Inside a Serial Killer's 'Murder Castle'

American History Hit

History Hit

America, History

4.3 • 1.7K Ratings

🗓️ 4 June 2026

⏱️ 45 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

He's one of the most famous serial killers in American history... but how much of H.H Holmes' gruesome crimes were sensationalised by the press at the time?

Our guest today is Dr. Harold Schechter, professor at Queen’s College, City University of New York. He is the author of dozens of non-fiction books, including ‘Depraved: the Definitive True Story of H.H. Holmes, Whose Grotesque Crimes Shattered Turn-Of-The-Century Chicago.’

Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Tomos Delargy. Senior Producer was Freddy Chick.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Want to explore even more history? Sign up to History Hit, where you will discover history from around the world.
0:07.1	From the American Revolution to prehistoric Scotland, there is plenty to discover. With your subscription, you'll unlock hundreds of hours of exclusive documentaries, with a brand new release every week, exploring everything from the ancient
0:22.4	world to World War II. Just visit history hit.com slash subscribe to bring the past alive.
0:34.1	We're in Chicago, 1895.
0:42.1	Detectives move cautiously through the dim, claustrophobic corridors of a structure the neighborhood locals call the murder castle.
0:45.8	In here, the air is thick with noxious smells of chemicals and smoke.
0:51.0	Behind seemingly ordinary storefront walls, the detectives have discovered a number of strange passageways, hidden rooms and staircases leading to nowhere.
1:02.2	In the basement, they find a furnace, surgical tables, and what they imagine are scattered human remains.
1:09.7	Out on the street, reporters clamor for information,
1:13.2	fodder to feed an ever-growing national obsession with this story now exploding in the papers.
1:19.3	Just two years earlier, the city that dazzled with the 1893 World's Fair was now confronting
1:25.9	something far more cryptic and criminal.
1:29.4	And at the center of it all stands a charming, if unassuming doctor and businessman,
1:35.0	who goes by the name of H.H. Holmes.
1:42.2	Hey, everybody, I'm Don Wildman. You've clicked through to American History Hit, and thanks for that.
1:47.1	Our guest today is author Harold Schechter, Professor Emeritus of Queens College, the City University of New York.
1:53.4	He is the author of two dozen works of nonfiction, including Depraved, the definitive true story of H.H. Holmes, whose grotesque crimes shattered
2:03.4	turn-of-the-century Chicago. If you know the story, there's still much to be learned. If you've
2:08.7	never heard it before, take a thank you for joining us.
2:24.5	My pleasure. Thank you for inviting me on.
2:27.0	This is a notoriously gruesome tale. We should caution listeners.
2:30.6	Makes me consider right off the challenge of facing true crime historians in covering such a, you know,
	...

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