Friday, September 13, 2013

Today Marks the Anniversary of the First Auto Death in the US

 
Although we take them for granted, autos have only played a part in our transportation for the past 125 years. And, as with anything new, there were plenty of “firsts” where the motorized wagon was concerned.

In fact, it was 114 years ago today that the first known person was killed in a motorized vehicle accident in North America.  


Henry H. Bliss
San Remo Hotel
 It was around 9 p.m. on September 13, 1899, when 62-year-old Henry Hale Bliss, a Manhattan real estate dealer, stepped from a streetcar at West 74th Street and Central Park West in New York, to stand in front of the San Remo Hotel.  Bliss turned to offer his assistance to a female passenger, a Miss Lee, who was also getting off the streetcar, when an electric-powered taxicab struck him.

Bliss Death Certificate
Roosevelt Surgery
According to reports, Bliss was knocked to the ground by the impact and the taxi ran over his head and chest. Roosevelt Hospital surgeon, Dr. Marney, told officials that Bliss had been injured so badly he could not be expected to live. Bliss died of his injuries at Roosevelt Hospital the next morning around 6:25.


The driver of the oncoming cab, Arthur Smith was arrested and charged with
NYC Electric Cabs in 1899
manslaughter. Smith said that a large truck was blocking the right lane, “making it necessary for him to run his vehicle close to the car.
” Smith was later acquitted on grounds that the accident was not intentional.

The passenger in Smith’s cab at the time of the accident was Dr. David Orr Edison, son of former New York City Mayor Franklin Edison. Edison was returning from a call on a patient in Harlem at the time of the accident. He immediately sent for an ambulance after examining Bliss and proceeded to do what he could to keep him alive until help arrived.


Bliss Accident Scene

New York City Pedestrians
Cabbies and motormen referred to the area where Bliss was killed as the “dangerous stretch” because so many accidents had occurred there during the preceding summer.






Bliss's Grave Site
Henry Hale Bliss was buried at Cedar Grove Cemetery in Flushing, New York. There is no stone to mark his grave today.

One hundred years later, on September 13, 1999, a plaque to commemorate the event was placed at the original scene of the accident. The plaque reads:


Commemorative Plaque
Here at West 74th Street and Central Park West, Henry H. Bliss dismounted from a streetcar and was struck and knocked unconscious by an automobile on the evening of September 13, 1899. When Mr. Bliss, a New York real estate man, died the next morning from his injuries, he became the first recorded motor vehicle fatality in the Western Hemisphere. This sign was erected to remember Mr. Bliss on the centennial of his untimely death and to promote safety on our streets and highways.


Mary Ward
There were actually two other vehicle deaths recorded in the world before Bliss. On August 31, 1869, 42-year-old Irish scientist Mary Ward was thrown from an experimental steam-powered car on a bend in the road in County Down in Ireland. Ward was thrown under the wheels of the car and run over. She died almost instantly from a broken neck. Ward is the first known person to have been killed in a motor vehicle accident.



Bridget Driscoll (Circled) and Family

In England on August 17, 1896, 44-year-old Bridget Driscoll was the first known U.K. pedestrian killed by an auto. Driscoll was crossing the grounds of the Crystal Palace on Sydenham Hill when she was struck by a motorized vehicle that was giving demonstration rides.

Crystal Palace Grounds
The driver of the car, Arthur Edsall claimed to be going 4 mph when the accident occurred, although some versions of the car could go up to 8 mph. The jury found the death to be accidental.

The accident occurred just a few weeks after Parliament had enacted a new speed limit allowing vehicles to travel up to 14 mph – an daring increase from the past limits of 2 mph in towns and 4 mph in the country.




At the close of 1900, there were close to 14,000 motorized vehicles on the roads in the U.S. and 36 people had died as the result of an auto accident. As of 2010, there were almost 240,000,000 vehicles on the road in America and there were over 25,500 vehicle deaths that year.

Morale of the story: Drive (and walk) safely!

~ Joy

Friday, September 6, 2013

125 Years Later - A Look Back at The Ripper’s Second Victim, Annie Chapman


Annie Chapman
She was known as “Dark Annie” because of her dark brown hair, but Annie Chapman was just another of Whitechapel’s “fallen women,” until the autumn of 1888 when that could end up costing you your life.

Annie Chapman was born in Paddington, England in September 1841 to George Smith and Ruth Chapman. (Her parents married six months later.)  Annie married a relative of her mother’s, John Chapman, on May 1st, 1869 in Knightsbridge.

Annie and John Chapman
John worked as a domestic coachman in order to support Annie and their two girls. By 1881, he was working as a farm bailiff, a type of supervisor who oversaw several tenant farms, collecting rents and making sure the farms were taken care of for the actual landowner. It was during this time that the Chapman’s had their only son, who was a cripple.

By 1885 Annie had tired of married life and took to the streets in London, selling crochet work, matches, and flowers. John Chapman provided Annie with a small allowance to help her get by, but she began making up the difference with casual prostitution.

Charingham's Lodging
Annie moved in with Jack Sivvey, a sieve maker, in 1886 and called herself Mrs. Sivvey. The arrangement was short-lived and Annie was soon on her own again, this time without the assistance of her husband John, who had died on Christmas Day 1886.

Over the next couple of years, Annie lived in several lodging and workhouses, eventuallybecoming a regular at the Crossingham’s Lodging House.



It was on Saturday, September 1, 1888 that Annie fought with another lodger, Eliza Cooper over a bar of soap. It appeared that Annie got the raw end of the deal and was sporting bruises and complaining of feeling ill on Monday the 3rd.  On September 4th her friend, Amelia Palmer noticed that Annie had not been drinking because of her pain. Palmer told Annie to go to the casual ward and get treated for her injuries.

Amelia Palmer
Annie was back at Crossingham’s Lodging House on Friday, September 5th and spent the afternoon sitting in the kitchen because she felt unwell. She left later in the day and met with her sister who gave her some money. Annie then ran into Amelia Palmer, and again complained of feeling ill.


Later in the evening Annie went to the hospital for some medicine and stopped along the
way to spend her money on beer. She then returned to sit in the lodging house kitchen to eat a late supper. Around 2 a.m.  John Evans, the lodging house night watchman turned her out for not having money enough for a bed.

Dark Annie said that she would earn her bed money and return soon, but many thought she was deep in her cups when she headed towards Spitalfields.


The next four hours of Annie’s life remain a mystery, but at 5:50 a.m. her body was discovered in the fenced backyard at 29 Hanbury Street. Unfortunately, sometime during the night Annie had made the acquaintance of Jack the Ripper.






29 Hanbury Street
Backyard of No. 29
Annie’s body was discovered a little before 6 a.m. by John Davis, a carman who lived at Number 29. The body was lying parallel with the fence, the head turned toward the house and the clothing pulled up around her waist. The abdomen had been ripped open and the throat cut so severely the head was nearly decapitated.

Davis reported the murder to the Commercial Street Police Station. Inspector Joseph Chandler was quickly on site clearing the Hanbury Street yard of spectators and sightseers.


Dr. Phillips Examines Chapman's Body
Dr. George Philips, the divisional police surgeon arrived by 6:30 a.m. According to Phillips testimony at the inquest, "The left arm was placed across the left breast. The legs were drawn up, the feet resting on the ground, and the knees turned outwards. The face was swollen and turned on the right side. The tongue protruded between the front teeth, but not beyond the lips...



Annie Chapman
Annie Chapman's Death Certificate
“The throat was dissevered deeply; that the incisions through the skin were jagged and reached right round the neck...On the wooden paling between the yard in question and the next, smears of blood, corresponding to where the head of the deceased lay, were to be seen."

Phillips ordered Chapman’s body to be taken to the Whitechapel Workhouse Infirmary for a post mortem examination. Workers at the morgue were told not to touch the body, but preceded to strip and wash it (just as they had Mary Ann Nichols) before a thorough examination could be performed.


Coroner Wynne Baxter
Chapman Inquest
On September 10th an inquest into the death of Annie Chapman was held at the WorkingLad’s Institute in Whitechapel.  Coroner Wynne E. Baxter conducted the inquest, just as he had for Polly Nichols (the first confirmed Ripper victim) ten days before.



Dr. Phillips reported during the inquest that Chapman was in poor health due an advanced case of tuberculosis, but he concluded that she had been sober for several hours before her death. Her swollen face and protruding tongue indicted strangulation, and he believed that she had died some time before 4:30 a.m.

Phillips told the inquest that the abdomen had been cut open and the intestines severed from the body and placed above the shoulder. The uterus and the upper portion of the vagina had been completely removed.

When asked about the surgical skill of the murderer Phillips said, 'the work was that of anexpert- or one, at least, who had such knowledge of anatomical or pathological examinations as to be enabled to secure the pelvic organs with one sweep of the knife'.


Conflicting reports and testimonies were given by several witnesses as to the type of man Annie was seen with, what was reportedly said, and what time she was last seen alive. In the end, a verdict of willful murder against a person or persons unknown was entered.



The Ripper had claimed his second victim.


Manor Park Cemetery
Annie Chapman was buried on Friday, September 14th at Manor Park Cemetery. Annie’s family met the hearse at the cemetery, thereby keeping the funeral secret until after her burial. Her name, date of death and age were inscribed upon her elm coffin.


Annie Chapman’s grave no longer exists. It has since been reused and buried over.

~ Joy

Friday, August 30, 2013

125 Years Later – A Look Back at The Ripper’s ‘First’ Victim


Tomorrow marks the 125th anniversary of the first canonical victim of “Jack the Ripper,” the name given to an unidentified serial killer during the savage murders that took place during the autumn of 1888.


Jack the Ripper
Jack the Ripper is Britain’s most notorious serial killer. Although many suspects have been identified, no one has ever been undeniably determined to be "The Ripper." But that has never stopped “Ripperologists” from attempting to solve this very ‘cold case.’


Mary Ann (Polly) Nichols
It was around 3 a.m. on August 31st, 1888 when Mary Ann (Polly) Nichols, a local drunk and prostitute, was searching for one more trick to turn so she could pay for her lodging that night. Polly was a good-looking woman and she didn’t have long to wait – but she got more than she ever bargained for.

At 3:40 a.m. Charles Cross, a cart driver on his way to work, noticed a bundle of rags lying across the street. When he walked over to them he discovered that the pile of rags was a woman, who appeared to be dead. Cross stopped another man, Robert Paul, who was passing by on his way to work.

Body of  Polly Nichols
When both men knelt by the body, Paul thought he could still feel a faint pulse. They went in search of a constable for assistance and after finding one both proceeded on to work.


Just moments after Cross and Paul had left, Constable John Neil discovered the body and sounded the alarm. It was only after shining his lantern on the woman did he discover she was dead. The victim’s throat had been cut so deeply that the head was almost severed from the body.


The woman’s skirt had been raised almost to her stomach, her abdomen had been ripped open and she had been disemboweled. According to surgeon Dr. Henry Llewellyn, who was called to the scene, the woman was killed by a swift slash to the throat. The body was later identified as 43-year-old Mary Ann (Polly) Nichols of Spitalfields.





Polly had been born to London locksmith Edward Walker and his wife Caroline on August 26, 1845. Polly married William Nichols in 1864 and was the mother of five children. Around 1880, Polly and William separated. Police reports indicate that it had to do with her drinking.



Women in Workhouse
After her final separation from William, Polly moved into a workhouse since she was unable to support herself. She lived in several workhouses during the next 8 years, most notable at Lambeth.

Conditions in the workhouse were hard although the food was considered to be adequate. The inmates were required to work for their food and lodging, doing such chores as chopping firewood, cleaning the wards, and caring for the sick.


Wandsworth House
In May of 1888, Polly left Lambeth to take a position as a domestic servant in Wandsworth, southwest of London. She was able to hold the position for two months before her drinking caused problems. Polly left her employment, taking with her clothing she had stolen worth just over 3 pounds. At the time of her death, she was living at a common lodging house at 18 Thrawl Street in Spitalfields, Whitechapel.


Polly Nichols was last seen alive on Friday, August 31st at about 2:30 in the morning at the corner of Whitechapel Road and Osborn Street by her friend, Ellen (Nelly) Holland. Polly had indicated to Holland that she was trying to earn enough money to buy a four pence bed for the night. Polly had told Nelly that she had already earned enough money to have purchased her bed three times over, but instead she kept spending it on drink.






Discovering The Body
Polly's Death Certificate

It was around 3:40 a.m. when Polly’s body was discovered by the workers, lying in front of a stable gate on Buck’s Row in White Chapel, just 1/8th of a mile away from the Royal London Hospital. Polly’s body was later identified by her husband, William Nichols and her friend, Nelly Holland. No one in the vicinity of the murder had reported seeing or hearing anything unusual.

John (Jack) Pizer
Newspaper Story 
When Polly’s murder occurred, the Metropolitan Police were already dealing with two similar
 murders that had taken place earlier in the year. The police had reason to believe John (Jack) Pizer, a Jewish boot maker who went by the nickname of ‘Leather Apron’’ was a good suspect. Pizer was known to have a vicious temper and enjoyed harassing prostitutes. He would be the first of many suspects the Metropolitan Police would investigate as the Whitechapel Murderer.



Polly in Her Coffin




Cemetery Plaque

Mary Ann (Polly) Nichols was buried in a polished elm coffin on Thursday, September 6, 1888 at the City of London Cemetery. Her husband, son, and father were in attendance. In 1996, cemetery officials marked Polly’s grave with a plaque.


Morgue Photo of Polly
On Saturday, September 1st an inquest into the murder of Polly Nichols was held at the Working Lad’s Institute in Whitechapel.  According to the inquest testimony of Dr. Llewellyn, the neck “incision completely severed all the tissues down to the vertebrae. The large vessels of the neck on both sides were severed. The incision was about 8in. in length. The cuts must have been caused by a long-bladed knife, moderately sharp, and used with great violence… There were several incisions running across the abdomen. There were three or four similar cuts running downwards, on the right side, all of which had been caused by a knife, which had been used violently and downwards. The injuries were from left to right and might have been done by a left-handed person. All the injuries had been caused by the same instrument.”

Jack the Ripper?
The inquest lasted for four Saturdays before the jury heard all of the evidence. After a short consultation they returned the verdict of willful murder by some person or persons unknown.”


So began the three month murderous reign of terror on Whitechapel’s prostitutes by a killer who would come to be known as Jack the Ripper.  No one suspected then that this would become one of the most perplexing cold cases of all times…



~ Joy