In the United Kingdom there have been over two thousand serial killers who have not bee
n identified. They would stroll along the dark streets murdering innocent citizens. Leaving nothing but blood behind the murderers would remain a mystery. There is one serial killer whose case, to this day, still draws attention to researchers. Jack the Ripper is infamous for murdering women and remaining unidentified. Over the course of a hundred years many theories have been developed. These conspiracy theories suggest that we might have mistaken his gender or he was a well-known author. The case may be closed, but many people to this day continue to research him in order to discover his true identity. There is a chance that we could be wrong, or could be right. No one will ever know the truth to who he is or why.
While there are countless theories surrounding the case, two in particular warrant closer examination. One would be that Jack the Ripper is actually Jill the Ripper. On the morning of the fifth canonical victim’s murder, Mrs. Caroline Maxwell claimed to have seen the victim twice, hours after the time frame. An inspector wondered if Maxwell only saw the killer in Kelly’s clothes instead of Kelly. The murderer was most likely a midwife if this is true. Being a midwife would have made it easier to remain unidentified. The only female suspect was named Mary Pearcey. However, she was executed in 1890. According to the History Channel: “In 1890 was executed for murdering her lover’s wife and child with a carving knife” (7 People Suspected of Being Jack the Ripper). She dated a man who cheated on her, had a child with the other woman, and married the other woman. They both continued to see each other while he was married. Soon after the child was born, Pearcey murdered it and the mother. The crime was quickly uncovered and she was subsequently sent to trial. The reasoning behind the “Jill the Ripper” theory is based on her last words including the acronym: M.E.C.P. which happen to match the first name initials as the victims. She murdered her victims during the same year and possessed the skills necessary to carry out the crimes. It could have been easy for her to slip away based on Mrs. Maxwell’s observations out the window. Which led to the opportunity to remain unidentified.
Another example of the Jill The Ripper theory is from William Stewart’s Jack the Ripper: A New Theory. From the article Jill the Ripper: Was Jack the Ripper a Deranged Midwife? Stewart explains that midwives had the knowledge of where pressure points were located to determine whether or not a woman is unconscious. It was common in the Victorian England era to check when women went into labor.
The second is the possibility that he had been the author, Lewis Carroll. Due to possible anagrams in his stories and childhood, Lewis Carroll was a possible suspect. According to PBS Antiques Roadshow: “Carroll had been a prolific amateur photographer, making approximately 3,000 photographs in his lifetime. Just over half of these images are of children, about 30 depict nude or semi-nude children.” The statement includes his passion for admiring the human form naked which could lead to the idea of him only murdering females. All of the suspects happened to be women. Many people became suspicious of him when it came to younger girls and teenagers. The girls would be his muse when he would photograph them with less clothing. Many believe he was attracted to them romantically throughout his adult life. Although there is no proof to state as a fact that it is true. Another reason would be that Carroll is a suspect because of his books and writings. For example, in one of his stories, Alice In Wonderland, the main character is named Alice. One of the Ripper’s first victims had the same name. However, the writing style is similar to Jack The Ripper’s letters. Based on what is stated in the blog, “Who Was Jack the Ripper – Was It Lewis Carroll?,” The style of the Ripper letters is kind of like Carroll’s writing style in his books. Both letters and books often omit words or letters to form passages, and sometimes they are not phrased in the most effective way.
In the end, Jack the Ripper remains a mystery. There were so many possibilities and ways to discover who he really was but now people can only assume. There is no concrete proof of his identity. There are numerous ideas that could be true or false, but there is a chance the case will remain unsolved.
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