The Cleveland Torso Murders, brought to you by Alaina!!! This is definitely a gnarly case that dates back to the 1930s when torsos started popping up left and right. Many bodies were never identified and to this day the identity of the Mad Butcher is unknown. Part 1 will cover the first six bodies to turn up in the area of Kingsbury Run and will touch upon the arrival of a fancy new inspector in town to lead the case.

Thank you to our beautiful David White for research assistance!

References:

Badal, James J. 2014. In the Wake of the Butcher: Cleveland's Torso Murders. Kent, Ohio: Kent State University Press.

—. 2022. The Kingsbury Run Murders. Accessed October 10, 2022.

Collins, Max Allen, and A. Brad Schwartz. 2020. Eliot Ness and the Mad Butcher. Boston, MA: Mariner Books.

Lytle, Alea. n.d. Kingsbury Run. Accessed October 12, 2022. https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/376.

Plainesville Telegraph. 1934. "Police Seek to Trace Operation as Key to Torso Murder Mystery." Plainesville Telegraph, September 6.

The El Reno Daily Tribune. 1935. "Decapitated Body is Discovered in Ravine." The El Reno Daily Tribune, September 24: 1.

Toledo News-Bee. 1936. "Cleveland Maniac Hnuted in Murders." The Cleveland News-Bee, June 6.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

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