January 1, 1888 - Jack the Ripper
The case endures not only because the killer was never identified, but because the murders unfolded in public view — covered obsessively by a rapidly expanding press that may have helped construct the very legend it was reporting. The victims were women living in one of London's most desperate districts, and the nature of the attacks suggested a deliberate, methodical quality that distinguished them from ordinary violence. What made the case a permanent fixture in criminal history is the convergence of an anonymous perpetrator, sensational journalism, and an unsolved record that has sustained speculation for well over a century.
From Wikipedia
Jack the Ripper was an unidentified serial killer active in and around the impoverished Whitechapel district of London, England, in 1888. In both criminal case files and the contemporaneous journalistic accounts, the killer was also called the Whitechapel Murderer and Leather Apron.
Attacks ascribed to Jack the Ripper typically involved women working as prostitutes who lived in the slums of the East End of London. Their throats were cut prior to abdominal mutilations. The removal of internal organs from at least three of the victims led to speculation that the killer had some anatomical or surgical knowledge. Rumours that the murders were connected intensified in September and October 1888, and numerous letters were received by media outlets and Scotland Yard from people purporting to be the murderer.
The name "Jack the Ripper" originated in the "Dear Boss letter" written by someone claiming to be the murderer, which was disseminated in the press. The letter is widely believed to have been a hoax and may have been written by journalists to heighten interest in the story and increase their newspapers' circulation.
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