The Tottenham Court Torso of 1884

[A.P. Wolf]

I thought it useful to get the newspaper reports out concerning this little known case, so that it might be discussed. I'm glad to see my old memory didn't fail me, and that parts of the victim were indeed found at King's Cross Railway Station.
I do have a view of what was going on in this case but I'd be interested to hear what others think.
The respective dates are: October 24th 1884, October 31st 1884 and November 11th 1884.

http://i908.photobucket.com/albums/ac287/HowieNina/kingscross1.jpg
http://i908.photobucket.com/albums/ac287/HowieNina/1884.jpg
http://i908.photobucket.com/albums/ac287/HowieNina/tattoo1.jpg

[Debra Arif]

AP, wasn't abortion also mentioned in one of these Tottenham cases?
I seem to remember that an axe was thought to have been used to dismember these, the mentioned skill of disarticualting joints in the 1887-1889 cases, wasn't shown was it?
The tattoo suggests a lower class woman, possibly a prostitute.

[A.P. Wolf]

Thanks Debs, I'm not sure about the abortion angle, I've found nothing yet that indicates it, but perhaps you have more detail from the post mortems?
I'm not sure that I would up and agree with you straight away that the tattoo indicates a woman of the 'unfortunate' class, but I'd agree it is most likely. What makes me hesitate is that I believe such bracelet tattoos above the wrist were indications of service in HM's armed forces, or perhaps the wife or girl friend of such.
Of course at that point in the LVP it was considered enormously 'risque' by the upper class gal to have a small tattoo placed somewhere, usually out of sight... and I think Winston Churchill's mother had such a tattoo.
On another tack, my feeling is that we might be looking at the first experimental Torso murder in this case, where the killer had not yet migrated to the Thames to dispose of his dubious wares, but finding his 'bits' so easily discovered he then progressed to the Embankment.

[Debra Arif]

Ap, here is one relevant article from the later inquests on one of the Tottenham finds. There were two separate finds, found later to be unrelated. the Mornington Crescent find was deemed to be a genuine discarded medical specimen, and had been burried shortly after its finding.
Abortion was mentioned in the case of the second set of remains (the lady with the tattoo):
Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper (London, England), Sunday, December 14, 1884



http://i977.photobucket.com/albums/ae252/djaye1806/Tottenham%201884/LloydsWeeklyNewspaperLondonEnglandS.jpg

sorry, I can't seem to make it any bigger.

[How Brown]

Debs:

Here it is....

http://i908.photobucket.com/albums/ac287/HowieNina/Photo%20Thanksgiving/tot1.jpg
http://i908.photobucket.com/albums/ac287/HowieNina/Photo%20Thanksgiving/tot2.jpg
http://i908.photobucket.com/albums/ac287/HowieNina/Photo%20Thanksgiving/tot3.jpg

[Debra Arif]

Thanks How! Much better.

It's interesting that again, in the case of the tattooed lady, the doctor's opinion was that the joints had been skillfully disarticulated, one of the few things that link the Rainham, Whitehall and Elizabeth Jackson cases together.

[A.P. Wolf]

Thanks Debs & How for the responses.
Interesting indeed... in that the medics involved felt it easy to distinguish between a torso - and its disarticulated parts - that had been subject to legal disection, and one that had not.
The medics involved in the later torso murders do not appear to be able make such an easy distinction; and one wonders why not?
Also interesting that the jury encourage the Treasury to offer a reward for the apprehension of those concerned in the death of the poor woman.
An abortion gone wrong?
I'm still not sure on that.

[Debra Arif]

I think they absolutely made the distinction in the later torso cases too, AP. there are several quotes from the medics that no dissection for medical purposes had occured in any of the later cases.

[A.P. Wolf]

I'll stand in the corner then, Debs, for an hour... but with a bottle of single malt to ease my humilation.
I think I might have been better employed by saying that there appeared to be more 'confusion' in this regard between the various medics in the later cases; and I think in particular here of the Whitehall Torso and the Pinchin Torso.
I've got another three corners of the room that I can still use, but not much malt.

[Debra Arif]

The Pinchin Street torso seems different to the other cases, to me. The mutilations were at a minimum, compared to Rainham, Whitehall, Jackson and this earlier Tottenham torso's. Only the head and legs were removed in the Pinchin St. case and although a fairly superficial cut was made to the abdomen of the Pinchin Street torso (for effect?), there wasn't the same removal of internal organs as in the four cases I mentioned. Even Mcnaghten didn't include the Pinchin Street torso when he made his 'at all fours' comment.