True Life Tuesday: The Servant Girl Annihilator

These killing took place 3 years before the Jack the Ripper murders. In fact, there is a theory that they are the same person. Austin became the first American city to have a serial killer, 75 years before the term was coined.

The first victime was Mollie Smith, a 25 year old cook working in the home of Walter Hall. She was killed on December 30, 1884 with an axe. Her body was found next to the family outhouse. The next victim was Eliza Shelly. She worked as a cook in the home of Dr. Lucian Johnson. She was also killed with an axe on May 7, 1885. It was reported that her head was almost slit in half from the blow. The third victim was Irene Cross. She was killed on May 23, 1885 and it was reported that she has appeared to be scalped. In August 1885 Clara Dick was attacked along with Rebecca Ramey and her daughter Mary. Clara and Rebecca survived but Mary did not make it. Gracie Vance and her boyfriend Orange Washington were the next victims. They were killed while sleeping in a shack behind the home of Vance's boss. Up to this point all of the victims were African American but not all were servant girls. However, the name Servant Girl Annihilator stuck.

The last two murders took place on Christmas Eve 1885. These murders were of women who were from the upper levels of society. First, Sue Hancock was found in her backyard by her husband. Her home is now the location now the Four Seasons Austin. The second victim was Eula Philips who was found in the backyard of her in-laws. Her husband, Jimmy, was also severely wounded in the attack. Both husbands were accused of their murders but were found to be not guilty. 

Even after the killings stopped the city still lived in fear. The murders put a halt to the city's growth from a small frontier town to a larger city. During the investigation about 400 men were brought in for questioning. The murders have never been solved.