Mike Covell’s Blogg

With so many Ripper related and Victorian History books bursting of my slefs, I thought I would take this opportunity to pay homage to some of my fave books on the subject.

Every Monday I will be posting my fave books, from suspect based, to reference guides, to fictional accounts, and many classics.

This week it is The First Jack the Ripper Victim Photographs by Robert J McLaughlin.

What first struck me about the book was the fact that it had both the English and French excerpts from “Vacher l’Eventreur et les crimes sadiques” which is an excellent read in itself.

Robert McLaughlin pulls out all stops and ventures were no researcher has gone before and discovers an obscure book written by a French medical student named André Lamoureux in 1894 entitled “De l’Éventration au point-de-vue medico-legal“.  The book contained a single photograph of Mary Jane Kelly.

As the Lamoureux book was released in 1894 it preceeded Lacassagne’s “Vacher l’Eventreur“, which was released in 1899 by five years.  This meaning it is the first ever publication to contain the Mary Jane Kelly photo!

Other notable additions include every known photo of the victims, post mortem, including several rather gruesome shots of Eddowes!!

McLaughlin also looks at the differences and similarities btween the photos, and takes us on an adventure in research.

I really cannot speak highly enough of this book, it’s a rarity, but if the opportunity arises, it’s one to get hold of!!