Montague Druitt, The Suspect Who Committed Suicide
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The notorious Victorian serial killer, Jack the Ripper, struck fear into the hearts of Whitechapel murder residents in the Autumn of 1888. His murders took place in the Autumn of 1888 between August and November of that year. Today this is known as the Autumn of Terror.
The Autumn of Terror didn't last that long, it was over in a matter of weeks. Jack the Ripper, however, cemented his place in history through his awful crimes, cementing his place in Victorian history. |
This is a timeline of the Jack the Ripper murders.
The 31st of August
Mary Ann Nichols is murdered on Bucks Row.
The 8th of September
Annie Chapman is killed in Hanbury Street.
The 30th of September
Jack strikes twice in one night, known as the Double Event.
First, Elizabeth Stride is killed in Dutfield's Yard.
Second, Catherine Eddowes is killed in Mitre Square.
The 9th of November
Jack strikes one last time. This time he kills Mary Jane Kelly in Miller's Court.
These events resulted in the Victorian eras most infamous person and events.
Today, however, it is believed that only five of these women who were Whitechapel Murder victims, were the victims of Jack the Ripper. The rest of them are not, including a woman called Rose Mylett. Before we go on to Rose Mylett, it should be said that the eleven Whitechapel Murder victims are victims which are debated on whether or not they are Jack the Ripper victims.
That is a debate for another post.
But for this one, let's focus on Rose Mylett. Who was Rose Mylett? And why was she linked to the Whitechapel Murders? Let's take a look and answer these two questions.
Rose Mylett died on the 20th of December 1888. Her death came just weeks after the brutal murder of Mary Jane Kelly. It is believed today by most Ripperologists, that Mary Jane Kelly was the last ripper victim. Her murder was on the 9th of November 1888 and the murder of Mary Jane Kelly, was the most brutal murder of all of the Whitechapel Murders.
Who Rose Mylett Was
Rose Mylett was a local woman living in the Whitechapel district of Victorian London. Rose was born on the 8th of December 1859. She had a daughter born on the 12th of September 1880, just eight years before she died. Meaning that, sadly, Rose left behind a young daughter at the time of her death. She named her daughter Florence and was married to a man we only know of as Davis.
Like many of Jack the Ripper's victims, Rose was a prostitute. She also had a broken down marriage, a drinking problem and was probably a prostitute, both things which were common with Jack the Ripper's victims - women who had a broken down marriage, a drinking problem and were prostitutes.
She is linked to the Whitechapel Murders because she shared many other common features with Jack the Ripper's victims. She had a broken down marriage, she had a drinking problem, she was probably a prostitute, she lived in Whitechapel at the time and she was possibly murdered too, at around the same time the other women were murdered.
Seems straightforward that we would include her as a ripper victim, doesn't it? Well, no. Although she does have similarities with other Jack victims, there's a reason why her status as a ripper victim is debated.
The post-mortem showed that Rose had been strangled by someone. It stated that she could not have done it herself. While others have argued that it was a suicided. Given that the post-mortem ruled that this was a murder, it probably was. But there is still a problem with viewing her as a Ripper suspect - her throat was not cut and there were no mutilations.
Perhaps, if it was Jack the Ripper, he was disturbed again like he was with Elizabeth Stride? Rose Mylett's death, or murder, happened in the early morning hours too, at a time when Victorian London would have been waking up and going to work. It's possible.
So, what do you think? Was Rose Mylett another victim of the Rippers? Or, was this unconnected to the other murders? It is interesting to hear your thoughts in the comments section!
Sources:
http://www.jack-the-ripper-walk.co.uk/rose-mylett.htm
http://www.casebook.org/victims/mylett.html
Charles Cross The Witness Who Has Been Under Our Nose All The Time. Is This Jack the Ripper?
25/11/2017
The Autumn of Terror was a collection of events which happened throughout the Autumn of 1888, in Whitechapel London. These events were a series of murders which happened from August 1888 up until November 1888. The murders were carried out by the serial killer, Jack the Ripper.
But who was Jack the Ripper?
For almost 130 years, the identity of the infamous Victorian serial killer has been shrouded in mystery. If you buy into the royal conspiracy theory, then some would say that it has been deliberately shrouded in secrecy.
It's not just the royals, or those who served the royal family at the time, that have been linked to this Victorian historical true crime mystery. It seems that everyone and anyone who was alive during the events has been named as a Jack the Ripper suspect.
The suspect list is endless.
But, perhaps it didn't and doesn't need to be. Perhaps Jack the Ripper has been under our nose all of the time. Perhaps, Jack the Ripper was the very first man linked to the Ripper case - Charles Cross.
Charles Cross or Charles Lechmere, as he also known, was the man who found the first woman who was murdered by the ripper - Mary Ann Nichols.
Mary Ann Nichols was murdered in the early morning hours of the 31st of August in Bucks Row, Whitechapel. It's estimated that she was murdered at around 3.30am, according to Dr Henry Llewellyn, who was sought for when Mary Ann Nichols boy was found.
Her body was found at 3.40am by Charles Cross, several minutes later, Dr Henry Llewellyn was called to the scene of the crime by the police. He lived not far away from the scene.
Why Is Charles Cross A Suspect?
Charles Cross was the first person to find Mary Ann Nichols. He was a cart driver who was on his way to work that morning. Soon after Cross found Nichols, another man was walking along Bucks Row, his name was Robert Paul.
This is where suspicion arises, according to Robert Paul at the inquest into Mary's murder, on the 1st of September 1888, Paul said that he was walking down Bucks Row when he saw Charles Cross standing in the middle of the road, looking at the body of Mary who was lying on the ground.
However, if Cross was Jack the Ripper, why did he just stand there? There's evidence, or strong suspicion, that Jack the Ripper fled quickly from the crime scene, this is apparent from both Elizabeth Stride's murder and Catherine Eddowes murder.
We can assume from both of these murders, that Jack didn't stay around long. He even went so far as to flee the scene of the crime when he must have heard the cart of Louis Diemschutz entered into Dutfield's Yard.
With the murder of Catherine Eddowes, the ripper didn't hang about there either. We know this from the times of police patrols in Mitre Square, where the murdered body of Catherine Eddowes was found.
There are other reasons that Charles Cross ignites suspicion. For example, Cross lied about two things to the police that morning of the murder of Nichols. The first thing that he lied about, was his name. He gave his name as Charles Cross, not Charles Lechmere, which was his real name.
This isn't odd for the time though, which we should take into consideration. The victims of Jack the Ripper were also known by second names, such as Polly Nichols, Dark Annie and Long Liz. It seemed to be a common thing for the time - to go by a second name, a nickname. Therefore, it doesn't seem like something that we should look too deeply into.
But another thing that comes to the fore, is that Charles Cross may have lied about something else that morning. According to PC Mitzen, Cross said to him that either
'"You are wanted in Buck's row by a policeman; a woman is lying there."
Or,
"You're wanted down there (pointing to Buck's row)."
Whichever one Cross had said, there is difficulty with them both. The first phrase is difficult in believing Cross because there was no policeman when Cross and Paul had left Bucks Row to find the police. The second phrase is difficult because it seems an odd way to say that a policeman is needed.
Again, we could be reading to much into it. What if Cross was just shocked? What if he was still tired and shocked about what he found? Perhaps it was just the way that he spoke.
The last reason that we have to suspect Charles Cross, is his route to work every morning. According to the documentary, it says that Cross could be placed at the scene of the crimes of all of the murders because they were on his route to work.
It does bring suspicions towards Cross again. He probably was walking by where the murders happened. But, given that we don't know his route to work every morning for those five Jack the Ripper murders, it is impossible to say that he was walking in the same street as each of the murders happened. What if he took a different street?
There would have been thousands of people taking the same route to work every morning, walking up and down those streets getting from a to b, they couldn't have all been Jack the Ripper. So, saying he was in the area isn't enough to convict him. Which leads us to the second problem, there is no evidence that links him to any of the other murders.
Cross wasn't found at any of the other murder sites. Where is the evidence of him being found at the scene of Annie Chapman's murder? Elizabeth Stride's murder? Catherine Eddowes murder? or Mary Jane Kelly's murder? There is none. That is as significant as finding him near the body of Mary Ann Nichols.
Conclusion
Charles Cross is certainly an interesting suspect to consider. He was found at the scene of the first murder, he lied about his name, he probably lied about the fact the there was already a policeman there and, the murders were on his route to work.
This should make him one of our leading suspects. There is more against Cross than most of the other ripper suspects.
Where Cross falls down, is the fact that there isn't enough evidence to say that Cross was the ripper. Why didn't he flee the scene of the crime, like Jack had done with other murders? Why didn't he take Paul out? Cross lived into the 20th century, so why did he just stop killing, if he was Jack the Ripper?
There isn't enough evidence to say that Cross was Jack the Ripper. What can be said about him is that he is one of the more interesting suspects in the case and should be a strong person of interest, given that he was found at the scene of the crime.
Though, what about the other people who found the other ripper victims? Other people found Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes and Mary Jane Kelly. If we treat Cross as a suspect, then, shouldn't we count the others as a suspect? They couldn't have all been Jack the Ripper.
Sources:
Casebook.org
Jack the Ripper.org
Who was Mary Ann Nichols?
Mary Ann Nichols was the first victim of the notorious Victorian serial killer, Jack the Ripper. She was murdered by Jack the Ripper in the early hours of the 31st of August 1888.
Her last hours are the most documented and well known of her life. The events which unfolded began in the evening of the 30th of August 1888, and into the early morning hours of the 31st of August 1888, where she was found murdered in Bucks Row.
The 30th Of August 1888
On the night of the 30th of August 188, there were two dock fires which spiraled out of control. These two dock fires occurred in the Whitechapel Docks. They painted the sky blood red that night through the severity of the fires. The severity of the fires was caused by a large amount of alcohol that was in the docks buildings. The alcohol was responsible for the fire burning so long, it was still burning in the early hours of the morning of the 31st of August 1888.
The large amount of alcohol contained in the docks which were on fire, caused the fire to get out of control very quickly. It resulted in the sky turning blood red sky, leaving the Whitechapel skies with an eerie blood red colour. That, alongside the the thunder and lighting that night, and you would think that it was a scene set up for a horror film.
It was an atmosphere which belonged to the setting that night, horror-like, eerie and unsettling.
Mary Ann Nichols is seen walking down Whitechapel Road
#12.30AM August 31st, 1888
Mary Ann Nichols is seen leaving the Frying Pan Pub. She was also seen at Brick Lane or Thrawl Street, before returning to her lodging house at 18 Thrawl Street.
#1.20AM or #1.40AM August 31st 1888
Because Mary did not have her doss money (in other words, because she did not have money for a bed that night), she was told to leave the kitchen of her lodgings. Around this time, she was sitting inside her lodgings kitchen, eating.
Before leaving the kitchen and lodging house, Mary said to the manager of the house 'Never mind, I'll soon get me doss money. See what a jolly bonnet I've got on now.''
#2.30AM August 31st, 1888
This is the last recorded time we have when someone had seen Mary Ann Nichols alive. The last person to see Mary alive was her friend, Emily Holland.
Emily Holland met Mary Ann Nichols outside a grocers, in Whitechapel Road and Osborn Street. Emily was returning from the fire at the two docks. Both of the fires were raging well into the night, whilst she was making her way home, she met Mary Ann Nichols. Emily said that Mary, at the time upon meeting her, was ''very drunk and staggered against a wall.''
At 2.30am, Emily remembers the nearby church tower striking 2.30am, which is why we know the time when she spoke to Mary. According to Emily, they both spoke for around 10 minutes. Where Mary had informed Emily that she had got the doss money she needed for a bed that night. Mary said to Emily, 'I've had me doss money three times today and spent it.''
Presumably, Mary had spent her doss money on alcohol. We can assume this because of Mary's drunken state and there is no indication that she spent the money on anything else.
As the two parted ways, Mary said to Emily, ''It won't be long before I am back.'' Emily lived in the same lodging house as Emily at the time. Mary's intention after leaving Emily must have been to continue to make money through prostitution, that night.
The next 45 minutes were the last of Mary's life. Somewhere between departing Emily Holland at 2.30/40am, until 3.40am, Mary Ann Nichols met and was killed by Jack the Ripper.
#3.15AM 31st of August 1888
A working policeman, PC John Thain was walking down Bucks Row (where Mary Ann Nichols was found dead), passed the street and witnessed nothing unusual or out of the ordinary. At the same time, Sgt. Kerby (another on-duty police officer), was walking down Bucks Row and saw nothing unusual.
#3.40/45AM 31st of August 1888
Mary Ann Nichols body was found by Charles Cross. Charles Cross was on his way to work at that time. That may seem early or suspicious, but in the Victorian era, it was common for people to set out to work at this time. Therefore, there was nothing unusual about someone like Charles Cross going to work at this hour. However, considering that Charles Cross was at the scene of the crime, it has led some to ask, 'Was Charles Cross Jack the Ripper?'
Another man was walking by just after Charles Cross had found the body of Mary Ann Nichols. His name was Robert Paul. Cross shouted over to Paul, ''Come and look over here, there's a woman.'' Paul came over and replied to Cross, ''I think she's breathing...but it is little if it is.'' The men reported that she was still warm when they found her.
This was confirmed a short time later by Dr Llewellyn. Dr Llewellyn was called to the scene by police, Llewellyn lived nearby. When he came onto the scene and examined the body, he said that Mary had died ''but a few minutes'' ago.
If Charles Cross wasn't Jack the Ripper, then Charles Cross must have just missed Jack the Ripper. Perhaps the horse and cart that Cross was travelling on, gave the Ripper a chance to get away. If the Ripper was at the scene of the crime just before Cross had discovered the body, then, most likely the ripper heard the horse and cart coming and it gave him a chance to get away.
Mary Ann Nichols was the first victim of Jack the Rippers, but she was not the last. Her murder was the start of the Autumn of Terror.
Mary Ann Nichols died on the 31st of August 1888
Before we look at the last hours of Mary Ann Nichols, let's look at Mary Ann Nichols before the notorious Autumn evening on the 31st of August 1888.
The Early Life Of Mary Ann Nichols
Mary Ann Nichols was born in Dawes Court, Shoe Lane, off Fleet Street in London, on August 26th, 1845. She was born to Edward Walker (her father) and Caroline (her mother), in London.
Not much is known about Mary Ann Nichols mother Caroline, but her father Edward worked as a locksmith and blacksmith.
The Married Life Of Mary Ann Nichols
Mary Nichols married William Nichols on the 16th of January 1864, at St Bride's Parish Church. The marriage was performed by Charles Marshall and witnessed by Sarah Good and Seth George.
Mary and William went on to have five children. Their five children were: Percy George Nichols, Henry Alfred Nichols, Edward John Nichols, Alice Ester Nichols and Eliza Sarah Nichols. Although they had many children, their marriage did not last. Eventually, their marriage break up would lead Mary into a life of destitution and prostitution, which would sadly lead to Mary's murder at the hands of Jack the Ripper.
This was the couples last accommodation together before they split up. Mary Nichols and William Nichols split up in 1881, some seven years before Mary met her fate at the hands of Jack the Ripper.
Mary and William were married for around 24 years, the breakdown of Mary's marriage was particularly hard on her. Sometime after the break up of her marriage, Mary became a prostitute, something that her husband William found out about in 1882. Up until that point, William was paying a living allowance for Mary, but he cancelled the allowance towards Mary when he found out that she was a prostitute.
Around the same time that William found out about Mary's prostitution, Mary was living with another man called Thomas Dew. But this couldn't have been for that long, as by April 1882, she lived in the Lambeth Workhouse. The following year in January 1883, she left Lambeth Workhouse to go into Lambeth Infirmary. A few days later, Mary went from Lambeth Infirmary, back to Lambeth Workhouse.
Mary spent a brief time living with her father between the end of March and the beginning of May in 1883 before she was again back in Lambeth Workhouse. By the first week of June, she had left the workhouse and lived with Thomas Dew up until the end of 1887.
The Last Few Months Of Mary Ann Nichols Life
On May the 12th 1888, while she was living was Thomas Dew, Mary took up a position as a domestic servant, for Samuel and Sarah Cowdry. It seemed like a bright beginning for Mary, a new job and a new beginning, sadly, it was not, as Mary stole clothes and money from the couples home. Subsequently, she left her job not that much longer than that.
Before she had left her job, she was happy about her new job when she started. We know this from Mary's letter to her father, he which she writes:
"I just right to say you will be glad to know that I am settled in my new place, and going all right up to now. My people went out yesterday and have not returned, so I am left in charge. It is a grand place inside, with trees and gardens back and front. All has been newly done up. They are teetotalers and religious so I ought to get on. They are very nice people, and I have not too much to do. I hope you are all right and the boy has work. So good bye for the present.
from yours truly,
Polly''
After leaving her job, Mary moved into a lodging house at 18 Thrawl Street. She stayed in Thrawl Street for a few months, before moving into a lodging house in Flower and Dean Street, the most infamous street in Whitechapel, on the 24 of August 1888. Interestingly, experts believe that Jack the Ripper lived in Flower and Dean Street.
This was Mary Ann Nichols last address, a few days later on the 31st of August, she was murdered by Jack the Ripper.
Aaron Kosminski is one of the suspects in the Jack the Ripper case. He is perhaps one of the strongest candidates in the Jack the Ripper case. So, who was Aaron Kosminsi? And what makes him a strong candidate in the Jack the Ripper case? Let's find out.
Who Was Aaron Kosminski?
Aaron Kosminski was born in Poland in 1864 or 1865, probably in Russia, but it's not confirmed exactly where he was born. Nothing is really known about Kosminskis earlier life. However, we do know that he had sisters.
He moved with his sisters and their families to England in 1882. Though, his mother and father did not move to England.
Kosminski worked as a hairdresser or barber, though he was unemployed at the time that he moved to England. When he moved to Whitechapel in London, he worked as a hairdresser or barber. Kosminski may have worked on and off while living in Whitechapel, as it was said that he had years of unemployment between jobs.
While living in Whitechapel, Aaron Kosminski lived with two brothers and one sister. He lived in a place in Whitechapel known asGreenfield Street. Interestingly, Greenfield Street was near to where Jack the Rippers third victim, Elizabeth Stride was murdered. Greenfield Street was also close to where a potential Jack the Ripper victim was killed, Martha Tabram.
The street may have been close to where Elizabeth Stride and Martha Tabram where murder, while also not being too far from where the other women were murdered, the location of Aaron Kosminskis residence at the time of the Ripper murders, isn't enough evidence to say that he was the killer.
However, it is also something that we should take into consideration, as it puts Aaron Kosminski at the heart of Whitechapel, while the murders took place. It's very likely that Jack the Ripper lived in Whitechapel, therefore, Aaron Kosminski ticks the location box.
There is something else to consider with this, experts believe that Jack the Ripper was living in Flower and Dean Street at the time of the murders. If true, that would rule Aaron Kosminski out, unless he did, in fact, live in Flower and Dean Street during the duration of the Ripper murders.
Aaron Kosminski As A Suspect
There literally hundreds of Jack the Ripper suspects. Many of them can be easily disregarded, with nothing seemingly linking them to the murders, or even Whitechapel itself. It seems as if many of the Jack the Ripper suspects are only suspects because they were alive at the time of the murders.
With Aaron Kosminski, it is different. He is one of the strongest suspects, who could have potentially been Jack the Ripper. However, there are also arguments against him being Jack the Ripper. Let us look at the arguments for him being Jack and arguments against him being Jack.
Arguments For And Against Him Being Jack
There is a problem with this though. The problem is that Macnaghten did not give a forename to Kosminski. That could mean that it could have been anyone, specifically a man, being the Kosminski that Macnaghten was referring to. It seems most likely that he was referring to Aaron Kosminski, but that isn't 100% certain.
. If the Kosminski that Macnaghten is referring to is Aaron, then he is also a strong suspect, as Kosminski was said to have a hatred of women, according to Macnaghten.
. Kosminski was also have said to have strong homicidal tendencies, which again, makes him a strong candidate for the Ripper.
. It also possible that Kosminski was identified as Jack the Ripper by another person. The person who identified Kosminski wouldn't testify against him, apparently. That being saying, this is dubious.
. There was a shawl of Catherine Eddowes, one of Jack the Ripper's victims, which apparently had the DNA of Kosminski on it. This 'evidence' is highly controversial though.
. Kosminski was said to have had ''violent tendencies''. He was sent to a workhouse and later a lunatic asylum because of these violent tendencies of ''brandishing a knife''. Considering Jack the Ripper was violent and used a knife, this is eye opening material.
. There is no physical evidence to suggest that he committed the murders, or was Jack the Ripper.
Conclusion About Aaron Kosminski
Aaron Kosminski is certainly one of the more interesting suspects in the Ripper case. If he is the person that Melvine Macnaghten is referring to, then it makes him an, even more, stronger candidate and potentially Jack the Ripper.
There are many things which make Aaron Kosminski a strong suspect and a serious one to consider. Whether we are looking at Aaron Kosminski or another Kosminski, we have a strong candidate here. He was:
. In Whitechapel at the time. Therefore, would have known the area well. The back alleys well. He would have known the routes to escape and evade the police. Potentially even knowing their police routines.
. He was sent to be violent. His violence was one which saw him wielding a knife. This behaviour alone isn't enough to conclude that he was a murderer, but, it does suggest that this was a man who had and did have the potential to behave in a violent manner.
. He had a hatred of women. Having a hatred of women is not enough to say that Kosminski was a killer. However, a potential motive could have been a hatred of women. Or, specifically having a hatred of prostitutes. It's also possible that he didn't have a specific hatred of prostitutes, they were just easy targets for Jack, as they were vulnerable.
. Lastly, Kosminski was committed to an insane asylum not long after the murders stopped. If Kosminski was Jack the Ripper, then we'd know why the murders stopped.
Aaron Kosminski is one of the best Ripper suspects that we have. But his candidacy to suspect does not come with problems. The shawl that was said to contain his DNA is potentially unauthentic, as its findings have been criticized, along with the fact that the shawl has been cross contaminated.
Besides the shawl, there is no physical evidence to conclude that Aaron Kosminsi, or even Kosminski was Jack the Ripper.
Who Was Fredrick Abberline?
Fredrick Abberline was born on the 8th January 1843, in Blandford Dorset. His father was Edward Abberline and his mother was Hannah Abberline. His parents had three other children; Emily Abberline, Harriett Abberline and Edward Abberline.
Hannah Abberline, Fredrick Abberline's mother, was forced to raise all four of them alone when her husband died in 1849. She went on to raise the children alone as a widow and opened a shop to support herself and her family.
Apart from this, there is not much else known about Fredrick Abberline's early life. Most of his life is documented from the time he was in the police force, it was while in the police force that he would come face-to-face hunting for the mysterious figure of Jack the Ripper.
Fredrick Abberline Begins His Career
His career began on the 5th of January 1863, when he joined the Metropolitan Police. A few years later, on the 19th of August 1865, he was promoted to being sergeant.
Almost a decade later, in 1873, Fredrick Abberline was promoted to being an inspector.
A few months before the Autumn of Terror, in which Jack the Ripper killed five women, Fredrick Abberline was appointed as 1st class inspector, in February 1888. Over three years later, in December 1890, Abberline was appointed as chief inspector at the Metropolitan Police.
Who Did Abberline Think That Jack The Ripper Was?
Since Abberline was the prominent figure in the hunt for Jack the Ripper, his knowledge of the ripper murders is probably better than anyone else at the time the events took place.
In an interview with the Pall Mall Gazette, at the turn of the century, in 1903, Fredrick Abberline named George Chapman as his preferred suspect for Jack the Ripper.
The hunt forJack the Ripper and head of the Whitechapel Murders was headed by the City of London Police and the London Metropolitan Police.
The London Metropolitan Police was made up of several inspectors and constables, who were in charge of finding the culprit for the Whitechapel Murders. They were, in effect, responsible for catching the world's most notorious serial killer - Jack the Ripper. But, who were these men? Who were the men who led the hunt for Jack the Ripper? Let's take a look.
Who Were The Whitechapel Police Inspectors?
The following men were the inspectors and constables of the Whitechapel murders:
Chief Inspector Fredrick Abberline
Sir Robert Anderson
Walter Andrews
Walter Andrews was an inspector in the Whitechapel murder case.
Thomas Arnold
Thomas Arnold was a police officer involved in the Jack the Ripper case.
Detective Constable Walter Dew
Detective Constable Walter Dew was a detective during the Whitechapel murders.
Sergeant George Godley
George Godley was an inspector at the time of the Whitechapel murders.
Inspector George Henry
Inspector George Henry was an inspector during the time of the Whitechapel Murders.
Chief Inspector John George Littlechild
Chief Inspector John George Littlechild was an inspector during the time of the Jack the Ripper murders.
Sir Melvine Macnaghten
Sir Melvine Macnaghten was appointed assistant chief constable in 1889, several months after the last Whitechapel murder took place.
Here is a list of the main inspectors, constables and polices officers who were involved in the case:
Inspector Fredrick Abberline
Sir Robert Anderson
Inspectator Walter Andrews
Superintendent Thomas Arnold
Detective Constable Walter Dew
Detective Sergeant George Godley
PC James Harvey
Inspector Joseph Henry Helson
Chief Inspector John George Littlechild
Sir Melvine Macnaghten
James Monro
Chief Inspector Henry Moore
PC John Neil
Inspector Edmund Reid
Detectable Constable Robert Sagar
Major Henry Smith
PC William Smith
Inspectator John Spratling
Chief Inspector Donald Swanson
Sergeant William Thick
P.C. Ernest Thomson
Sir Charles Warren
PC Edward Watkins
Sergent Stephen White
and,
Chief Constable Adolphus Fredrick Williamson
These are the top men who were responsible for the Whitechapel Murders, and overviewing the investigation into the murders between 1888 and 1891.
The Metropolitan Police covered and still covers, the wider London area, excluding the city of London. During the ripper murders, four of the Canonical Five victims, Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride and Mary Jane Kelly, were all murdered within the Metropolitan Police district of London. Whereas, Catherine Eddowes, wasmurdered within the City of London police district.
Therefore, the Whitechapel Murders had two different police forces investigating the Jack the Ripper murders. Did the police know who he was? Did the police know who Jack the Ripper was?
These are the men that had the best insight into the case. They had first-hand knowledge of the Whitechapel murders. Those involved in the case had somewhat different ideas to who Jack the Ripper was. A failure for there to be a consensus among the police at the time is perhaps one reason why there are so many suspects. It could also be why the Ripper was never caught.
But what did the top man think of it all, Inspector Fredrick Abberline? In aninterview with the Cassell’s Saturday Journal, Abberline spoke to a journalist about his thoughts on the case and on the ripper. This is what he said:
“His friendly relations with the shady folk who crowd into the common lodging houses enabled him to pursue his investigations connected with the murders with the greatest certainty, and the facilities afforded him made it clear to his mind that the miscreant was not to be found lurking in a “dossers” kitchen. In fact, the desire of the East Enders to assist the police was so keen that the number of statements made – all of them requiring to be recorded and searched into – was so great that the officer almost broke down under the pressure.”
He went on to say:
“…his anxiety to bring the murderer to justice led him, after occupying the whole day in directing his staff, to pass his time in the streets until early morning, driving home fagged and weary at 5am. And it happened frequently, too, that just as he was going to bed, he would be summoned back to the East End by a telegraph, there to interrogate some lunatic or suspected person whom the inspector in charge would not take the responsibility of questioning.”
Abberline said of the Jack the Ripper theories:
“”Theories!” – we were lost almost in theories; there were so many of them.”
In other words, the police were overwhelmed by the number of ripper suspects and the theories surrounding the mystery.
Several years later, Fredrick Abberline gave an interview to the Pall Mall Gazette. In the interview he reaffirmed that the police were no more wise about the true identity of Jack the Ripper. Abberline said to the Gazetter that "Scotland Yard is really no wiser on the subject than it was fifteen years ago."
However, he did go on to name a suspect, of who he thought Jack the Ripper was. He indecated that he thought that George Chapman, otherwise known as Klosowski, was Jack the Ripper. Abberline said about Klosowski that, "...I cannot help feeling that this is the man we struggled so hard to capture fifteen years ago." Abberline's full interview to the Pall Mall Gazette was as follows:
''I have been so struck with the remarkable coincidences in the two series of murders that I have not been able to think of anything else for several days past -- not, in fact, since the Attorney-General made his opening statement at the recent trial, and traced the antecedents of Chapman before he came to this country in 1888. Since then the idea has taken full possession of me, and everything fits in and dovetails so well that I cannot help feeling that this is the man we struggled so hard to capture fifteen years ago...
As I say, there are a score of things which make one believe that Chapman is the man; and you must understand that we have never believed all those stories about Jack the Ripper being dead, or that he was a lunatic, or anything of that kind. For instance, the date of the arrival in England coincides with the beginning of the series of murders in Whitechapel; there is a coincidence also in the fact that the murders ceased in London when Chapman went to America, while similar murders began to be perpetrated in America after he landed there. The fact that he studied medicine and surgery in Russia before he came over here is well established, and it is curious to note that the first series of murders was the work of an expert surgeon, while the recent poisoning cases were proved to be done by a man with more than an elementary knowledge of medicine. The story told by Chapman's wife of the attempt to murder her with a long knife while in America is not to be ignored.''
TheWhitechapel Murders were documented under one file, the file closed after the last murder, which took place on the 13th of February 1891. All of the murders which occurred from the 3rd of April, up until the 13th of February 1891, have been linked to Jack the Ripper at one time or another.
The file involves the deaths and murders of eleven women, who have been linked to the Jack the Ripper case. Those eleven women are Emma Elizabeth Smith, Martha Tabram, Mary Ann Nichols, Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Eddowes, Mary Jane Kelly, Rose Mylett, Alice McKenzie, Frances Coles and an unidentified woman, it was only the torso of the unidentified women which was found.
The murders struck fear and horror into the residents of Whitechapel, particularly during the Autumn of 1888. It also resulted in the creation of the world's most notorious serial killer - Jack the Ripper.
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