William Henry Bury Research Paper
Lauren Poulin
004-86-8630
English 101
William Henry Burry
At the end of the nineteenth century a dark cloud loomed over London’s East End. This dark cloud would soon be known throughout all of England as the country’s most notorious serial killer, known as Jack the Ripper. Jack was believed to be a well-dressed, shorter man in his late twenties or early thirties (Beadle). One of the many suspects in the murder fit that mold as well. William Henry Bury is a solid suspect to be Jack the Ripper based on his knowledge of the prostitutes, the way he mutilated his wife, and evidence found in his house all lead one to believe that he is a solid suspect to be Jack the Ripper.
William Henry Burry had the opportunity to be Jack the Ripper based on his knowledge of the prostitutes in Whitechaple. Bury’s current profession as a sawdust carrier placed him in the general area of the town. This is relevant to proving his guilt because once he was hired and began working in Whitechaple; Jack the Ripper started …show more content…
murdering prostitutes. This job also provided him with a means of transportation: a pony and wagon. Although there is no solid evidence that transportation was a necessity to the murders, it is believed that Burry’s transportation was a large factor in the murders. Not only was the transportation important, but also a relationship had to have existed between the murderer and the victims because the victims were found in secluded areas of London. This implies that the victims had to have followed Bury to their death. Bury knew the prostitutes well enough for them to have followed him into the dark alleys. Bury was someone that spent most of his days soliciting the prostitutes, and, thus, a relationship was forged between them. Due to Bury’s relationship with the prostitutes, it would have been relatively easier for him to get them away from the public eye and follow him to their demise.
William Henry Bury mutilated his wife Ellen Elliot in the same manner Jack the Ripper murdered his victims. A key point to Ellen’s murder was that she was methodically stabbed. The reason why Bury murdered his wife is still unknown, yet it is rumored to be because she knew too much about his personal life. His wife’s death mirrored the murders committed by Jack the Ripper. She was stabbed and her abdominal cavity was cut open, leaving the intestines hanging out (Beadle).
He also thought about dismembering the corpse and tried, unsuccessfully, to borrow a chopper from his neighbor, Marjory Smith. To Smith he made an interesting remark. Asking jokingly ‘you’re not Jack the Ripper are you?’ Bury, who was drunk, replied, ‘I do not know so much about that’ (Beadle).
After scaring his neighbor, Bury went back to his home and hid away the trunk that held his wife’s lifeless body.
A few days later, Bury went to the police and proceeded to tell them his spouse killed herself in order to fool the public into believing that he could not possibly be Jack. However, he did admit to stabbing her once (Beadle). When the police got to his house, they saw written in chalk on the door, “Jack Ripper is at the back of this door” (Beadle). They then found on the stairway walls, “Jack Ripper is in the seller” (Beadle). This was an obvious sign to the police that Bury’s wife was trying to show that Jack and Bury were one in the same. Bury was then sentenced to be hung. At the hanging, the police wanted to get a confession out of him, but his reply to a question from the Hanger was “I suppose you think you are clever to hang me” (Beadle). The police took Bury’s words literally believing that they were in fact clever enough to prove Bury’s
guilt. Everyone looks for someone to blame for these heinous murders, yet do not know who they are looking for. One man, William Henry Bury, a twenty-nine year old man, who killed his wife in the same manner that Jack killed his victims, is a solid suspect. He was a man of talent, who made friendly with the prostitutes, creating it easier for him to lead them into a dark alley. Also, police found writing on the walls in the house of William Henry Bury and his deceased wife, Ellen Elliot, which pointed to him being a solid suspect.
Works Cited
1. Beadle, William, “The Real Jack the Ripper”. The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper. Maxim Jakubowski and Nathan Braud eds. NY: Carrol & Graf, 1999. (111-131)
004-86-8630
English 101
William Henry Burry
At the end of the nineteenth century a dark cloud loomed over London’s East End. This dark cloud would soon be known throughout all of England as the country’s most notorious serial killer, known as Jack the Ripper. Jack was believed to be a well-dressed, shorter man in his late twenties or early thirties (Beadle). One of the many suspects in the murder fit that mold as well. William Henry Bury is a solid suspect to be Jack the Ripper based on his knowledge of the prostitutes, the way he mutilated his wife, and evidence found in his house all lead one to believe that he is a solid suspect to be Jack the Ripper.
William Henry Burry had the opportunity to be Jack the Ripper based on his knowledge of the prostitutes in Whitechaple. Bury’s current profession as a sawdust carrier placed him in the general area of the town. This is relevant to proving his guilt because once he was hired and began working in Whitechaple; Jack the Ripper started …show more content…
murdering prostitutes. This job also provided him with a means of transportation: a pony and wagon. Although there is no solid evidence that transportation was a necessity to the murders, it is believed that Burry’s transportation was a large factor in the murders. Not only was the transportation important, but also a relationship had to have existed between the murderer and the victims because the victims were found in secluded areas of London. This implies that the victims had to have followed Bury to their death. Bury knew the prostitutes well enough for them to have followed him into the dark alleys. Bury was someone that spent most of his days soliciting the prostitutes, and, thus, a relationship was forged between them. Due to Bury’s relationship with the prostitutes, it would have been relatively easier for him to get them away from the public eye and follow him to their demise.
William Henry Bury mutilated his wife Ellen Elliot in the same manner Jack the Ripper murdered his victims. A key point to Ellen’s murder was that she was methodically stabbed. The reason why Bury murdered his wife is still unknown, yet it is rumored to be because she knew too much about his personal life. His wife’s death mirrored the murders committed by Jack the Ripper. She was stabbed and her abdominal cavity was cut open, leaving the intestines hanging out (Beadle).
He also thought about dismembering the corpse and tried, unsuccessfully, to borrow a chopper from his neighbor, Marjory Smith. To Smith he made an interesting remark. Asking jokingly ‘you’re not Jack the Ripper are you?’ Bury, who was drunk, replied, ‘I do not know so much about that’ (Beadle).
After scaring his neighbor, Bury went back to his home and hid away the trunk that held his wife’s lifeless body.
A few days later, Bury went to the police and proceeded to tell them his spouse killed herself in order to fool the public into believing that he could not possibly be Jack. However, he did admit to stabbing her once (Beadle). When the police got to his house, they saw written in chalk on the door, “Jack Ripper is at the back of this door” (Beadle). They then found on the stairway walls, “Jack Ripper is in the seller” (Beadle). This was an obvious sign to the police that Bury’s wife was trying to show that Jack and Bury were one in the same. Bury was then sentenced to be hung. At the hanging, the police wanted to get a confession out of him, but his reply to a question from the Hanger was “I suppose you think you are clever to hang me” (Beadle). The police took Bury’s words literally believing that they were in fact clever enough to prove Bury’s
guilt. Everyone looks for someone to blame for these heinous murders, yet do not know who they are looking for. One man, William Henry Bury, a twenty-nine year old man, who killed his wife in the same manner that Jack killed his victims, is a solid suspect. He was a man of talent, who made friendly with the prostitutes, creating it easier for him to lead them into a dark alley. Also, police found writing on the walls in the house of William Henry Bury and his deceased wife, Ellen Elliot, which pointed to him being a solid suspect.
Works Cited
1. Beadle, William, “The Real Jack the Ripper”. The Mammoth Book of Jack the Ripper. Maxim Jakubowski and Nathan Braud eds. NY: Carrol & Graf, 1999. (111-131)