On this day, Aug. 31, in 1888, London serial killer Jack the Ripper claimed his first victim. Prostitute Mary Ann Nichols was found murdered and mutilated in the teeming slum of Whitechapel. Her throat was severed and her abdomen ripped open.
In the next few months, the Ripper would kill at least four more victims, making the world take notice by leaving his mutilated victims in plain view. Some have argued the Ripper was responsible for at least seven other murders and violent attacks.
Of the dozens of letters sent to police and the press by the purported killer, two mailings alluded to facts known only to authorities and the killer. These were signed by Jack the Ripper and gave rise to his nickname. The Ripper was never caught.
-Scott McCabe
