Chapman and his connection to Whitechapel

[Abby Normal]

Ever since I started reading about the Ripper I have considered Chapman a terrible suspect and now we have a book which pretty much confirms this which to me is a double edged sword. On the one hand its the definitive book on Chapman but on the other Chapman's a terrible suspect anyway so why buy it? Sorry if this upsets the writer or anyone else for that matter but that's my opinion on Chapman and Jack the Ripper at Last.

because he was a serial killer and an intriguing character and a major ripper suspect and its a good book?

[John Wheat]

because he was a serial killer and an intriguing character and a major ripper suspect and its a good book?

To Abby

Good point he was a serial killer but I was thinking from the point of view of a ripperologist. I wouldn't call Chapman a major suspect though there's nothing to suggest he was the Ripper.

Cheers John

[HelenaWojtczak]

No secret I thought the 1st was great, so I guess I'll be lining up to go around again.

Thank you!


Third, enlarged, revised edition en route from printer in Poland ... due here Friday!


Taking orders on this page (linked below) for signed copies hot off the press!

http://www.hastingspress.co.uk/chapman.html

If I could, I'd give a free copy to everyone who bought the first editions - but of course that isn't possible as I have to cover my costs.

Helena

[Sam Flynn]

Taken over from the "Location of Annie Millwood's attack" thread...

I thought he was at cable street during the ripper murders?

It's touch and go. All we can say for sure is that he'd moved to Cable Street sometime before the second week of December 1888, when the Post Office Directory stopped taking updates before hitting the presses. (Klosowski's Cable Street address is published in said Directory.) He may still have been with the Radins at West India Dock Road in August 1888; Norman Hastings, speaking to Ethel Radin in 1903, says:

"The woman with whom [Klosowski] lodged in the West India Dock Road was positive he could not have committed the first of the Ripper crimes. That took place on the night of the August bank holiday of 1888 and she fixed the date easily because that night she gave a small party to a number of Poles, whom [Klosowski], who was new to the country and lonely, was anxious to meet".

This is cited by Sugden, who goes on to suggest that Radin might have meant August 1887 because Radin's docklands barber shop had changed hands by the time the Post Office Directory was published, on the basis that "data in these directories were normally six months out of date when they were printed". However, this transpires not to be the case, as the Directory was still being updated up to the first two weeks in December 1888; see first paragraph above.

I'd add that, whilst the memory can indeed play tricks as Sugden suggests, perhaps Radin's being able to "fix the date easily" was helped by the fact that her Bank Holiday party coincided with one of the Whitechapel Murders, that of Martha Tabram. Like remembering what one was doing when Kennedy was killed, such associations tend to stick in the mind.

Whatever, it's certain that Klosowski was not based at the White Hart pub on Whitechapel High Street until long after the canonical Ripper murders had been and gone.

[HelenaWojtczak]

Gareth, you always amaze me with your instant recall of so many details about this suspect. I imagine you must be holding as much detail about all the others, too? What a phenomenal memory you have! I'm envious!

[Sam Flynn]

Thanks, Helena!