Below are several clippings and artifacts from various newspapers during and around 1888. The Ripper’s killings were covered tirelessly by penny papers: cheap newspapers sold all around London. Much of the content within these papers is not based on fact, and were written solely to capture attention and to sell more. They even published the various letters and telegrams that were allegedly sent by the Ripper (even though most were fake).
PC Jonas Mizen Discovers Mary Ann Nichols
This is an illustration of a police officer finding the body of Mary Ann Nichols, the first canonical victim of Jack the Ripper. What’s interesting is that this illustration was published in the Famous Crimes, Past and Present paper in 1903, several years after the initial murders in 1888. It goes to show how captivating these murders were, and how the Ripper would go on to live in infamy.
From Hell Letter
This is a letter addressed to the police on October 15, 1888. It reads: “I send you half of the kidne I took from one women prasarved it for you tother piece I fried and ate it was very nise. I may send you the bloody knif that took it out if you only wate a whil longer.”
Jack the Ripper Postcard
This postcard was received by the Ealing Police Station on October 29, 1888. The letter, signed by Jack the Ripper, makes mention of two other women he wants (presumably for victims). “Half a kidney” is a reference to the other letter to the police, which included half of a kidney from one of the victims. Interestingly, this letter spells many words differently than the other.
A Telegraph and Letter from Jack the Ripper
Yet another report on a telegram claiming to be sent by the Ripper. What’s interesting about this report is that it acknowledges that there had been many different letters and ‘practical jokes,’ yet it simultaneously contributes to the spread of fear and sensationalism. The claims the paper makes have no physical proof or basis.
Pay close attention to the fear mongering in the language used, as well as the dehumanization of the victims; prostitution and sex work was deeply frowned upon in the rest of London. In fact, it was so demonized that the Ripper was often seen as a twisted anti-hero, ‘cleaning up’ the streets of Whitechapel. The violent nature of the murders, combined with the identity of the victims, turned the killings into a spectacle for the wealthy to look upon from a distance, but not become involved in.
Letter Written by a Man Charged with Murder
This is a newspaper article from December 8, 1894, several years after the initial five Whitechapel murders. It recounts how a man charged with the murder of a woman appeared to have written a letter signing himself as “Jack the Ripper.” Due to the time and location of this murder, it was impossible that the prisoner was responsible for the actual Whitechapel murders. Furthermore, this is not the only example of murderers taking on the Ripper name.