Old Blood

Before Jack the Ripper, there was the Servant Girl Annihilator. The man who stalked Austin, Texas, in 1885, preying upon the city’s black servant girls. When he targeted two white women in a shocking Christmas Eve attack, all hell broke loose. Who was this servant girl killer, and was he the same man that terrorized London in 1888?Sources:Galloway, J. R. The Servant Girl Murders:

A widow is found brutally murdered in London's East End in the summer of 1860. Four decades later, Sherlock's creator, Arthur Conan Doyle was still trying and failing to solve the mystery. Can we do better than Sherlock Holmes?Sources:Doyle, Arthur Conan. "The Debatable Case of Mrs. Emsley." Strand Magazine. May, 1901."JAMES MULLINS. Killing; murder. 22nd O

A widow is found brutally murdered in London's East End in the summer of 1860. Four decades later, Sherlock's creator, Arthur Conan Doyle was still trying and failing to solve the mystery. Can we do better than Sherlock Holmes?Sources:Doyle, Arthur Conan. "The Debatable Case of Mrs. Emsley." Strand Magazine. May, 1901."JAMES MULLINS. Killing; murder. 22nd O

A decade-old murder mystery unravels when a secret is discovered in a Los Angeles attic. Even in 1930, the press declared the mystery of Dolly and the Bat Man Slayer as"Los Angeles' most startling murder story."Sources:Hapsis, Emmanuel. "Meet Walburga, the Married Woman Who Hid a Secret Lover in Her Attic for a Decade." KQED. 29 June, 2016. https://www.kqed

In the summer of 1933, 18-year-old Violette Noziere poisoned her parents before heading out to enjoy the Parisian nightlife. When she was arrested and gave the motive for her crime, Violette scandalized the country.Sources:Breton, Andre. Violette Nozieres (Brussels: Editions Nicolas Flamel, 1933).Maza, Sarah. Violette Noziere: A Story of Murder in 1930s Paris (Berkeley: University

The Dark Strangler prowled the streets of Jazz Age San Francisco. His murder spree spanned nine states, two countries, and three years, resulting in the murder of anywhere from 22 to 31 women and children. This is the story of America’s most prolific–and forgotten–serial killer, Earl Leonard Nelson.Sources:Esau, Alvin. The Gorilla Man Strangler Case (Altona: Friesen Press, 20

In the summer of 1874, little Charley Ross disappeared after taking candy from a stranger. This is the story of America’s first kidnapping and the nationwide manhunt that ended in a deadly shoot-out.Sources:“Charlie Ross - Gustave Blair - Nelson Miller” https://charleyross.com/“Court Identifies ‘Charley Ross’ But Family ‘Disowns’ Him.” Evening star. (Washington, D

In 1897, sausage sales plummeted after the wife of the so-called Sausage King suddenly went missing. Chicago police investigated the factory and a mysterious vat filled with reddish-brown slime. Did the wife run away? Was she ground into sausages? Or perhaps something worse?Sources:Duke, Thomas Samuel. Celebrated Criminal Cases of America (San Francisco: The James H Barry Company,

It was nearly midnight in May 1911 when crowds left the theater and gathered at the Brown Palace Hotel barroom. Within minutes, shots rang out and patrons scrambled for cover, but two would not survive. What prompted such a brazen shooting in Denver’s most elegant hotel?Sources:Faulkner, Debra. Ladies of the Brown: A Women’s History of Denver’s Most Elegant Hotel (Arcadia Pub

In the middle of the American Civil War, a horse trader was found in a south Texas river with his head axed in. Following the discovery, the town sheriff arrested an elderly woman by the name of Chipita Rodriguez. Was justice served?Sources:Abernethy, Francis Edward. Legendary Ladies of Texas (Denton: University of North Texas Press, 1994).Correa, Tom. “Was Josefa ‘Chipita’ R