This is part three of the 100th episode of the Morbid Curiosity podcast.

If you haven't listened to Part 1, I recommend you go back and do that.

This episode contains discussions of sex work, alcoholism, child neglect and death,

and physical and sexual violence against women.

If these aren't topics you want to hear about, this may be a good episode to skip.

Humans are fascinated by gore and violence, but even more so the mysterious and unsolved.

Interest in these disturbing and unpleasant subjects is called morbid curiosity, and it has gripped millions of people throughout the ages.

I am one of those people.

My name is Hallie,

and this is the Morbid Curiosity podcast. The canonical five, as they are known by riparologists, are Mary Ann called Polly Nichols, Annie Chapman,

Elizabeth Stride, Catherine Addows, and Mary Jane Kelly. I don't proclaim to be an expert on the lives of these women.

In fact, not many researchers can claim that title, as so often they are only viewed as victims.

Much of the information I've summarized for this episode comes from a book by Hallie Rubenhold called The Five.

It's an excellent source backed by public records and detailed research.

I highly recommend reading it. Still, there's a lot we don't

know, as not every detail of their lives was documented. There were other women killed around

the same time, but none who were treated the same way in death as these five. There's some

debate whether Elizabeth Stride belongs in this group,

as her body suffered no mutilations after she was killed. Still, most riparologists include her,

so I will as well. Before we begin, some historical context about the plight of women in 1888

is needed to understand how all these women

became labeled as prostitutes or people who were paid for sex acts. Any woman who was unmarried

...