Holmes was unusual for a Serial Killer in that he was highly educated. Trained as a Doctor, he used his ties to the medical world to dispose of his corpses. He would sell the bones to schools and hospitals to be used as training materials! As well as being a killer Holmes was also a swindler and con man, taking his victims money as well as their lives. He was also an architect. He designed his hotel in Chicago that became known as "The Castle." He designed it to be respectable on the outside, but a chamber of horrors on the inside. He built a crematorium, lime pit, and torture chamber in the basement. He would lock victims into the massive vault he had installed until they died of suffocation. He killed his business partner and the partner's three children. When he was finally caught he claimed that Satan had possessed him.
For more on Holmes please read Erick Larson's book or check out John Borowski's documentary H.H. Holmes: America's First Serial Killer. This short film tells the story of Holmes through re-creations, newspaper clips from the era, and photos of Holmes and his victims. I found it very well made and more than a little creepy.
2 comments:
Is "The Castle" still standing? Just wondering, because there are more than a few buildings in Chicago that would fit that name.
World fairs are fascinating. My grandpa went to one and had his reflexes tested and was told that he had the fastest reflexes ever recorded- something he believed until his dying day, without ever considering that your reflexes slow with age.
I wish they still had world's fairs.
The Castle burned to the ground and is now a post office. Quite fitting actually.
Post a Comment