Born in 1850 in the village of Broadstairs, Kent, England, Margery Wren was the younger daughter of house-painter William Wren and his wife Elizabeth. Alongside her sister Mary Jane, who was five years her senior, Margery fled the drudgery of rural life for the bustle of London, where she worked as a maidservant. Census records … More Margery Wren

Annie Yates, sometimes referred to as Mary Anne Yates or Mary Anne Marshall, was around twenty-three years old and lived a precarious life on the margins of society. She worked as a prostitute, renting a furnished back room on the first floor of 12 Burton Crescent, a building that housed similar women in what was … More Annie Yates

The Unsolved Murder of Lucy Sands: A Victorian Tragedy in Workington Lucinda “Lucy” Sands was born in February 1865 in Belfast, Northern Ireland, to William John Sands, a pork cutter, and Mary Ann Stewart. The family lived modestly in Belfast, with Lucy’s younger brother, James Henry Sands, born in 1867. Tragedy struck early when both … More Lucy Sands

The Murder of Helen Jewett: A Sensational Crime That Shaped American Journalism Born Dorcas Doyen on October 18th, 1813, in Temple, Maine, Helen Jewett’s early life was marked by hardship and reinvention. Orphaned young after her mother’s death between 1820 and 1823, she was placed as a servant in the household of Chief Justice Nathan … More Helen Jewett

Agapit Dominique Leblanc was born in 1887 in Bouctouche, a predominantly Acadian community in Kent County, New Brunswick, Canada. Little is documented about his early years, but by 1920, he had joined the Canadian Fisheries and Marine Service as a fishery guardian. At the age of thirty-three, Leblanc took on the role of enforcing fishing … More Agapit Leblanc

College Farm, situated on Regent’s Park Road in Finchley, North London, was established as a model dairy operation by the Express Dairy Company in the late 19th century. It served as a picturesque and productive site, supplying milk to London’s growing population. The farm’s serene setting belied its role as the backdrop for one of … More Thomas Webb: The College Farm Mystery

Mary Jane Voller was born around 1893, making her just five years old at the time of her death. She lived with her parents in a modest home in Barking, a working-class suburb on the outskirts of London. The Voller family appeared typical of the Victorian era’s lower-middle class, with her father employed locally and … More Mary Jane Voller

On the evening of January 31st, 1890, fifteen-year-old Amelia Jeffs, affectionately known as “Millie,” a day-school pupil who had left school about a year prior, was sent on a simple errand by her parents, Charles Albert Jeffs and Mary Annie Chamberlain. Living at 38 West Road, West Ham, East London, the family tasked Amelia with … More Amelia Jeffs

John Gill, born in 1881 to Thomas and Mary Ann Gill, was a beloved child living at 41 Thorncliffe Road in the Manningham district of Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. Described as a “bright little fellow and a general favorite,” John was known for his cheerful disposition and popularity among his peers. He often accompanied local … More John Gill

Rachel Mosely Samuel was born in 1803 in the City of London. By 1878, the seventy-four-year-old was a well-to-do widow living alone at 4 Burton Crescent, a respectable address in a crescent of elegant brick-and-stucco townhouses built by developer James Burton. Described as a recluse, Rachel was known to keep to herself, her life marked … More Rachel Samuel: The Burton Crescent Murder