Crippen to be Exhumed?

[Archaic]

Crippen File, UK National Archives

How about King Tut then?

Accident or Murder

Ooh, that is a good question- I love Egyptology! When I was a little girl I found an old 1930's book at the library called 'The Lost Queen of Egypt' by Lucile Morison. It was a wonderful novel about Tutankhamun's wife Ankhesenamun, their life together, and the circumstances surrounding his mysterious death. I was already very interested but that book that got me hooked on Ancient Egypt for life! (I bet Celesta has read it. )
I recently saw it listed on Amazon, though unfortunately unavailable, and was amazed at the number of readers who left comments saying that they'd had the same wonderful experience with it as a kid, and how they wished they could find a copy today.

-But I know once I go off on that happy tangent I'll never get back to the poor unglamorous Dr. Crippen, so I'm trying to restrain myself.


Here is the Crippen File on the UK National Archives website.

If you skip down to # 86 in the Sub-File you'll see the letter which was sent to Crippen at Pentonville. It's listed as follows:
86. Governor, Pentonville Prison submits letter purporting to come from prisoner's wife and asks instructions.

CRIPPEN FILE: http://yourarchives.nationalarchives...n_and_Murderer

Belinda, is the documentary you saw the American one that was shown as part of the PBS series 'Secrets of the Dead'? It's now available for free viewing online; I recently put a link to it on the other Crippen thread called 'Crippen Documentary.'

I haven't yet seen the British documentary which preceded it but I would like to; does anybody knows if it's available?

The U.S. show was quite interesting, but in my opinion the Testrail team conducted a noticeably biased investigation.
(I understand this is generally frowned upon in scientific circles.)

> By the way, there is really terrific stuff on the other Crippen thread; I think you'll be impressed. A number of people contributed important items discovered during their own research, and they're the real 'Crippen experts' around here.

Have fun & best regards, Archaic

[belinda]

These don't sound like the letters in the Documentary I saw but I need to watch it again to be sure
And I don't think they were sent to Crippen but directly to the police

What I do remember is that they were never given to Crippens Lawyer and Crippen never saw them.One of them was last seen in Winston Churchills pocket before it resurfaced!

The name of the programme I saw was The Last Secret Of Doctor Crippen

How about King Tut then?

Accident or Murder

[Archaic]

The Letter

Hi, Belinda.
Yeah, the pharaohs did do pretty well for themselves.

I thought there was only one letter sent to Crippen in prison signed "Cora", but perhaps I am mistaken. I'm sure Jon, Debra or Chris would know.

What I found most interesting was that the letter was actually signed "Cora", because if the writer truly was Cora,
and she was callously gloating over the knowledge that her husband was about to be unjustly hung for her murder,
then I would think she'd at least be smart enough to NOT sign her name and tell the world she was still living.

... It seems a bit obvious, doesn't it?

Writing a letter, signing her name, and having her identity be believed was the surest way to defeat her own stated goal: enjoying the ghastly spectacle of her husband's unjust execution.

Apparently someone tried to claim that the handwriting on the letter didn't match Cora's because she had sneakily dictated it to her boyfriend,
who actually penned it, but that strikes me as awfully silly- why bother to "disguise" your handwriting if you are going to be so dumb as to sign your real name?

When a man is in prison on Death Row, it's a no-brainer that his mail is going to pass through the hands of numerous prison officials before it ever reaches him, but I guess poor dumb "Cora" thought nobody would notice?

A signature wasn't even necessary for her husband to be able to instantly recognize the sender as his own wife.
It seems to me that any couple that has been together for 18 years would know one another's handwriting at a glance and have numerous little nicknames, code words, inside jokes, etc- so WHY would she feel a need to sign her letter "Cora"?

I think it was either a "hoax" letter by a bored idiotic, or it was a clumsy attempt by someone not terribly clever to save Crippen's life- or at least to postpone his death.

I was about to sign off when I just heard an old Tom Jones song playing in my head, though with slightly altered lyrics:
"Take a letter, Maria,
Address it from my wife..."

Best regards, Archaic

[belinda]

You can't take them with you if you're dead, either.

(sorry, I couldn't resist )

As for the letter supposedly written by Cora, apparently Scotland Yard analyzed the handwriting and it bears no resemblance to hers.

I'm not sure who they think wrote it; maybe it was just a hoax by a stranger.

-Wouldn't it be interesting if it was written by Evelyn?

Best regards, Archaic

Tell that to the Pharoahs

According to the programme I saw there were two letters have they done anything about the second one

[Celesta]

I saw a programme on this a while back.
They had a group of lodgers in the house,and she was friendly with all of them,but took up with one in particular...and they used to make love while Crippen listened to them,while doing the chores his Mrs had told him to do,while she was busy.
I felt quite sorry for him whereas before the programme started I had him down as the baddie...he was henpecked and humiliated...If he did murder her,she deserved it...IMHO.

Hiddy-ho Anna, What a picture you paint. Makes him sound a bit like HH Holmes, doesn't it? The listening part, I mean. Cora was a pain. Or so we're led to believe.

[Celesta]

As for the letter supposedly written by Cora, apparently Scotland Yard analyzed the handwriting and it bears no resemblance to hers.

I'm not sure who they think wrote it; maybe it was just a hoax by a stranger.

Archy, it was the same one who wrote the Christmas card to MJK's relative in Ireland in December of 1888.

[Archaic]

If you are going to disappear and start a new life with another man
you can't take your old things with you in case of recognition and also the new man would supply new jewels.

You can't take them with you if you're dead, either.

(sorry, I couldn't resist )

As for the letter supposedly written by Cora, apparently Scotland Yard analyzed the handwriting and it bears no resemblance to hers.

I'm not sure who they think wrote it; maybe it was just a hoax by a stranger.

-Wouldn't it be interesting if it was written by Evelyn?

Best regards, Archaic

[Ally]

Everybody, let's murder Anna. You know she deserves it.

[silverstealth]

Hi Silver

There is a file at the NA, I don't know what's in it.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/c...accessmethod=0

Much appreciated Robert..

[Robert]

Hi Silver

There is a file at the NA, I don't know what's in it.

http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/catalogue/displaycataloguedetails.asp?CATID=5939264&CATLN=6&Highlight=%2CKIRKDALE%2CPRISON&accessmethod=0

[belinda]

Cora didn't so much marry Crippen as his Bank Account,

She treated Crippen like a Doormat.

Nobody deserves to be murdered but equally Cora was not a very pleasant woman.Crippen didn't take up with Ethel until well into the marriage by which time Cora had had more than one affair.

She does not come across very sympathetically.
Whether she was murdered or not is becoming a very interesting question.

But I hear you protest, her jewels.

If you are going to dissapear and start a new life with another man you can't take your old things with you in case of recognition and also the new man would supply new jewels.

The letters which recently reappeared from a woman claiming to be Cora need to be investigated for handwriting etc.

[miss marple]

one law for men

Agree Debs, poor Cora has been put through the mill.
So now we know, its ok to murder your wife if she is having an affair, or if you are sleeping with someone else,[Cora had a fling with Bruce Miller] but if the husband, Crippen is having a long relationship with Ethel Le Nerve behind his wife's back ,thats ok then. [ but jealously was not the cause of the murder, it was money]
Apparently it is still ok, the recent case of the vodaphone excutive, who stabbed his wife thirty times, [ in front of the children] and used six different knives, partially sawed off her head, because she told him she was having an affair. Poor lamb got manslaughter. Men do tend to get manslaughter if the poor lambs were' nagged' or their wives were having affairs. If you are a women who has suffered a history if domestic abuse and stab your husband [ Sara Thornton] then you ain't so lucky its murder and life for you!
Miss Marple

[Archaic]

Hi Tom,
Crippen was probably such a boring old fart she need some excitement.

LOL, I agree.

Seriously, though, I don't think it's possible for Cora to have done ANYTHING to "deserve" being killed, cut up into pieces, drenched in lime, and buried in her own basement while her little creep of a husband ran off with the secretary half his age.

Murder is the ultimate form of Domestic Violence; I don't think it's right to blame the victim.

Face it, Crippen could have just divorced Cora and gone on his way, but in that case Cora might have taken her beautiful furs & jewels with her-

and then what riches would poor Crippen have had handy to shower upon his sweet little typist???


Best regards, Archaic

*PS: When I said "maybe the body was already there when he moved in", I was KIDDING!

I remember hearing that some other Serial Killer actually tried to use that absurd excuse.
I think it was Fred West in the 'Scotland Yard's Black Museum' video but I can't recall for sure.

When it comes to idiotic excuses, that one's a true gem; I was surprised to find out that its use is fairly common.
Though I admit it's at least marginally better than "Body in the refrigerator? WHAT body in the refrigerator???"

[silverstealth]

Slightly off topic but relevant to the exhumation of executed prisoners. Does anyone know what they did with the bodies when Kirkdale Gaol at Liverpool was flattened?

I ask because I am interested in John Conway, who was executed for the murder of nine-year-old Nicholas Martin, in 1891

[Debra A]

If he did murder her,she deserved it...IMHO.

?????
Jenni, I'm with you, and yes, he had a 'bird' for how many years?