The Midnight Assassin: Panic, Scandal, and the Hunt for America's First Serial Killer

Austin, TX, was evolving from a town to a city in 1885, with money flowing in and a bright future in sight. But that future was damaged by a series of brutal attacks that killed ten people—eight women (including two who were assaulted in nearby Gainesville), a child, and a man; the victims spanned race and social class. The police assumed it was the work of "bad blacks" and tried unsuccessfully to coerce confessions out of several men. Two of the victims' husbands fell under suspicion, but that went nowhere, and as the case dragged on without result many prominent Austin politicians saw their careers destroyed. The murderer (or murderers) terrorized the area for two-and-a-half years before disappearing without a trace, just months before similar crimes were committed in the Whitechapel district of London. Hollandsworth (executive editor, Texas Monthly) became fascinated by this nearly forgotten Austin story and searched through primary sources for clues that might have surfaced over the years, but the truth remains elusive.