The famous 'Dear Boss’ letter, was delivered on the 25th September, 1888, which introduces the notorious nom de plume 'Jack the Ripper’, while considered a possibility as a genuine letter from the killer, also bears all the trademarks of a perfect media storm. There are other letters which have at one time or another been considered legitimate, or at least worthy of investigation, but these three are the main ones discussed. While from a personal perspective I give the 'From Hell’ letter the most credence, as it was sent, on the 15th of October to George Lusk, the chairman of the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee, and was accompanied by a portion of human kidney, all three of these letters were at the time, and by Ripperologists today, are considered possibly genuine. These are the ‘Dear Boss’ letter, the 'Saucy Jack’ postcard and the 'From Hell’ letter & grizzly package. There are three letters, of the hundreds sent, that are commonly believed to hold some water. However, the letters are not as simple as that. The idea that the murder was so confident in his crimes that he sent the police letters containing hints to his identity, and that he was right to be so confident, as he was never caught. The Ripper Letters are one of the biggest hooks about the mystery. I’ll divide this into two parts, and try and keep it as short and non-graphic as possible. This about the author info-dump is just to justify the quasi-essay that comes next. My ask box is open for anyone who wants to talk to me about this, or like anything even vaguely related.

I’m currently studying for my Master’s in Nineteenth Century Studies, with a strong social and crime focus. My undergraduate dissertation was on feminine murder in Victorian Britain and the influence and affect of the media.

Anything I write is intended in the spirit of respect and historical accuracy. However, I am also a historian, with a focus on gender and crime history. Long and grizzly post ahead.įirst up, I am a Ripperologist, as in I am involved in the study and analysis of Jack the Ripper: I’ve attended professionally run conferences, I read books, I posit theories, I talk to the experts. Right, I don’t normally do this sort of thing, and I save my comments for the tags. It was also once thought by Sherlock Holmes author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that the Ripper may have been a female posing as a midwife. Test results of letters allegedly sent by Jack the Ripper showed the DNA likely came from a woman.

From Whitechapel by Melanie Clegg