Classic Cold Murder Case of Most Interest Poll

[kline]

Yes, that's one of the earlier murders that some have tried to tie in. In his book The Thames Torso Murders of Victorian London, R. Michael Gordon also adds a similar slaying from 1902.

Wow,thats amazing!(and thanks for the link Robin!)
I cant beleive this is the first ive heard of this.
Except for the fact the head wasnt gone(though nearly decapitated) it must have been a coin toss as to who to attribute the Mary Kelley murder to.
Of course the Ripper apparently didnt feel the need to scatter the body parts thither and yon all over London.
It almost seems the Thames guy was trying to make a statement of some sort,of course some have said the same about the Ripper as well.
Am I the only one who can totally picture this guy keeping the heads all together some place and talking to them?('From Hell' indeed....)
I realize London at that time was pretty much Dante's Inferno for alot of folks but its hard to picture TWO psychopaths committing these attrocities independent of each other....I gues in 2012(or I guess I should say 2013..) it wouldnt be that surprising but man!

 

[Robin Hood]

I wont post again on this subject (don't want to block the thread) but I had to mention this from the same site.

http://www.casebook.org/dissertations/thames-torso-murders.html

''It is an interesting fact that one of the body parts had been purposely thrown over the private railing to the Shelley Estate. It is ironic that Mary Shelley had earlier written a novel entitled Frankenstein, about a monster pieced together by various body parts''

 

[kline]

I wont post again on this subject (don't want to block the thread) but I had to mention this from the same site.

http://www.casebook.org/dissertations/thames-torso-murders.html

''It is an interesting fact that one of the body parts had been purposely thrown over the private railing to the Shelley Estate. It is ironic that Mary Shelley had earlier written a novel entitled Frankenstein, about a monster pieced together by various body parts''

yeah I agree I dont want to derail this thread either but I too thought that part intriguiging.
One might conclude the killer not only had read 'Frankenstein' but also knew where Mary Shelley lived?
And feel it worthy of the irony of throwing a body part on her lawn?
Interesting, its not like in those days as many folks would have read a popular novel and been aware of it like now.
And he knew where to find the author....its not like he could go online and find all that info....

 

[wfgodot]

Has this one been mentioned?

WS Thread: UK - "Who put Bella in the witch elm?" Skeleton in tree, Hagley Woods, Midlands, 1943

 

[momrids6]

The Double Initial Murders in Rochester NY 1971-1973

 

[STANDREID]

Those are both interesting ones, respectively aka The Hagley Wood Corpse and The Alphabet Murders.

 

[STANDREID]

Yes, that's one of the earlier murders that some have tried to tie in. In his book The Thames Torso Murders of Victorian London, R. Michael Gordon also adds a similar slaying from 1902.

The 1902 murder was known as the Salamanca Torso although the body of the woman was chopped into many pieces. This time, only the hands and feet were missing. The severed head was on the pile of remains and appeared to have been boiled. I don't believe the victim was ever identified and there was speculation that she might be foreign. There were thus some similarities to the earlier murders but also some major differences.

 

[STANDREID]

The name was from Salamanca Place, the passageway were the heap of body pieces was discovered.

 

[STANDREID]

The passageway is sometimes also referred to as an alley.

 

[KarenUK]

I recently found out that the village hall I had my wedding reception in was the place where the trial of one of the in the suspects in the murder of Rose Harsent took place, he was found not guilty and I have recently read a few books on the case.
I had a bit of a morbid fascination with the Jack the Ripper and the Thames Torso murders as a teenager, and also to a lesser extent with the Black Dahlia, but I try to avoid reading up too much on those types of cases as it bothers me too much that those people will never get justice.

The one that "haunts me" is the case of a girl around the same age and from the same town (Felixstowe in England) called Vicky Hall in 1999. A man was tried for her murder but found not guilty.
http://www.ipswichstar.co.uk/news/vicky_hall_murder_case_remains_open_10_years_on_1_175218

 

[SeeMamaRun]

I voted for the Villisca murders because being from Iowa, it was one I heard about from early on - like a boogie man tale. Watch out for the Ax Murder!

Some of the top ones on this poll like Jack the Ripper and The Black Dahlia never really held much interest for me... I don't know why.

You guys gave me a lot of reading to do to learn about some of these cases.

 

[STANDREID]

I voted for the Villisca murders because being from Iowa, it was one I heard about from early on - like a boogie man tale. Watch out for the Ax Murder!

My oldest son lives in Iowa and he hadn't heard of Villisca until I mentioned it to him. He wasn't raised there though so that's probably the difference.

 

[STANDREID]

Then he and his wife gave me book about the case as a Christmas gift so that worked out OK.

 

[wfgodot]

A new one on my list - a case I both remember vividly yet had forgotten long ago:

KS KS - Ottawa, Franklin County/U.S. 59 triple homicide, Avery/Longfellow, 28 March 1973 - Websleuths Crime Community

 

[STANDREID]

A new one on my list - a case I both remember vividly yet had forgotten long ago:

KS KS - Ottawa, Franklin County/U.S. 59 triple homicide, Avery/Longfellow, 28 March 1973 - Websleuths Crime Community

Thanks - I don't recall hearing of that case.

 

[shiloh42]

I voted Dahlia for many reasons, but one is that every day I drive within a block of where she was found. I can't drive by Norton Ave without thinking about her at least once a month or so.

I didn't vote Zodiac because I think they have identified the killer, imo, just didn't bring him to justice before he died.

JonBenet would be my 2nd vote.

 

[JaimeInLA]

I grew up in Cleveland so I voted Torso Murders, for the sheer mystery (unidentfied victims) and number of bodies. However, I have read every book ever written about the Marilyn Shepard murder. My grandfather was a detective in Bay Village and always thought Dr. Sam did it. I firmly believe Dr. Sam did NOT do it. We argued about that until the day my grandpa died, which was more than 50 years after the murder!

 

[STANDREID]

I agree with you on Torso and your grandfather on Sam.

 

[FigTree]

Black Dahlia - that case intrigues me.

 

[Lilachaze]

I voted Taman Shud, because something about this case sends a shiver down my spine. I have no idea.