20. So, who was Jack the Ripper?
Jack the Ripper as he is known today is the creation of a sensationalist press in London, and later around the world, in the late 19th century. Since the murders of 1888, the case has grown ever more sensationalized with each retelling. There is no doubt a serial killer, or killers, prowled the dark streets of Whitechapel during those frightening weeks that fall. The police sought the killer to the best of their ability, asking the public for help. The press served the same public a steadily increasing diet of speculation, fear-mongering, and gruesome details. They spiced it with anti-Semitic innuendo and attacks on the immigrant population of Whitechapel and its environs. They did so to the extent the police were forced to keep much of what they knew at the time quiet, to avoid rioting in the streets and recriminations against some members of the community.
The failure to officially arrest and convict the killer known as Jack the Ripper created a cottage industry which has grown ever since, and continues to grow with each new revelation in the case. It was the press who gave him his name. Reporters and journalists wrote the majority of the letters attributed to him, hoaxers the rest. Yet the authenticity of nearly all the letters remains subject to challenges by those supporting or rejecting each new hypothesis. The truth is, some people don’t want Jack the Ripper to be conclusively identified; it’s simply too much fun looking for him. It’s profitable too, thousands of books have been published on the subject of the Ripper and the many suspects in his case. Some are based on factual scholarship, some are complete fiction, and some straddle the gap in between. But to date, none have proved beyond dispute the identity of Jack the Ripper.
Where do we find this stuff? Here are our sources:
“Why did these 11 deaths happen?” Article, The Whitechapel Murders. Online
“Leather Apron”. Richard Jones, Jack-the-Ripper.org. Online
“Jack the Ripper, Dear Boss Letter”. Article, National Archives (UK). Online
“‘Suspicious Characters’ from the Illustrated London News”. Article, British Library Online
“Is this Jack the Ripper?” Reporter, The Daily Mail. August 6, 2011
“Two say they’ve solved Jack the Ripper mystery”. Associated Press, October 2, 1987
“The Jack the Ripper Suspects”. Article, Jack-the-Ripper.org
“Was America’s first serial killer Jack the Ripper?” Claire Carter, Mirror Online. July 25. 2017