American Historical Ephemera & Photography

Though many exact dates and details of American-born homeopath Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen's life are unclear, varying from source to source, one of the key components of his calamitous life is certain - his marriage to second wife Cora Turner (born Kunigunde Mackamotzki), in the United States sometime between 1892-1894. The couple moved to England, where Turner pursued a career as a music hall artist, going by the stage name Belle Elmore, and Crippen worked in the medical field, including at one point for a homeopathic pharmaceutical company, Dr. Munyon's. Allegedly, the two had an unhappy marriage, and Turner had an overbearing personality.

At some point before Turner's death, Crippen began an affair with a young typist named Ethel LeNeve. When Turner went missing in 1910, Crippen was questioned by authorities to whom he claimed his wife had left him for another man. Crippen and LeNeve shortly thereafter booked passage to Canada aboard the Montrose, disguised as a father and son. When Chief Inspector Walter Dew, who led the investigation into Turner's death, discovered that the couple had fled, he ordered searches of Crippen's home, and body parts were found in the basement. This discovery ignited a public search for the couple, who were identified by the captain of the Montrose, Henry George Kendall, who used brand new wireless technology to telegraph British authorities with his findings.

Crippen and LeNeve were apprehended when the ship reached Canada, and were transported back to the United Kingdom aboard the SS Megantic to stand trial for the murder of Cora Turner. Dr. Crippen was convicted by a jury after less than half an hour of deliberations, and was sentenced to hang at Pentonville Prison on 23 November 1910. Crippen maintained his innocence, and was buried with a photograph of LeNeve, per his final request. 

Fascinatingly, new scientific evidence performed at Michigan State University has suggested that the human remains found in the basement of the Crippen house belonged to a man. The evidence was brought to the UK Criminal Cases Review Commission, which declared in 2009 that the case would not be heard by the Court of Appeal, and therefore Crippen would not be posthumously pardoned. 

A REMARKABLE COLLECTION OF PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE INFAMOUS AND IMPORTANT TRIAL OF DR. HAWLEY CRIPPEN, ONE OF THE FIRST CRIMINALS TO BE APPREHENDED USING WIRELESS TELEGRAPHY.