On 30 March 1896, a bargeman hooked a parcel from the river Thames at Caversham. Inside the brown paper package was the body of a baby girl – she had been strangled with tape. When two more tiny bodies were found in a carpet bag, the police launched a nationwide hunt for a serial killer. Joining me to discuss the case along with paranormal reports surrounding members involved is Angela Buckley the Victorian Supersleuth.

My Special Guest Is Angela Buckley

Angela Buckley researches and writes about crime history and Victorian detectives. Her doctoral research is in the 'science of sleuthing' which examines the development of detective practice in Victorian and Edwardian English regional cities. She is associate lecturer at Oxford Brookes University.

Baby Farming

Baby farming in the United Kingdom refers to a dark chapter in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when unscrupulous individuals exploited the vulnerability of unmarried mothers and societal stigmas surrounding illegitimate births. During this period, impoverished women who found themselves pregnant and without the means to care for their infants would turn to baby farmers, who purported to offer a solution by taking in the babies for a fee. Tragically, many of these so-called caregivers were neglectful or downright abusive, leading to high mortality rates among the infants in their care. The lack of regulations and oversight allowed baby farming to flourish, as these individuals operated with minimal scrutiny. The practice eventually gained public attention, leading to legal reforms and increased awareness about the need for proper childcare, ultimately contributing to the establishment of child welfare laws in the early 20th century.

In this episode, you will be able to:

2. Examine the police investigation and subsequent trial.

3. Discuss some of the paranormal reports and ghost lore that surrounds this case.

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Guest Links:

https://victorian-supersleuth.com

https://www.amazon.co.uk/stores/Angela-Buckley/author/B0034NRV2U?ref=ap_rdr&store_ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true