‘Born with the devil in me’
investigation as well as the Philadelphia scam. Though he would not be charged in their deaths, Holmes confessed to murdering the Pitezal children in his care during their travels.
After finally being apprehended in Boston, Holmes was returned to Philadelphia, where he was found guilty of Benjamin Pitezal’s murder. While in prison awaiting execution, he continued his pathological lying by issuing confessions, some paid for by the media, that varied between claims of murdering 27 people in Chicago and committing none.
He claimed the shape of his skull was changing, resulting in a Satanic appearance, and wrote, “I was born with the devil in me.” In spite of or because of this, he also spent time speaking with two Roman Catholic priests. While contemporary sources differ on whether he made a proper conversion to Catholicism and was baptized, he was able to secure burial in consecrated ground at Holy Cross.
In the years since Larson’s “Devil in the White City,” research on Holmes has taken divergent paths from the common narrative. Last month, Chicago writer Adam Seltzer released “H.H. Holmes: The True History of the White City Devil,” calling into question large portions of the Holmes story. He writes in the book’s introduction, “The actual number of World’s Fair tourists he’s suspected of killing there (the “Murder Castle”) has remained the same since 1895 – a single woman … The hidden rooms were almost certainly used more for hiding stolen furniture than for destroying bodies.”
Looking at the growth of the Holmes legend, Seltzer references “Roswellian Syndrome,” referring to the 1947 Roswell, N.M. UFO incident, which he describes as “a strange case captures the public imagination, is largely debunked and goes underground, where time transform it enough that when it reemerges as a wilder story than ever. The Holmes story went through this cycle more than once.” The crux of Seltzer’s argument is that the Holmes story is that of “an American tall tale,” rooted more in the sensational reporting of many 19th century newspapers and retellings in 1930s and ‘40s pulp magazines than in the more reliable but little-examined legal documents, witness statements and other primary sources.
Was he Jack the Ripper?
On the other side of the spectrum, Holmes’ great-great-grandson Jeff Mudgett has advanced the idea that Holmes escaped execution and, prior to his time at the “Murder Castle,” was in London and responsible for the murder of Catherine Eddowes, the third victim of Jack the Ripper. Mudgett, who did not reply to a request for comment, has promoted these ideas, found in his book “Bloodstains,” through interviews and author talks, including a 2014 stop at Neumann University in Aston.
Drawing on his background as an attorney, Jeff Mudgett’s presentations at Neumann and elsewhere featured swearing in the audience as a grand jury. Presenting supposed similarities between Holmes’ handwriting and that of the “Dear Boss” letter sent to the Central News Agency of London in advance of the Eddowes slaying, and between Holmes’ mug shot and a composite of eyewitness descriptions of Jack the Ripper, Mudgett would ask the audience whether they would indict Holmes for the murder of Eddowes.
The sensational side of the Holmes story has found its way to cable television, with a 2013 episode of History’s “Haunted History” exploring the remains of the “Murder Castle” basement (the structure was torn down in the 1930s and a post office built in its place).
The results of the DNA analysis will presumably be featured in an upcoming television program, as the University of Pennsylvania Museum personnel were unable to comment for this story due to a production company holding exclusive media rights. The production company did not respond to a request for comment.
As researchers continue to sort out the facts of Holmes’ life and criminal career, followers continue to read and watch the latest developments. “The Holmes case is a morbid one,” said Edgette. “There is a tendency in most people for morbid curiosity. When something is almost unbelievable, people are willing to dig further into it — they’re fascinated by what they learn.”