Did the inhabitants of the East End in 1888 know/suspect who the killer was?

[curious4]

There are lots of references, especially in the older(ish) books to people who knew, or thought they knew who the killer was, so why did they not go to the police with information? If the killer was attached to one of the many vicious criminal gangs which have flourished in the East End since the Middle Ages, when it was called Alsatia, up until the Krays and beyond, perhaps people knew but were too afraid of what the gangs would do to them and their families if they went to the police. Or did they suspect someone from the "ruling classes" and feel that it was hopeless to try to stop them.

It seems to me that living as closely as they did, they must have had some idea of who was responsible. Relations with the police were not of the best. I had a friend who was a district nurse in the area in the 1960s and she often said that she heard things but going to the police would effectively prevent her from continuing with her job, which was an important one for the health of the mothers and children she cared for. There is a long tradition of keeping silent. Would this have hindered the police in their efforts?

Best wishes
C4

[RockySullivan]

That's an interesting question...there is the story about the graffiti saying the killers live here or something near to 35 Dorset was it? And also the story of the woman accosting wolf levinson and claiming he was the ripper...levinson is the one who actually worked at the shop where George chapman was claimed to work...the hair dresser spot that supposedly makes him a suspect...interestingly xhapman never worked there...but levinson did.

[GUT]

If he was TOFF no way, they'd have turned him in, in a heartbeat.

If he was one of them, possibly, maybe even probably, some knew who he was.

If you mean while the killings were going on.

If you mean after they stopped, I suspect many had a good guess at who it was.

[GUT]

I forgot to say, if he wasn't a TOFF but still an outsider, I suspect they wouldn't have hesitated to shop him.

[Rosella]

We know that the inhabitants did put up with searches of their homes by the police in an effort to find Jack, though.

Also the police/Scotland Yard received thousands of letters from people all over the country suggesting ways of catching Jack and pointing the finger at males, neighbours, family members, acquaintances, whom they regarded as suspicious. Why wouldn't some of the inhabitants of Whitechapel have done the same if they wanted the killer caught? They might not have approached the local coppers or called in at the local police station but there'd be nothing stopping them writing a letter anonymously pointing someone out together with the reasons why, IMO.

[GUT]

We know that the inhabitants did put up with searches of their homes by the police in an effort to find Jack, though.

Also the police/Scotland Yard received thousands of letters from people all over the country suggesting ways of catching Jack and pointing the finger at males, neighbours, family members, acquaintances, whom they regarded as suspicious. Why wouldn't some of the inhabitants of Whitechapel have done the same if they wanted the killer caught? They might not have approached the local coppers or called in at the local police station but there'd be nothing stopping them writing a letter anonymously pointing someone out together with the reasons why, IMO.

For me it's mainly because of a distrust, or maybe more accurately dislike, of authorities.

Putting up with having your house searched (something they had no real choice over anyway) is a far cry from actively helping.

I also don't suggest that it would have been common knowledge, but suspect that if he was a local, some knew who it was.

[Harry D]

That's an interesting question...there is the story about the graffiti saying the killers live here or something near to 35 Dorset was it? And also the story of the woman accosting wolf levinson and claiming he was the ripper...levinson is the one who actually worked at the shop where George chapman was claimed to work...the hair dresser spot that supposedly makes him a suspect...interestingly xhapman never worked there...but levinson did.

Do you have a source for this? A quick Google search brought up nothing.

[belinda]

I think it's highly possible that somebody had a good idea of who it was. I , personally, would have been too scared to go to the Police

[Harry D]

Maybe the Ipswich letter (addressed from 14 Dorset St) was someone's roundabout way of trying to point out the Ripper?

[John G]

I'm sure people had their suspicions, but it doesn't mean they were right. For instance, didn't both Druitt's and Kosminski's families suspect they were JtR? Moreover, it does seem that most serial killers have a knack of staying under the radar, at least as regards attracting suspicion from family members, friends and work colleagues.

[curious4]

I'm sure people had their suspicions, but it doesn't mean they were right. For instance, didn't both Druitt's and Kosminski's families suspect they were JtR? Moreover, it does seem that most serial killers have a knack of staying under the radar, at least as regards attracting suspicion from family members, friends and work colleagues.

Hello John

We only have hearsay evidence that the families suspected Druitt and Kosminsky. Nothing tangible to connect them with the murders except that one was mentally ill and the other supposedly killed homself.

Best wishes
C4

[curious4]

We know that the inhabitants did put up with searches of their homes by the police in an effort to find Jack, though.

Also the police/Scotland Yard received thousands of letters from people all over the country suggesting ways of catching Jack and pointing the finger at males, neighbours, family members, acquaintances, whom they regarded as suspicious. Why wouldn't some of the inhabitants of Whitechapel have done the same if they wanted the killer caught? They might not have approached the local coppers or called in at the local police station but there'd be nothing stopping them writing a letter anonymously pointing someone out together with the reasons why, IMO.

Hello Rosella

I'm talking about the poorest of the poor here, they barely had money for food, let alone pen and paper. Many of them could neither read nor write. So for them at least, writing a letter was not an option. There is a letter written on newspaper but the handwriting is beautiful and it was written after the event(s) and also supposedly by the killer.

Imagine that one of the Kray brothers, say Reggie, had been the killer (just for argument's sake). Not only were they the heads of a brutal and vicious gang with contacts everywhere, the othe brother was a complete psychopath who loved his brother. Anyone getting in touch with the police would be immediately discovered and punished, probably along with their family. Not saying a criminal gang was involved, just what would have prevented someone going to the police.

Best wishes
C4

[curious4]

If he was TOFF no way, they'd have turned him in, in a heartbeat.

If he was one of them, possibly, maybe even probably, some knew who he was.

If you mean while the killings were going on.

If you mean after they stopped, I suspect many had a good guess at who it was.

Hello GUT

i'm not so sure that anyone from the East End would have dared to accuse a Toff. In the first place they most probably wouldn't have been believed and if they were reasonably respectable would most likely have a family member "in service". Downton Abbey it wasn't. I believe the BBC is coming out with a more honest programme about what is was like as a servant. It would only take one family member to come with an accusation and anyone connected with them would lose their jobs. At once. No inquiry. Most probably they'd have one of his Lordship's friends round with the horsewhip. And in the light of what is happening in the UK at present, they probably (and rightly) believed that he would not be punished. The gap between the"highest in the land" and the poorest in the East End was colossal.

Best wishes
C4

[gnote]

Do you have a source for this? A quick Google search brought up nothing.

http://www.casebook.org/ripper_media/book_reviews/non-fiction/cjmorley/117.html

[Rosella]

Whitechapel wasn't completely full of the poorest of the poor. There were also tradesmen and artisans, small business owners and small shopkeepers, even professional people, as well as a poverty-stricken underclass. Whitechapel was a more mixed area than is generally known though it was a poor locale, certainly. However,not every Whitechapel/Spitalfields resident was illiterate either. There would have been some with enough skills to write a letter and post it to Scotland Yard.