Books on Chapman being the Ripper......

[Uncle Jack]

Apart from the R. Michael Gordon books, are there any other books that focus on George Chapman being the Ripper?

Cheers

[lynn cates]

Sugden

Hello Uncle. Well, "focus" is too strong for this, but Sugden's book certainly gives a preference in that direction.

Cheers.
LC

[The Grave Maurice]

Yeah, as you know, Uncle, nearly all the general histories devote a chapter, or at least a section, to Chapman. Offhand I can't think of another author who focusses on Chapman to the extent that Gordon does, but I'll have a look through my bookshelves when I get home.

[Iago Galdston]

I would love to know too...

Sugden definitely leaned that way. Are Gordon's books really so bad?

[The Grave Maurice]

The story that has kicked around here for some time is that Sugden's publisher really wanted him to name a suspect. Sugden wasn't keen on the idea because he thought there wasn't enough evidence against anyone. In the end, what he said was that Chapman was the least unlikely of all the named suspects. Don't know if that's true or not, but that's the story.

[The Grave Maurice]

I've checked all my non-fiction books (and I've got most of them) and I can't find anyone who centres on Chapman except Gordon.

Gordon's books aren't that bad, Iago, in fact he writes with a certain panache that I rather admire. It's just that he seems to accuse Chapman of every unsolved murder in London during the period in question. The body count gets up to about 20, as I recall. It becomes a bit laughable as he tries to stretch his point.

[Uncle Jack]

Which 20 victims does he name as being killed by Chapman, Grave?

[The Grave Maurice]

You put too great a strain on my memory, Uncle. Gordon's theory is outlined in his Alias JtR: Beyond the Usual Whitechapel Suspects which came out in 2001, and which I'm not about to re-read. He includes the canonicals, the non-canonicals, the Pinchin Street and Whitehall torsos, Carrie Brown and Elizabeth Senior, Chapman's poisoning victims...the list goes on and on.

[Wolf Vanderlinden]

Gordon believes that Chapman murdered, or at least attacked: Margaret Hames (who was actually attacked by a group of men), both Annie Millwood and Ada Wilson, Martha Tabram, the “canonical five,” Susan Ward (who has been confused with the unnamed victim of a reported attack. Ward actually fell on some glass and cut herself), Rose Mylett, Alice McKenzie and Francis Coles, the five torso victims, the supposed US victims – Carrie Brown, Hannah Robinson, Elizabeth Senior and Hester Mary Anderson (even though Chapman wasn’t in the US when Brown and Anderson were killed) – the three Borough Poisoning victims and, perhaps, a Polish barber surgeon named Severin Klosowski whose identity, Gordon speculates with no real evidence, Chapman may have assumed after murdering him. That makes 22 murder victims.

Wolf.

[Uncle Jack]

Cheers fellas

Wolf, thanks for the info regarding Brown. I always thought Chapman had moved to the US in early 1891 and was there for the Brown murder. Thanks for that.

[dixon9]

Just listening to Mr Gordons rippercast on George Chapman,is his theory about 'Jack' changing his appearance with hair from the barbers(he worked in) discussed in the book,also the Liz Stride being a wrong hit?

I maybe well off line here,but just cant have that,any views? Thanks

Dixon9
still learning