ord to the Cit, ce+eter, at <l-ord. A large
crowd had collected o11osite the 1arish church o- St. Mar,.s,
#hitecha1el, to see the 1rocession 1ass, and at the ce+eter, it was
awaited b, se;eral hundreds, +ost o- who+ had a11arentl, +ade their
wa, thither -ro+ the >astEend. Men and wo+en o- all ages, +an, o- the
latter carr,ing in-ants in their ar+s, gathered round the gra;e. 7he
re+ains were interred in the Church o- >ngland 1ortion o- the ce+eter,,
the ser;ice being conducted b, the cha1lain, the De;. Mr. :unsco+be.
Mr. =. C. 9aw*es, a ;estr,+an o- St. Bu*e.s, undertoo* the
res1onsibilit, o- carr,ing out the -uneral at his own e21ense, and the Cit,
authorities, to who+ the burial ground belongs, re+itted the usual -ees.
(7he :ail, 7elegra1h, ?ctober 8 1888, 1age 3, ?ctober ' 1888, 1age 3)
7oda,, s4uare 318 has been reEused -or 1art o- the Me+orial =ardens
-or cre+ated re+ains. .ate lies beside the =arden #a, in -ront o-
Me+orial Bed 18&'. <n late 1''%, the ce+eter, authorities decided to
+ar* .ate)s gra;e with a 1la4ue.
.eath Certi$icate
:eath Certi-icate6 $o. 258, registered 13 ?ctober, 1888 (:A 8180'8).
Certi-icate lists na+e as @Catherine >ddowes,@ otherwise @Conwa,,@
otherwise @.ell,.@
Mar' Jane Kell'
Mar' Jane Kell' A.K.A.. Marie Jeanette Kell', Mar' Ann Kell',
9iner, !air 5&&a
Mar, 5ane .ell,, conte+1orar, s*etch.
Mar, 5ane .ell, was a11ro2i+atel, 25 ,ears old at the ti+e o- her death
which would 1lace her birth around 18%3. She was 5) @ tall and stout.
She had blonde hair, blue e,es and a -air co+1le2ion. @Said to ha;e been
1ossessed o- considerable 1ersonal attractions.@ (Mc$aughten)
She was last seen wearing a linse, -roc* and a red shawl 1ulled around
her shoulders. She was bare headed. :etecti;e Constable #alter :ew
clai+ed to *now .ell, well b, sight and sa,s that she was attracti;e and
1araded around, usuall, in the co+1an, o- two or three -riends. 9e sa,s
she alwa,s wore a s1otlessl, clean white a1ron.
Maria 9ar;e,, a -riend, sa,s that she was @+uch su1erior to that o- +ost
1ersons in her 1osition in li-e.@
<t is also said that she s1o*e -luent #elsh.
5ose1h Barnett sa,s that he @alwa,s -ound her o- sober habits.@
Bandlord 5ohn McCarth, sa,s @#hen in li4uor she was ;er, nois,H
otherwise she was a ;er, 4uiet wo+an.@
Caroline Ma2well sa,s that she @was not a notorious character.@
Catherine (ic*ett clai+s @She was a good, 4uiet, 1leasant girl, and was
well li*ed b, all o- us.@
Histor'1
Al+ost e;er,thing that is *nown about Mar, 5ane .ell, co+es -ro+
5ose1h Barnett, who li;ed with her 3ust 1rior to the +urder. 9e, o-
course, had all this in-or+ation -ro+ .ell, hersel-. So+e is con-licting
and it +a, be sus1ected that so+e, or 1erha1s +uch o- it, is
e+bellished.
She was born in Bi+eric*, <reland but we do not *now i- that re-ers to
the count, or the town. As a ,oung child she +o;ed with her -a+il, to
#ales.
9er -ather was 5ohn .ell, who wor*ed in an iron wor*s in either
Carnar;onshire or Car+arthenshire. Mar, 5ane clai+s to ha;e % or
brothers and one sister. She sa,s that one brother, 9enr,, whose
nic*na+e is 5ohnto is a +e+ber o- the 2nd Battalion Scots =uards. As a
+e+ber o- this battalion he would ha;e been stationed in :ublin,
<reland. She also clai+s to Bi//ie Albroo* that she had a relati;e on the
Bondon stage.
5ohn McCarth,, landlord at Miller)s Court, states that she recei;ed a
letter -ro+ her +other in <reland. Barnett sa,s that she ne;er
corres1onded with her -a+il,.
5ose1h Barnett and Mrs. Carth,, a wo+an with who+ she li;ed at one
ti+e, sa, that she ca+e -ro+ a -a+il, that was @-airl, well o--@ (Barnett)
and @well to do 1eo1le@ (Carth,). Mrs. Carth, also states that .ell, was
@an e2cellent scholar and an artist o- no +ean degree.@
Mrs. Carth, is the landlad, -ro+ Bree/er)s 9ill, Datcli--e 9ighwa,. Barnett
re-ers to her house as @a bad house.@
c. "?1@5 At the age o- 1% she +arries a collier na+ed :a;ies. 9e is *illed
in an e21losion two or three ,ears later. 7here is a suggestion that there
+ight ha;e been a child in this +arriage.
.ell, +o;es to Cardi-- and li;es with a cousin and wor*s as a 1rostitute.
7he Cardi-- 1olice ha;e no record o- her. She sa,s she was ill and s1ent
the best 1art o- the ti+e in an in-ir+ar,.
She arri;es in Bondon in 188&.
She +a, ha;e sta,ed with the nuns at the (ro;idence Dow $ight De-uge
on Cris1in Street. According to one tradition she scrubbed -loors and
charred here and was e;entuall, 1laced into do+estic ser;ice in a sho1
in Cle;eland Street.
According to 5ose1h Barnett, on arri;ing in Bondon, .ell, went to wor* in
a high class brothel in the #est >nd. She sa,s that during this ti+e she
-re4uentl, rode in a carriage and acco+1anied one gentle+an to (aris,
which she didn)t li*e and she returned.
?n $o;e+ber 10, one da, a-ter the +urder, Mrs. >li/abeth (hoeni2 o- 5
Bow Co++on Bane, Burdett Doad, Bow, went to the Be+an Street (olice
Station and said that a wo+an +atching the descri1tion o- .ell, used to
li;e in her brotherEinElaw)s house in Bree/er)s 9ill, o-- (ennington Street.
Mrs. (hoeni2 sa,s that @She was #elsh and that her 1arents, who had
discarded her, still li;ed in Cardi--, -ro+ which 1lace she ca+e. But on
occasions she declared that she was <rish.@ She added that Mar, 5ane
was ;er, abusi;e and 4uarrelso+e when she was drun* but @one o- the
+ost decent and nice girls ,ou could +eet when sober.@
A (ress Association re1orter who loo*ed into the Bree/er)s 9ill :istrict
wrote6
=It wo!ld appea# that on he# a##i$al in London she ade the
ac.!aintance o% a 9#ench woan #esiding in the neighbo#hood o%
Fnightsb#idge, who, she in%o#ed he# %#iends, led he# to p!#s!e the
deg#aded li%e which had now c!linated in he# !ntiely end. 3he ade
no sec#et o% the %act that while she was with this woan she wo!ld d#i$e
abo!t in a ca##iage and ade se$e#al ;o!#neys to the 9#ench capital,
and, in %act, led a li%e which is desc#ibed as that =o% a lady.= 6y soe
eans, howe$e#, at p#esent, not e4actly clea#, she s!ddenly d#i%ted into
the -ast -nd. He#e %o#t!ne %ailed he# and a ca#ee# that stands o!t in bold
and sad cont#ast to he# ea#lie# e4pe#ience was coenced. He#
e4pe#iences with the -ast -nd appea#s to ha$e beg!n with a woan
Aacco#ding to p#ess #epo#ts a C#s. 6!+iB who #esided in one o% the
tho#o!gh%a#es o%% Datcli%%e Highway, +nown as 3t. 2eo#ge7s 3t#eet. 'his
pe#son appea#s to ha$e #ecei$ed Felly di#ect %#o the &est -nd hoe,
%o# she had not been the#e $e#y long when, it is stated, both woen
went to the 9#ench lady7s #esidence and deanded the bo4 which
contained n!e#o!s d#esses o% a costly desc#iption.
.ell, at last indulged in into2icants, it is stated, to an e2tant which +ade
her unwelco+e. 8ro+ St. =eorge)s Street she went to lodge with a Mrs.
Carth, at Bree/er)s 9ill. 7his 1lace she le-t about 18 +onths or two ,ears
ago and -ro+ that ti+e on a11ears to ha;e le-t Datcli--e all together.
Mrs. Carth, said that .ell, had le-t her house and gone to li;e with a
+an who was in the building trade and who Mrs. Carth, belie;ed would
ha;e +arried .ell,.@
c. "??<5 .ell, lea;es Carth,)s house to li;e with a +an in the building
trades. Barnett sa,s she li;ed with a +an na+ed Morganstone o11osite
or in the ;icinit, o- Ste1ne, =aswor*s. She had then ta*en u1 with a
+an na+ed 5ose1h 8le+ing and li;ed so+ewhere near Bethnal =reen.
8le+ing was a stone +ason or +ason)s 1lasterer. 9e used to ;isit .ell,
and see+ed 4uite -ond o- her. A neighbour at Miller)s Court, 5ulia
Genturne, sa,s that .ell, was -ond o- a +an other than Barnett and
whose na+e was also 5oe. She thought he was a coster+onger and
so+eti+es ;isited and ga;e +one, to .ell,.
B, 188% she is li;ing in )Coole,)s Bodging 9ouse) in 7hrawl Street,
S1ital-ields and it is here that she +eets 5ose1h Barnett.
5ose1h Barnett is Bondon born o- <rish heritage. 9e is a ri;erside laborer
and +ar*et 1orter who is licensed to wor* at Billingsgate 8ish Mar*et. 9e
co+es -ro+ a -a+il, o- three sisters and one brother who is na+ed
:aniel. Barnett was born in 1858 and dies in 1'2%.
5ulia Genturne, sa,s that 5oe Barnett is o- good character and was *ind
to Mar, 5ane, gi;ing her +one, on occasion.
Barnett and .ell, are re+e+bered as a -riendl, and 1leasant cou1le who
gi;e little trouble unless the, are drun*. She +a, be the Mar, 5ane .ell,
who was -ined 2J% b, the 7ha+es Magistrate Court on Se1te+ber 1',
1888 -or being drun* and disorderl,.
2ood 9#iday, Ap#il ?, "??15 5ose1h Barnett +eets Mar, 5ane .ell, -or the
-irst ti+e in Co++ercial Street. 9e ta*es her -or a drin* and arranges to
+eet her the -ollowing da,. At their second +eeting the, arrange to li;e
together.
7he, ta*e lodgings in =eorge Street, o-- Co++ercial Street. Bater the,
+o;e to Bittle (aternoster Dow o-- :orset Street. 7he, are e;icted -or
not 1a,ing rent and -or being drun*. $e2t the, +o;e to Bric* Bane.
<n 8ebruar, or March o- 1888 the, +o;e -ro+ Bric* Bane to Miller)s Court
o-- :orset Street. 9ere the, occu1, a single roo+ which is designated 13
Miller)s Court.
A!g!st o# ea#ly 3eptebe#, "???5 Barnett loses his 3ob and Mar, 5ane
returns to the streets. Barnett decides to lea;e her.
0ctobe# 30, between 8 and < PC5 >li/abeth (rater, who li;es abo;e .ell,
re1orts that Barnett and .ell, ha;e an argu+ent and Barnett lea;es her.
9e goes to li;e at Buller)s boarding house at 2&E25 $ew Street,
Bisho1sgate.
Barnett states at the in4uest that he le-t her because she was allowing
other 1rostitutes to sta, in the roo+. @She would ne;er ha;e gone wrong
again,@ he tells a news1a1er, @and < shouldn)t ha;e le-t her i- it had not
been -or the 1rostitutes sto11ing at the house. She onl, let the+ (sta,
there) because she was good hearted and did not li*e to re-use the+
shelter on cold bitter nights.@ 9e adds, @#e li;ed co+-ortabl, until Marie
allowed a 1rostitute na+ed 5ulia to slee1 in the sa+e roo+H < ob3ected6
and as Mrs. 9ar;e, a-terwards ca+e and sta,ed there, < le-t and too*
lodgings elsewhere.@
Maria 9ar;e, sta,ed with .ell, on the nights o- $o;e+ber 5 and %. She
+o;ed to new lodgings at 3 $ew Court, another alle, o-- :orset Street.
#ednesda,, $o;e+ber 6 Mar, 5ane bu,s a hal- 1enn, candle -ro+
McCarth,)s sho1. She is later seen in Miller)s Court b, 7ho+as Bow,er, a
1ensioned soldier whose nic*na+e is @<ndian 9arr,.@ 9e is e+1lo,ed b,
McCarth, and li;es at 3 :orset Street.
Bow,er states that on #ednesda, night he saw a +an s1ea*ing to .ell,
who closel, rese+bled the descri1tion o- the +an Matthew (ac*er clai+s
to ha;e seen with >li/abeth Stride. 9is a11earance was s+art and
attention was drawn to hi+ b, his ;er, white cu--s and rather long, white
collar which ca+e down o;er the -ront o- his long blac* coat. 9e did not
carr, a bag.
'h!#sday-9#iday, /o$ebe# ?-@5 Al+ost e;er, da, a-ter the s1lit,
Barnett would ;isit Mar, 5ane. ?n 8rida, the ninth he sto1s between
630 and 6&5 (M. 9e sa,s she is in the co+1an, o- another wo+an who
li;es in Miller)s Court. 7his +a, ha;e been Bi//ie Albroo* who li;ed at 2
Miller)s Court.
Albroo* sa,s @About the last thing she said to +e was )#hate;er ,ou do
don)t ,ou do wrong and turn out as < did.) She had o-ten s1o*en to +e in
this wa, and warned +e against going on the street as she had done.
She told +e, too, that she was heartil, sic* o- the li-e she was leading
and wished she had +one, enough to go bac* to <reland where her
1eo1le li;ed. < do not belie;e she would ha;e gone out as she did i- she
had not been obliged to do so to *ee1 hersel- -ro+ star;ation.@
Mar, .ell, as disco;ered in Miller)s Court (M5.2).
Second ;iew o- Mar, .ell, as disco;ered in Miller)s Court (M5.3).
Maria 9ar;e, also sa,s that she was wo+an that Barnett saw with Mar,
5ane and that she le-t at %655 (M.
?500 PC5 Barnett lea;es and goes bac* to Buller)s Boarding 9ouse where
he 1la,ed whist until 12630 AM and then went to bed.
?500 PC5 5ulia Genturne,, who li;es at 1 Miller)s Court goes to bed.
7here are no con-ir+ed sightings o- Mar, 5ane .ell, between 8600 (M
and 116&5 (M. there is an uncon-ir+ed stor, that she is drin*ing with a
wo+an na+ed >li/abeth 8oster at the 7en Bells (ublic 9ouse.
""500 PC5 <t is said she is in the Britannia drin*ing with a ,oung +an
with a dar* +ustache who a11ears res1ectable and well dressed. <t is
said she is ;er, drun*.
""548 PC5 Mar, Ann Co2, a 31 ,ear old widower and 1rostitute, who
li;es at 5 Miller)s Court (last house on the le-t) enters :orset Street -ro+
Co++ercial Street. Co2 is returning ho+e to war+ hersel- as the night
had turned cold. She sees .ell, ahead o- her, wal*ing with a stout +an.
7he +an was aged around 35 or 3% and was about 5) 5@ tall. 9e was
shabbil, dressed in a long o;ercoat and a bill,coc* hat. 9e had a blotch,
-ace and s+all side whis*ers and a carrot, +ustache. 7he +an is
carr,ing a 1ail o- beer.
Mrs. Co2 -ollows the+ into Miller)s Court. the, are standing outside
.ell,)s roo+ as Mrs. Co2 1assed and said @=oodnight.@ So+ewhat
incoherentl,, .ell, re1lied @=oodnight, < a+ going to sing.@ A -ew
+inutes later Mrs. Co2 hears .ell, singing @A Giolet -ro+ Mother)s =ra;e@
(see below). Co2 goes out again at +idnight and hears .ell, singing the
sa+e song.
So+ewhere in this ti+e 1eriod, Mar, 5ane ta*es a +eal o- -ish and
1otatoes.
"2530 AC5 Catherine (ic*ett, a -lowerEseller who li;es near .ell,, is
disturbed b, .ell,)s singing. (ic*et)s husband sto1s her -ro+ going down
stairs to co+1lain. @Iou lea;e the 1oor wo+an alone.@ he sa,s.
"500 AC5 <t is beginning to rain. Again, Mar, Ann Co2 returns ho+e to
war+ hersel-. At that ti+e .ell, is still singing or has begun to sing
again. 7here was light co+ing -ro+ .ell,)s roo+. Shortl, a-ter one, Co2
goes out again.
>li/abeth (rater, the wi-e o- #illia+ (rater, a boot -inisher who had le-t
her 5 ,ears be-ore, is standing at the entrance to Miller)s Court waiting
-or a +an. (rater li;es in roo+ nu+ber 20 o- 2% :orset Street. 7his is
directl, abo;e .ell,. She stands there about a hal- hour and then goes
into to McCarth,)s to chat. She hears no singing and sees no one go in or
out o- the court. A-ter a -ew +inutes she goes bac* to her roo+, 1laces
two chairs in -ront o- her door and goes to slee1 without undressing. She
is ;er, drun*.
2500 AC5 =eorge 9utchinson, a resident o- the Gictoria #or*ing Men)s
9o+e on Co++ercial Street has 3ust returned to the area -ro+ Do+-ord.
9e is wal*ing on Co++ercial Street and 1asses a +an at the corner o-
7hrawl Street but 1a,s no attention to hi+. At 8lower and :ean Street
he +eets .ell, who as*s hi+ -or +one,. @Mr. 9utchinson, can ,ou lend
+e si21enceK@ @< can)t,@ sa,s 9utchinson, @< s1ent all +, +one, going
down to Do+-ord.@ @=ood +orning,@ .ell, re1lies, @< +ust go and -ind
so+e +one,.@ She then wal*s in the direction o- 7hrawl Street.
She +eets the +an 9utchinson had 1assed earlier. 7he +an 1uts his
hand on .ell,)s shoulder and sa,s so+ething at which .ell, and the +an
laugh. 9utchinson hears .ell, sa, @All right.@ and the +an sa, @Iou will
be all right -or what < ha;e told ,ou.@ 7he +an then 1uts his right hand
on .ell,)s shoulder and the, begin to wal* towards :orset Street.
9utchinson notices that the +an has a s+all 1arcel in his le-t hand.
#hile standing under a street light on outside the Mueen)s 9ead (ublic
9ouse 9utchinson gets a good loo* at the +an with Mar, 5ane .ell,. 9e
has a 1ale co+1le2ion, a slight +oustache turned u1 at the corners
(changed to dar* co+1le2ion and hea;, +oustache in the 1ress re1orts),
dar* hair, dar* e,es, and bush, e,ebrows. 9e is, according to
9utchinson, o- @5ewish a11earance.@ 7he +an is wearing a so-t -elt hat
1ulled down o;er his e,es, a long dar* coat tri++ed in astra*han, a
white collar with a blac* nec*tie -i2ed with a horseshoe 1in. 9e wears
dar* s1ats o;er light button o;er boots. A +assi;e gold chain is in his
waistcoat with a large seal with a red stone hanging -ro+ it. 9e carries
*id glo;es in his right hand and a s+all 1ac*age in his le-t. 9e is 5) %@ or
5) @ tall and about 35 or 3% ,ears old.
.ell, and the +an cross Co++ercial Street and turn down :orset Street.
9utchinson -ollows the+. .ell, and the +an sto1 outside Miller)s Court
and tal* -or about 3 +inutes. .ell, is heard to sa, @All right, +, dear.
Co+e along. Iou will be co+-ortable.@ 7he +an 1uts his ar+ around
.ell, who *isses hi+. @<);e lost +, hand*erchie-.@ she sa,s. At this he
hands her a red hand*erchie-. 7he cou1le then heads down Miller)s
Court. 9utchinson waits until the cloc* stri*es 3600 AM. lea;ing as the
cloc* stri*es the hour.
3500 AC5 Mrs. Co2 returns ho+e ,et again. <t is raining hard. 7here is no
sound or light co+ing -ro+ .ell,)s roo+. Co2 does not go bac* out but
does not go to slee1. 7hroughout the night she occasionall, hears +en
going in and out o- the court. She told the in4uest @< heard so+eone go
out at a 4uarter to si2. < do not *now what house he went out o- (as) <
heard no door shut.@
4500 AC5 >li/abeth (rater is awa*ened b, her 1et *itten @:iddles@
wal*ing on her nec*. She hears a -aint cr, o- @?h, +urderA@ but, as the
cr, o- +urder is co++on in the district, she 1a,s no attention to it.
Sarah Bewis, who is sta,ing with -riends in Miller)s Court, also hears the
cr,.
?530 AC5 Caroline Ma2well, a witness at the in4uest and ac4uaintance o-
.ell,)s, clai+s to ha;e seen the deceased at around 8630 AM, se;eral
hours a-ter the ti+e gi;en b, (hilli1s as ti+e o- death. She described her
clothing and a11earance in de1th, and ada+antl, stated that she was
not +ista*en about the date, although she ad+itted she did not *now
.ell, ;er, well.
"0500 AC5 Maurice Bewis, a tailor who resided in :orset Street, told
news1a1ers he had seen .ell, and Barnett in the 9orn o- (lent, 1ublic
house on the night o- the +urder, but +ore i+1ortantl,, that he saw her
about 10600 AM the ne2t da,. Bi*e Ma2well, this ti+e is se;eral hours
-ro+ the ti+e o- death, and because o- this discre1anc,, he was not
called to the in4uest and ;irtuall, ignored b, 1olice.
"0548 AC5 5ohn McCarth,, owner o- @McCarth,)s Dents,@ as Miller)s Court
was *nown, sends 7ho+as Bow,er to collect 1ast due rent +one, -ro+
Mar, .ell,. A-ter Bow,er recei;es no res1onse -ro+ *noc*ing (and
because the door was loc*ed) he 1ushes aside the curtain and 1eers
inside, seeing the bod,. 9e in-or+s McCarth,, who, a-ter seeing the
+utilated re+ains o- .ell, -or hi+sel-, ran to Co++ercial Street (olice
Station, where he s1o*e with <ns1ector #alter Bec*, who returned to the
Court with McCarth,.
Se;eral hours later, a-ter waiting -ruitlessl, -or the arri;al o- the
bloodhounds @Barnab,@ and @Burgho,@ McCarth, s+ashes in the door
with an a2e handle under orders -ro+ Su1erintendent 7ho+as Arnold.
#hen 1olice enter the roo+ the, -ind Mar, 5ane .ell,)s clothes neatl,
-olded on a chair and she is wearing a che+ise. 9er boots are in -ront o-
the -ire1lace.
Post7&orte&
:r. 7ho+as Bond, a distinguished 1olice surgeon -ro+ AE:i;ision, was
called in on the Mar, .ell, +urder. 9is re1ort is as -ollows6
@7he bod, was l,ing na*ed in the +iddle o- the bed, the shoulders -lat
but the a2is o- the bod, inclined to the le-t side o- the bed. 7he head was
turned on the le-t chee*. 7he le-t ar+ was close to the bod, with the
-orear+ -le2ed at a right angle and l,ing across the abdo+en.
7he right ar+ was slightl, abducted -ro+ the bod, and rested on the
+attress. 7he elbow was bent, the -orear+ su1ine with the -ingers
clenched. 7he legs were wide a1art, the le-t thigh at right angles to the
trun* and the right -or+ing an obtuse angle with the 1ubes.
7he whole o- the sur-ace o- the abdo+en and thighs was re+o;ed and
the abdo+inal ca;it, e+1tied o- its ;iscera. 7he breasts were cut o--, the
ar+s +utilated b, se;eral 3agged wounds and the -ace hac*ed be,ond
recognition o- the -eatures. 7he tissues o- the nec* were se;ered all
round down to the bone.
7he ;iscera were -ound in ;arious 1arts ;i/6 the uterus and *idne,s with
one breast under the head, the other breast b, the right -oot, the li;er
between the -eet, the intestines b, the right side and the s1leen b, the
le-t side o- the bod,. 7he -la1s re+o;ed -ro+ the abdo+en and thighs
were on a table.
7he bed clothing at the right corner was saturated with blood, and on the
-loor beneath was a 1ool o- blood co;ering about two -eet s4uare. 7he
wall b, the right side o- the bed and in a line with the nec* was +ar*ed
b, blood which had struc* it in a nu+ber o- se1arate s1lashes.
7he -ace was gashed in all directions, the nose, chee*s, e,ebrows, and
ears being 1artl, re+o;ed. 7he li1s were blanched and cut b, se;eral
incisions running obli4uel, down to the chin. 7here were also nu+erous
cuts e2tending irregularl, across all the -eatures.
7he nec* was cut through the s*in and other tissues right down to the
;ertebrae, the -i-th and si2th being dee1l, notched. 7he s*in cuts in the
-ront o- the nec* showed distinct ecch,+osis. 7he air 1assage was cut at
the lower 1art o- the lar,n2 through the cricoid cartilage.
Both breasts were +ore or less re+o;ed b, circular incisions, the +uscle
down to the ribs being attached to the breasts. 7he intercostals between
the -ourth, -i-th, and si2th ribs were cut through and the contents o- the
thora2 ;isible through the o1enings.
7he s*in and tissues o- the abdo+en -ro+ the costal arch to the 1ubes
were re+o;ed in three large -la1s. 7he right thigh was denuded in -ront
to the bone, the -la1 o- s*in, including the e2ternal organs o- generation,
and 1art o- the right buttoc*. 7he le-t thigh was stri11ed o- s*in -ascia,
and +uscles as -ar as the *nee.
7he le-t cal- showed a long gash through s*in and tissues to the dee1
+uscles and reaching -ro+ the *nee to -i;e inches abo;e the an*le. Both
ar+s and -orear+s had e2tensi;e 3agged wounds.
7he right thu+b showed a s+all su1er-icial incision about one inch long,
with e2tra;asation o- blood in the s*in, and there were se;eral abrasions
on the bac* o- the hand +oreo;er showing the sa+e condition.
?n o1ening the thora2 it was -ound that the right lung was +ini+all,
adherent b, old -ir+ adhesions. 7he lower 1art o- the lung was bro*en
and torn awa,. 7he le-t lung was intact. <t was adherent at the a1e2 and
there were a -ew adhesions o;er the side. <n the substances o- the lung
there were se;eral nodules o- consolidation.
7he 1ericardiu+ was o1en below and the heart absent. <n the abdo+inal
ca;it, there was so+e 1artl, digested -ood o- -ish and 1otatoes, and
si+ilar -ood was -ound in the re+ains o- the sto+ach attached to the
intestines.@
:r. =eorge Bagster (hilli1s was also 1resent at the scene, and ga;e the
-ollowing testi+on, at the in4uest6
@7he +utilated re+ains o- a -e+ale were l,ing twoEthirds o;er towards
the edge o- the bedstead nearest the door. She had onl, her che+ise on,
or so+e underlinen gar+ent. < a+ sure that the bod, had been re+o;ed
subse4uent to the in3ur, which caused her death -ro+ that side o- the
bedstead that was nearest the wooden 1artition, because o- the large
4uantit, o- blood under the bedstead and the saturated condition o- the
sheet and the 1alliasse at the corner nearest the 1artition.
7he blood was 1roduced b, the se;erance o- the carotid arter,, which
was the cause o- death. 7he in3ur, was in-licted while the deceased was
l,ing at the right side o- the bedstead.@
!uneral
:urie#1 Monda,, 1' $o;e+ber, 1888
Mar, 5ane .ell, was buried in a 1ublic gra;e at St (atric*)s Do+an
Catholic Ce+eter,, Bangthorne Doad, Be,tonstone >11. 9er gra;e was
no. %% in row %%, 1lot 10.
7he -uneral o- the +urdered wo+an .ell, has once +ore been
1ost1oned. :eceased was a Catholic, and the +an Barnett, with who+
she li;ed, and her landlord, Mr. M.Carth,, desired to see her re+ains
interred with the ritual o- her Church. 7he -uneral will, there-ore, ta*e
1lace to+orrow !1' $o;" in the Do+an Catholic Ce+eter, at
Be,tonstone. 7he hearse will lea;e the Shoreditch +ortuar, at hal-E1ast
twel;e.
7he re+ains o- Mar, 5anet .ell,, who was +urdered on $o;. ' in
Miller)sEcourt, :orsetEstreet, S1ital-ields, were brought ,esterda,
+orning -ro+ Shoreditch +ortuar, to the ce+eter, at Be,tonstone,
where the, were interred.
:eath certi-icate o- Mar, 5ane .ell,.
$o -a+il, +e+ber could be -ound to attend the -uneral. (7he :ail,
7elegra1h, $o;e+ber 1' 1888, 1age 3, $o;e+ber 20 1888, 1age 3)
Mar, 5ane)s gra;e was reclai+ed in the 1'50s. 5ohn Morrison erected a
large, white headstone in 1'8%, but +ar*ed the wrong gra;e. Morrison)s
headstone was later re+o;ed, and the su1erintendent reE+ar*ed Mar,
5ane)s gra;e with a si+1le +e+orial in the 1''0s.
.eath Certi$icate
:eath Certi-icate6 $o. 32%, registered 1 $o;e+ber, 1888 (9C 08&3).
Certi-icate lists na+e as @Marie 5eanette .ell,,@ a*a @:a;ies.@ Certi-icate
lists 1lace o- death as @1 Millers Court Christ Church.@
50i#ence
<n a ti+e be-ore -orensic science and e;en -inger 1rinting, the onl, wa, to
1ro;e so+eone co++itted a +urder was to catch either hi+ or her in the
act, or get the sus1ect to con-ess. 7he #hitecha1el Murders unha11il, -all
into this 1eriod o- ti+e. ?ne interesting -eature o- this case is that not one,
but two 1olice -orces carried out in;estigations. 7he Metro1olitan (olice,
*nown as Scotland Iard, was res1onsible -or cri+es co++itted in all the
boroughs o- Bondon e2ce1t the Cit, o- Bondon 1ro1er. 7he single s4uare
+ile in the heart o- Bondon *nown as the Cit, o- Bondon had their own
1olice -orce. #hen >ddowes was *illed, it was in their territor, and this
brought the+ into the Di11er case. <t is belie;ed that the ran* and -ile o-
the two -orces got along and wor*ed well together, but there is e;idence
that the seniors in each -orce did not. 7o what degree, i- an,, their -ailure
to coo1erate -ull, had on sol;ing the case is not *nown. Most sources do
not -ault either 1olice -orce -or -ailing to sol;e the 5ac* the Di11er +,ster,,
rightl, 1ointing out that catching serial *illers is still a hard tas* e;en b,
toda,)s science and technolog,. ?ther than auto1sies and ta*ing
state+ents -ro+ e;er,bod, who +ight *now so+ething there was little
else that the Metro1olitan 1olice -orce did. 7he attitude o- the 1eo1le at the
ti+e was that the 1olice were inco+1etent and that the Co++issioner, Sir
Charles #arren, was onl, good -or 1olicing crowds and *ee1ing order
rather than detecti;e wor*. 9e was es1eciall, critici/ed -or not o--ering a
reward in the ho1e that a con-ederate or acco+1lice would co+e -orth and
in-or+ against the Di11er. <n -act, #arren had no ob3ections -or a reward
being o--ered and it was his su1erior, 9enr, Matthews, the 9o+e Secretar,
who re-used the sanction o- a reward. 7he Cit, o- Bondon (olice see+s to
ha;e done a better 3ob although the, did not a11rehend the *iller either.
Cit, 1olice o--icers +ade cri+e scene drawings, too* +an, 1hotogra1hs o-
the ;icti+ >ddowes, and e;en though she was not in their 3urisdiction, the,
too* 1hotogra1hs o- the .ell, ;icti+. She is the onl, ;icti+ who was
1hotogra1hed at the cri+e scene. ?ne o- the s1lits between the leadershi1
o- the two -orces was o;er gra--ito -ound in =oulston Street on the night o-
the @double e;ent@. A 1iece o- >ddowes) a1ron, which the Di11er used to
wi1e o-- his *ni-e, was -ound b, a constable near a doorwa, that had a
chal*ed +essage o;er the door. 7his +essage, @7he 5uwes are the +en
7hat #ill not be bla+ed -or nothing@, +a, ha;e been written b, the Di11er
and the Cit, 1olice o--icers wanted to 1hotogra1h it. #arren -elt that
lea;ing it until it was light enough to be 1hotogra1hed +ight cause riots
against the 5ews li;ing in #hitecha1el who+ the bigoted >nglish residents
alread, belie;ed were res1onsible -or the +urders. #arren did not e;en
co+1ro+ise b, willing to erase or co;er u1 the word @5uwes@ onl,. <n the
end the 1olice ne;er charged an, sus1ect with the +urders co++itted b,
the Di11er which shows the, did not ha;e a su--icient a+ount o- e;idence
that would gain a ;erdict o- guilt, in cri+inal court.
/uspects
<n 18'&, Sir Mel;ille Macnaghten, then Chie- Constable, wrote a
con-idential re1ort in which he na+es the three to1 sus1ects. Although
so+e in-or+ation concerning the sus1ect he belie;ed +ost li*el, to ha;e
been the +urderer had been a;ailable be-ore the turn o- the centur,, the
na+e o- that sus1ect was not +ade 1ublic until 1'5'. Macnaghten)s
sus1ect was M.5. :ruitt, a barrister turned teacher who co++itted
suicide in :ece+ber 1888. Cn-ortunatel, -or Macnaghten who wrote his
+e+oranda -ro+ +e+or,, the details he ascribes to :ruitt are wrong.
According to the Chie- Constable, :ruitt was a doctor, &1 ,ears o- age,
and co++itted suicide i++ediatel, a-ter the .ell, +urder. <n actualit,
:ruitt was 31, not a doctor, and *illed hi+sel- nearl, a +onth a-ter the
last o--icial +urder. $o other 1olice o--icer su11orted Macnaghten)s
allegations, and one in -act, stated that the theor, was inade4uate and
that the suicide was circu+stantial e;idence at best that the drowned
doctor was the Di11er. #hile it is still 1ossible that he was the Di11er,
correct in-or+ation gathered about :ruitt so -ar +a*es hi+ see+ an
unli*el, candidate.
<n 1'03, 8rederic* Abberline, a retired crac* detecti;e who had been in
charge o- the Di11er in;estigation at the ground le;el stated that he
thought that +ulti1le wi-e 1oisoner Se;erin .losows*i, alias =eorge
Cha1+an, +ight be 5ac* the Di11er. As with Macnaghten, no other
o--icer has concurred with his o1inion and +odern cri+inal 1ro-iling
science tends to re3ect .losows*i as a serious candidate.
7he na+e o- Macnaghten)s second sus1ect was con-ir+ed as Aaron
.os+inis*i in the earl, 1'80s when a researcher ca+e u1on :onald
Swanson)s 1ersonal co1, o- Dobert Anderson)s boo* o- +e+oirs. Both
Swanson and Anderson were o--icers who 1artici1ated in the Di11er
in;estigationH indeed, the, were the ones gi;en the res1onsibilit, o-
being in charge o- the case. Anderson had written in his +e+oirs that
a11eared -or the -irst ti+e in 1'10 that the 1olice *new who the Di11er
was. According to Anderson the Di11er was a (olish 5ew who was 1ut
awa, in an insane as,lu+ a-ter the cri+es, and then died soon a-ter.
Swanson had +ade so+e notes in his co1, o- the boo* concerning
Anderson)s sus1ect, and wrote that the sus1ect)s na+e was .os+ins*i.
At -irst it see+ed that the case had been sol;ed, but research has -ound
a nu+ber o- 1roble+s with the theor,. $o other o--icer su11orts)
Anderson)s allegation, and Swanson)s notes see+ to 4uestion his
su1erior)s clai+s rather than su11ort the+. Aaron .os+ins*i was a real
1erson and was 1laced in an insane as,lu+. 9is records show hi+ to be
a docile and har+less lunatic that heard ;oices in his head and would
onl, eat -ood -ro+ the gutter. 7he dates o- his incarceration are wrong,
and he did not die soon a-ter his co++ittal but li;ed on until 1'1'. So+e
researchers ha;e tried to e21lain the 1roble+s b, sa,ing that the na+e
.os+ins*i) was con-used with another insane (olish 5ew, who reall, was
dangerous.
7he search continues. 7he third Macnaghten sus1ect, Michael ?strog,
has been in;estigated and there is nothing to indicate that he was
nothing +ore than a de+ented con +an.
:r. 8rancis 7u+blet,, the latest serious sus1ect, onl, beca+e *nown to
students o- the 5ac* the Di11er +urders in 1''3. A collector o- cri+e
+e+orabilia obtained a cache o- letters belonging to a cri+e 3ournalist
na+ed =.D. Si+s. A+ong the letters was one -ro+ 5ohn Bittlechild, who
had been in charge o- the Secret :e1art+ent in Scotland Iard at the ti+e
o- the +urders. :ated 1'13, Bittlechild writes to Si+s6 @< ne;er heard o- a
:r. :. (which +an, assu+e is a re-erence to :ruitt as Macnaghten thought
:ruitt was a doctor and Si+s was a con-ident o- the Chie- Constable), in
connection with the #hitecha1el Murders but a+ongst the sus1ects, and to
+, +ind a ;er, li*el, one, was a :r. 7 . . . 9e was an A+erican 4uac*
na+ed 7u+blet, . . . @ A boo* b, the collector who -ound the letter goes to
great lengths in tr,ing to 1ro;e that 7u+blet, is the -inal solution -or the
+,ster,. Cn-ortunatel,, he -ails to do so. 7here is no doubt that 7u+blet,
was a legiti+ate sus1ect and that when he -led to A+erica, Scotland Iard
detecti;es ca+e o;er to in;estigate hi+ -urther. <t is unli*el, that Scotland
Iard continued to ;iew hi+ as a serious sus1ect. 5a+es Monro, who
succeeded #arren and was in o;erall co++and o- the Secret de1art+ent
be-ore beco+ing Co++issioner, thought that the Alice Mc.en/ie +urder o-
5ul, 188' was the wor* o- the Di11er. 9e stated in 18'0 that he did not
*now who the #hitecha1el +urderer was but that he was wor*ing on his
own theor,.
Prince Albert Victor
(rince Albert Gictor Christian >dward (*nown as @>dd,@ to his -riends) is
one o- the +ost -a+ous sus1ects in the 5ac* the Di11er case, -iguring in no
less than three +a3or theories. ?;er the ,ears, di--erent ;ersions o- his
1ersonalit,, +ental stabilit,, and +anner o- death ha;e a11eared.
>dd, was born in 18%& to (rince Albert >dward (*nown as @Bertie@and son
to Mueen Gictoria EEBertie would later beco+e .ing >dward G<<) and
(rincess Ale2andra. Bertie was well *nown b, the >nglish 1ublic and not
highl, res1ected b, +an, o- the lower, and so+e o- the u11er, classes. 9e
had a re1utation -or being a )ladies +an) and was ru+ored to ha;e been a
1art, to +an, a scandal that was hushed u1 b, the (alace. (rincess
Ale2andra, on the other hand, was an e4ui;alent to toda,)s (rincess :i in
that she was +uch lo;ed b, the 1ublic who had great s,+1ath, -or her
ha;ing to 1ut u1 with the antics o- her husband.
B, +ost re1orts, >dd, was a @slow@ child and grew u1 to be a rather dull
adult. @>;en his nearest and dearest, who were naturall, bent on +a*ing
the best o- 1oor (rince >dd,, could not bring the+sel;es to use +ore
1ositi;e ter+s. (rince >dd, was certainl, dear and good, *ind and
considerate. 9e was also bac*ward and utterl, listless. 9e was sel-E
indulgent and not 1unctual. 9e had been gi;en no 1ro1er education, and as
a result he was interested in nothing. 9e was as heedless and as ai+less as
a glea+ing goldE-ish in a cr,stal bowl.@ (5a+es (o1eE9enness,, Mueen
Mar,. Muoted in Du+below, 1. 1'&.)
7here were uncon-ir+ed ru+ors that >dd, was +ildl, retarded. 7hat his
intelligence was lower than e21ected o- a -uture +onarch is not dis1uted
and it is belie;ed that this li+ited +ental abilit, was one o- the reasons
wh, he re4uired a tutor at Ca+bridge. 9e was 1artiall, dea-, owing to
inherited hearing 1roble+s through his +other)s side o- the -a+il,. 9e
had an unusuall, long and thin nec* which re4uired hi+ to wear long
starched collars and led to hi+ recei;ing the nic*na+e, @collars F cu--s@.
>dd, was na+ed :u*e o- Clarence and A;ondale in 18'1 and would
li*el, ha;e -ollowed Bertie to the throne had >dd, not -allen ;icti+ to the
in-luen/a e1ide+ic o- 18'1E'2. 7he death was es1eciall, ironic as >dd,
had beco+e engaged to (rincess Ma, o- 7ec* (e;entuall, to beco+e
Mueen Mar,) in :ece+ber o- 18'1. :uring >dd,)s li-eti+e, there were
ru+ors regarding his li-est,le, intelligence, and 1h,sical health but
nothing was e;er 1ro;en.
:uring the ti+e o- the Di11er +urders, there were no actual theories
1resented lin*ing >dd, to the cri+es. 7hose would co+e +uch later a-ter
+an, o- the 1rinci1al characters in the theories were dead. <t would not
be until 1'%2 when the -irst theor, regarding >dd,)s in;ol;e+ent in the
+urders beca+e *nown. According to Jac+ the Dippe#5 A to G (Begg,
8ido, and S*inner), the -irst allegation co+es -ro+ (hilli11e 5ullien in his
boo*, -do!a#d HII. <n it, 5ullien re+ar*s that @the 1rince and )the :u*e
o- Bed-ord)@ (A-G, 1g. 1%) were ru+ored to be res1onsible -or the
+urders. < cannot -ind an, details on this +,sterious @:u*e o- Bed-ord@
to corroborate this re+ar*.
7his thread was ta*en u1 b, :r. 7ho+as Stowell who, in 1'0, 1ublished
an article in 'he C#iinologist called @A Solution@. <t created a sensation
b, his ;eiled accusation o- (rince >dd, as the *iller. Stowell a11arentl,
used the 1ri;ate 1a1ers o- Sir #illia+ =ull as his 1ri+ar, source +aterial
and it was these 1a1ers which led hi+ to de;ise his theor,. 7hroughout
his article, the *iller is re-erred to as @S@, but there is enough internal
e;idence to identi-, >dd, as his chie- cul1rit.
According to Stowell, >dd, was su--ering -ro+ s,1hilis, contracted during
a shore 1art, in the #est <ndies, and that this in-ection dro;e >dd,
insane and co+1elled hi+ to co++it the +urders. <n this theor,, the
Do,al 8a+il, *new that >dd, was the +urderer @de-initel, ... a-ter the
second +urder, and 1ossibl, e;en a-ter the -irst@ (Du+below, 1 1'%).
>dd,)s doctor in this +atter was su11osedl, Sir #illia+ =ull who
in-or+ed Bertie that his son was d,ing o- s,1hilitic in-ection. A11arentl,
no atte+1t was +ade to restrain >dd, until a-ter the :ouble >;ent when
he was bundled awa, in restraints to a 1ri;ate +ental hos1ital. >dd,
then esca1ed to carr, out the .ell, +urder a-ter which he was again
loc*ed awa, and died, not o- -lu in 18'2 as clai+ed, but o- @so-tening o-
the brain@ in a 1ri;ate +ental hos1ital in Sandringha+. Stowell goes on
to include >dd,)s rese+blance to :ruitt and the e,eEwitness accounts o-
the Di11er as 1roo- 1ositi;e. #hile a neat and tid, theor,, later
Di11erologists ha;e 1o*ed se;eral e--ecti;e holes through it.
7o begin with, Stowell clai+s o- using =ull)s 1ri;ate 1a1ers cannot be
substantiated due to Stowell)s death within da,s o- 1ublishing his theor,
and the burning o- his own 1a1ers (unread) b, the -a+il,. #ith the lac*
o- the 1a1ers, Stowell)s clai+s o- >dd, being ho+ose2ual (and nearl,
esca1ing 1rosecution in the Cle;eland Street scandal) and o- >dd,)s
contracting s,1hilis cannot be con-ir+ed. Adding +ore con-usion, Stowell
used =ull)s 1a1ers -or his theor, but >dd, su11osedl, died in 18'2 and
=ull in 18'0 so =ull could not ha;e been able to co++ent on the cause
o- >dd,)s death. <- the theor, is true, =ull could be a source o-
con-ir+ing the in-ection but not necessaril, o- it being the cause o-
>dd,)s death. Being the two +ost i+1ortant 1arts o- the theor,, their
eli+ination se;erel, wea*ens the case.
More i+1ortantl,, e2a+ination o- court and Do,al records re;eal that
>dd, was not e;en in Bondon on the i+1ortant +urder dates.
@2' AugustE Se1te+ber 18886 7he (rince was sta,ing with Giscount
:owne at :anb, Bodge, =ros+ont, Ior*shire. ($ichols +urdered 31
August.)
@E10 Se1te+ber 18886 7he (rince was at the Ca;alr, Barrac*s in Ior*.
(Cha1+an +urdered 8 Se1te+ber.)
@2E30 Se1te+ber6 7he (rince was at Abergeldie, Scotland, where Mueen
Gictoria recorded in her 3ournal that he lunched with her on 30
Se1te+ber. (Stride and >ddowes +urdered between 1.00 and 2.00 a.+.,
30 Se1te+ber.)
@1 $o;e+ber6 Arri;ed in Bondon -ro+ Ior*.
@2E12 $o;e+ber6 7he (rince was at Sandringha+. (.ell, +urdered '
$o;e+ber)@ (A-G, 1. 1.)
Stowell argues that the Di11er)s s*ill at dissection was obtained through
>dd,)s e21erience at @dressing deer@. A -ar lea1 in logic. :es1ite the
i+1lausibilit, o- >dd, actuall, being the Di11er, he was na+ed as the
in-a+ous *iller in ,et another boo*6 P#ince Jac+ b, 8ran* S1iering.
7his strange boo* ta*es the basic thrust o- Stowell)s theor,, clearl,
na+ing >dd, as the *iller, and goes e;en -urther. S1iering clai+s to ha;e
-ound a co1, o- =ull)s notes in 7he $ew Ior* Acade+, o- Medicine in
which, su11osedl,, was a re1ort o- =ull h,1noti/ing >dd, and watching
horri-ied as >dd, acted out the +urders. 8ro+ this, =ull went on to
diagnose >dd, as ha;ing s,1hilis and that the acco+1an,ing 1ain was
dri;ing the (rince out to co++it the +urders in -its o- -antastic rage.
S1iering goes on to suggest that Bord Salisbur,, in 1ossibl, collusion
with Bertie, had >dd, *illed b, a +or1hine o;erdose.
Du+below states that the boo* was called @=rade L -iction@ b, the
A+erican re;iewer, :ale B. #al*er and that S1iering)s own res1onse to
the criticis+ was to clai+ that the 1a1ers also included >dd,)s con-ession
to =ull which was not +entioned in the boo*. 8ollowing this clai+, both
#al*er and Du+below atte+1ted to trace the e2istence o- these =ull
docu+ents but were in-or+ed b, 7he $ew Ior* Acade+, o- Medicine
that @)$one o- the entries in our catalog -or wor*s b, or about Sir #illia+
=ull contain the +aterial re-erred to b, Mr. S1iering.@ 7he res1onse to
Du+below)s re4uest +entions that it is not inconcei;able that the
+aterial could ha;e been +is1laced @but it is highl, unli*el,@. Du+below
goes on to show that S1iering)s research was slo11, at best and
there-ore discredits +uch o- the theor,.
<n 1'8, S1iering issued a challenge to Mueen >li/abeth << to re;eal the
truth about >dd,. >ither she should o1en the Do,al archi;es or hold a
1ress release detailing the :u*e)s acti;ities as the Di11er. #hen a
Buc*ingha+ (alace s1o*es+an stated that S1iering could e2a+ine the
Do,al Archi;es (as other researchers had done) but that the accusation
were @not su--icientl, serious to warrant a s1ecial state+ent -ro+ the
Mueen@, S1iering re1lied that he didn)t want to see the -iles. Bea;ing
Du+below and others to deduce that the entire e1isode had been
orchestrated to sell co1ies o- the boo*.
Since then S1iering has not +ade an, -urther clai+s or 1roduced an,
-urther e;idence su11orting his theor,.
9a;ing sur;i;ed accusation as the Di11er, >dd, now +o;ed into the role
o- su11orting 1la,er to the +urderer (or +urderers) in two se1arate
theories. 7he -irst in;ol;ed his old Ca+bridge tutor, 5a+es .. Ste1hen
and was initiall, +ade in Michael 9arrison)s biogra1h, o- >dd,, Cla#ence.
According to this theor,, 9arrison had gone o;er Stowell)s article and
co+e to the conclusion that @S@ was not >dd,, but actuall, Ste1hens who
was co++itting the +urders @out o- a twisted desire -or re;enge@
because o- the dissolution o- a ho+ose2ual relationshi1 with >dd,.
5a+es Ste1hen was the son o- in-a+ous Ma,bric* 3udge, Sir 5a+es
8it/3a+es Ste1hen, and cousin o- Ganessa Bell and Girginia #ool-. <n
1883, 5a+es beca+e >dd,)s tutor at Ca+bridge where his +ission was
to tr, and bring >dd,)s intelligence u1 to acce1table le;els. >dd,)s +ind
was, according to one -or+er tutor, @abnor+all, dor+ant@. :uring this
1eriod, 9arrison clai+s, a se2ual relationshi1 began between the tutor
and 1u1il, resulting in a scandal o- which, a11arentl,, little e;idence
re+ains. @7he accusation see+s chie-l, to be based on 9arrison)s
inter1retation o- the old rugb, song, )7he, Called the Bastard Ste1hen,)
which he thin*s re-ers to Ste1hen and ClarenceA@ (Du+below, 1 1'8)
7he relationshi1 su11osedl, ended when >dd, was ga/etted to the 10th
9ussars on 5une 1th, 1885. 7here a11ears to be no -urther incident
until two ,ears later when Ste1hen had a +,sterious, and e;entuall,
-atal, accident. Se1arate descri1tions o- the accident e2ist. Girginia
#ool-)s biogra1her, Muentin Bell, sa,s that the -a+il, tradition was that
Ste1hen was struc* in the head b, so+e ob3ect -ro+ a +o;ing train.
9arrison clai+s that Ste1hen was in3ured when a horse he was riding
shied and bac*ed hi+ into the +o;ing ;ane o- a wind+ill. #hate;er the
case, the accident was a +a3or one and re4uired a great deal o- care.
Although he originall, a11eared to ha;e +ade a co+1lete reco;er,, it
was later disco;ered that his brain had been 1er+anentl, da+aged and
Ste1hen was slowl, going +ad.
Ste1hen)s beha;ior was 4uite unusual. Bell relates incidents o- Ste1hen
1lunging the blade -ro+ a sword stic* into bread, beco+ing deluged that
he was a 1ainter o- great genius, rushing about insanel, in a hanso+,
and @)on another occasion he a11eared at brea*-ast and announced, as
though it were an a+using incident, that the doctors had told hi+ that
he would either die or go co+1letel, +ad.)@ (Du+below, 1 1'')
At this 1oint, Ste1hen beco+es a 1atient o- Sir #illia+ =ull (Du+below
1laces it a-ter =ull)s -irst stro*e in 188) and begins a ra1id +ental and
1h,sical decline. Ste1hen dri-ts -ro+ one 1ro3ect to the ne2t with little
-ocus or interest. <t is during this 1eriod that Ste1hen writes two ;olu+es
o- 1oetr, that include e2tre+el, ;iolent i+ages against wo+en. Ste1hen
was co++itted to a +ental hos1ital in 18'1, where he died the -ollowing
8ebruar,.
9arrison contends that the brea*u1 o- the relationshi1 with >dd,,
co+bined with the accident, 1ro;o*ed Ste1hen to tr, and a;enge hi+sel-
u1on >dd,. #h, he would 1ic* such 1iti-ul wo+en is not su--icientl,
answered. 9arrison argues that the +urders are a *ind o- blood sacri-ice
through an elaborate e21lanation that includes a sa;age deit, na+ed the
=reat Mother, the Do+an =od 7er+inus, the relation o- 8rances Coles
na+e translated into =ree*, and Ste1hen)s 1a+1hlet in de-ense o- the
co+1ulsor, stud, o- =ree* at the uni;ersities. 9arrison goes on to state
that the Di11er in -act +urdered ten wo+en (to -it into his theor, he
included Alice Mac*en/ie, 8rances Coles, Mellett or :a;is and Annie
8ar+er) but Du+below dis1utes this counting as Stride and >ddowes are
counted as one and Annie 8ar+er was not +urdered at all. 7he ten
wo+en theor, was i+1ortant because 9arrison belie;ed that Ste1hen
was acting out his own 1oe+ @Air6 .a1hoo/elu+@ in which the song)s
;illain *ills ten harlots.
9arrison tries again when he atte+1ts to connect Ste1hen)s handwriting
with the Di11er letters @8ro+ 9ell@ and @:ear Boss@ and that the internal
st,le o- so+e o- Ste1hen)s 1oe+s +atches so+e o- the anon,+ous
Di11er letters. 7his connection was rebutted b, 7ho+as 5. Mann in an
article in the 5ournal o- the #orld Association o- :ocu+ent >2a+iners
(5une 1'5) in which Mann deter+ines that onl, the Bus* letter is li*el,
to be genuine and that the connection between Ste1hen)s handwriting
and that letter was +ini+al. @7he o;erwhel+ing e;idence is that the two
do not +atchH and i- the author o- the Bus* letter was indeed 5ac* the
Di11er, then 5... Ste1hen was not that +an.@ (Du+below, 1. 20&)
$ot to be outdone, the >dd,JSte1hen theor, resur-aced in :a;id
Abraha+sen)s boo*, C!#de# and Cadness, 'he 3ec#et Li%e o% Jac+ the
Dippe#. Abraha+sen was a -orensic 1s,chiatrist who de;elo1ed a
1s,chological 1ro-ile o- 5ac* based u1on the +urders and what little
e;idence was le-t behind. 9is conclusion that the +urderer was insane
and that the +urders were se2ual in +oti;e was not an,thing new e;en
though he did gi;e so+e new inter1retations o- so+e o- the e;idence
and +ethod. #here Abraha+sen -ails is that he then ta*es the 1ro-ile
and goes loo*ing -or so+eone to +atch itA Ste1hen is the onl, logical
choice because he is the onl, one o- the .$?#$ sus1ects who +atches
the 1ro-ile. 7his ignores the -act that the Di11er could still be so+eone
un*nown to us at this ti+e. >;en +ore, Abraha+sen clai+s that >dd,
was an acco+1lice in the cri+es and that he and Ste1hen en3o,ed a
+utuall, de1endent relationshi1 with Ste1hen being the do+inant
1artner. As the theor, is based ;irtuall, co+1letel, on 1s,chological
conclusions, the lac*, or contradicting nature, o- so+e re+aining
e;idence.
>dd, is unli*el, to ha;e been the source o- Ste1hen)s lo;esic* +urder
+adness, but >dd, returns in what is the +ost 1o1ular theor, to date.
7he Do,al Cons1irac, theor, -irst a11eared in 1'3 in the BBC
1rogra++e, Jac+ the Dippe#. <n it, -ictional detecti;es Barlow and #att
-inall, sol;e the Di11er +,ster, through a series o- cons1iracies and
co;erEu1s. 7he stor, goes that the 1roducers o- the 1rogra+, in doing
research, were told to contact a +an na+ed Sic*ert who *new about a
secret +arriage between >dd, and a 1oor Catholic girl na+ed Alice Mar,
Croo*. Sic*ert 1ainted a strange stor, in;ol;ing >dd,, Bord Salisbur,, Sir
Dobert Anderson, Sir #illia+ =ull, and e;en Mueen Gictoria hersel-A
7he +an, 5ose1h Sic*ert, was the son o- -a+ous 1ainter, #alter Sic*ert,
-ro+ who+ he re1ortedl, got the stor,. Sic*ert had li;ed in the >ast >nd
during the ti+e o- the +urders and was su11osedl, a close -riend o- the
Do,al -a+il,. (rincess Ale2 as*ed Sic*ert to ta*e >dd, under his wing
and watch out -or hi+. Sic*ert e;entuall, introduced >dd, to a 1oor girl
na+ed Annie Croo* who wor*ed in one o- the local sho1s in Cle;eland
Street. >dd, soon got the girl 1regnant and the, were li;ing 4uite
ha11il, with their daughter Alice until the Mueen disco;ered her
grandson)s indiscretion and de+anded that the situation be ter+inated.
$ot onl, was Annie a co++oner, but a Catholic as well and there was
belie- that news o- a Catholic heir to the throne would s1ar* a re;olution.
7he Mueen ga;e the +atter to her (ri+e Minister, Bord Salisbur,, to
sol;e and he, in turn, went to Sir #illia+ =ull. A-ter a daring raid on the
Cle;eland Street lo;e nest, >dd, was ta*en awa, and Annie was sent to
one o- =ull)s hos1itals where =ull 1er-or+ed e21eri+ents on her
designed to erase her +e+or, and dri;e her insane. 7heir child,
howe;er, esca1ed the raid unhar+ed with her nann,, Mar, .ell,.
.ell, had been a cowor*er o- Annie)s, as well as a +odel -or Sic*ert, and
she beca+e the child)s nann, soon a-ter its birth. .nowing that the ga+e
was u1, .ell, hid Alice with nuns and -led into the >ast >nd. >;entuall,,
she told the stor, to se;eral o- her cronies ($ichols, Stride and
Cha1+an) and the, decided to blac*+ail the go;ern+ent when the,
needed +one, to 1a, local 1rotection thugs. #hen Salisbur, learned o-
the threat, he called on =ull again
7his ti+e, =ull de;ised an elaborate sche+e to silence the wo+en based
on Masonic rituals. >nlisting the hel1 o- 5ohn $etle,, a coach+an, he
created 5ac* the Di11er as a s,+bol o- 8ree+asonr,. Sir Dobert
Anderson was enlisted to hel1 co;er u1 the cri+es and act as loo*out
during the +urders. 7he +urders would be silent +essages about the
1ower and strength o- Masonr, and the -ate awaiting an, who o11osed
the+.
>ddowes, Sic*ert said, was a +ista*e. She o-ten went b, the na+e o-
Mar, .ell, and it was a case o- +ista*en identit,. ?nce the truth was
*nown, the real Mar, .ell, was -ound and silenced. 7he cons1irac,
closed in u1on itsel- and chose M.5. :ruitt as a sca1egoat to ta*e the
bla+e and, Sic*ert hinted, :ruitt was +urdered -or it. 7he girl, Alice,
grew u1 and later, b, an odd series o- twists and turns, +arried #alter
Sic*ert and ga;e birth to 5ose1h.
7he 1rogra+ caused a sensation and lead directl, to the 1ublication o-
Ste1hen .night)s contro;ersial boo* Jac+ the Dippe#5 'he 9inal 3ol!tion
in 1'8. <n it, .night tries to 1ro;e that the cons1irac, not onl, e2isted
but that the third +an in the +urder triad was not Sir Dobert Anderson,
but #alter Sic*ert hi+sel-A
7he .night theor,, though interesting and entertaining in its own wa,,
has been e--ecti;el, debun*ed b, +an, Di11erologists. Most notable was
Du+below)s re-utation in his re;ised edition o- Jac+ the Dippe#5 'he
Coplete Caseboo+ where Du+below 1ro;ides e;idence that Annie li;ed
longer than .night clai+s, s1ent ti+e a-ter 1888 in wor*houses, and had
Alice with her through so+e o- this ti+e. 7here are no +arriage or birth
records listing >dd, as Annie)s husband or as Alice)s -ather. Aside -ro+
ru+or or secondhand state+ents, there was ne;er an, hard e;idence
lin*ing >dd, to Cle;eland Street, Annie Croo*, or e;en #alter Sic*ert.
7he lac* o- e;idence, cons1irac, theorists 1ur1ort, 1ro;es the theor,
because all e;idence was destro,edA Degardless o- the legiti+ate
criticis+s, the Do,al Cons1irac, re+ains one o- the +ost 1o1ular
theories with se;eral +o;ies, no;els, and gra1hic no;els built around it.
<n the end, it is di--icult to consider >dd, a serious sus1ect. Although
ru+ored, there is no concrete e;idence that >dd, had +ental 1roble+s
(either through s,1hilis or an, other reason), he is re1orted being out o-
the countr, during the +urders, and no solid e;idence has been 1roduced
that lin*s >dd, to se2ual relationshi1s with either 5a+es Ste1hen or Annie
Croo*. :es1ite these -acts, it a11ears li*el, that (outside o- serious Di11er
circles) the theor, o- >dd,)s in;ol;e+ent in the +urders in so+e wa, will
ne;er co+1letel, -ade