Mary and Carl Bach

The Gruesome History of Ohio’s “Fingers in the Jar”

Three of Mary Bach’s fingers, hacked off by her murderous husband in 1881, were displayed in a jar for more than a century in Bowling Green, Ohio.
Portrait of Nancy Clem

Money, Murder, and Mrs. Clem

Nancy Clem was a Gilded Age con artist whose swindles eventually turned deadly. Her crimes would test the era’s assumptions about class, gender, and criminality.
An illustration of the case of Maria Elisabetha Beckensteinerin

Suicide by Proxy

In early Modern Europe, suicide was a sin to be punished with eternal damnation. Some women found an awful workaround: committing murder.
Amy Robsart by T.F. Dicksee

How Did Amy Robsart Die?

Five centuries later, we’re still not sure whether Robsart, wife of Robert Dudley, fell accidentally, was pushed, or threw herself down the stairs to her death.
Photograph: Still from  "Only Murders in the Building"

Source: Hulu

Why Mystery Fiction Is So Engaging

Tracking down the killer appeal of the hit show Only Murders in the Building.
Marie Lafarge, c. 1850

The Arsenic Cake of Madame Lafarge

The first trial to use forensic toxicology electrified France in 1840 with the tale of a bad marriage and poisoned innards.
Punch Jack the Ripper

How Jack the Ripper Became a Legend

In 1880s London, an anti-prostitution campaign, anti-immigration feelings, and a deep class divide set the scene for the Jack the Ripper media frenzy.
Lizzie Borden

Why We’re So Obsessed With Lizzie Borden’s 40 Whacks

Lizzie Borden’s father and stepmother were brutally murdered, possibly by Lizzie herself, in August 1892. Why are we still dissecting the crime?
Harvard quad

The Infamous Tale of the Murderous Chemistry Professor

The murder of Dr. George Parkman on the campus of Harvard College was one of the most famous crimes in nineteenth century America.
Holotype of Diplazium grammatoides Fée; Verified by George R. Proctor, 1985/10

Botanist and Murderer? The Strange End of George R. Proctor

The obituary of noted botanist George R. Proctor reveals a surprising story.