The Crazy Female Slaughterhouse Worker Theory ( Autumn 1889 )

[Howard Brown]

Rochester Democrat And Chronicle
September 21, 1889
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[Curryong]

Were women employed in slaughter houses? Interesting. In Australia there was a particularly horrific murder some years ago of a woman who had been employed in an abbatoir and so successfully killed and skinned her husband from top to toe that his facial features were still discernible.

[Gary Barnett]

Were women employed in slaughter houses?

"Probably".

[Gary Barnett]

"Probably".

Actually there was a lady named Matilda Palmer who was described as a horse slaughterer in Romford in the 1900s. I doubt she actually wielded the poleaxe, though.

[Howard Brown]

In Australia there was a particularly horrific murder some years ago of a woman who had been employed in an abbatoir and so successfully killed and skinned her husband from top to toe that his facial features were still discernible.

Curryong

I seem to recall reading about that, Curry.....didn't the woman have red hair ?
Damned if I can remember the other details.

[Howard Brown]

This is the case Curry mentioned....Katherine Knight

Worth reading, folks.

http://murderpedia.org/female.K/k/knight-katherine.htm


At 16 she joined her father, twin sister Joy and brother Charlie boning out carcasses at the Aberdeen abattoir. In the predominately male domain, Katherine became as tough as the best of them and gave as much as she got in the boning-floor jargon that would make a wharfie blush. She was renowned for not taking a backward step and with her knife in hand she'd challenge anyone who offended her to armed combat to abruptly sort the matter out. No one ever took her on. Katherine's proudest possession was her set of razor sharp boning knives which she kept in pride of place above her bed so she could have one last look at them at night before nodding off to sleep, no doubt to dream about killing animals and carving up their remains.

[Chris G.]

Lawson Tait (1845-1899)

Needless to say, pioneer British gynecologist Lawson Tait's rather odd theory about the female abattoir worker has been discussed here before. Here is a more extended version of the 1889 news story about Tait's theory as posted by Howard earlier here.

North Eastern Daily Gazette
September 21, 1889
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Also see http://www.jtrforums.com/showthread.php?p=91309 and http://www.jtrforums.com/showthread.php?p=200606.

Best regards

Chris

[Jerry Dunlop]

From Forbes Winslow's Recollections of Forty Years.

The butchers came in for a good deal of attention, and it was considered a significant fact that there always existed a slaughterhouse in close proximity to the scene of the murders. Detectives disguised as slaughtermen obtained work in several of these houses in order to keep a sharp eye on what was going on. It was stated that the murderer might be a woman in disguise of a slaughterman.

[Chris G.]

From Forbes Winslow's Recollections of Forty Years.

The butchers came in for a good deal of attention, and it was considered a significant fact that there always existed a slaughterhouse in close proximity to the scene of the murders. Detectives disguised as slaughtermen obtained work in several of these houses in order to keep a sharp eye on what was going on. It was stated that the murderer might be a woman in disguise of a slaughterman.

Thanks, Jerry!

Chris