James Maybrick

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James Maybrick, (October 24, 1838–May 11, 1889) was a Liverpool cotton merchant. After his death, his wife, Florence Maybrick, was convicted of his murder by poisoning in a sensational trial. A diary later surfaced, which supporters of its authenticity claim shows Maybrick confessing to and describing his activities as Jack the Ripper. The diary has been widely dismissed as a hoax.

[edit] Biography

Maybrick's trading activities required him to travel regularly. In 1871 he settled in Norfolk, Virginia to establish a branch office of his company. In 1874, while still there, he contracted malaria. The medication provided to him contained arsenic, to which he became addicted for the rest of his life.

In 1880, Maybrick decided to return to the company's offices in England. Boarding a ship in New York on March 12, 1880 he arrived in Liverpool six days later. During the journey he was introduced to Florence Elizabeth Chandler, and almost immediately they started planning their marriage. The wedding was delayed until July 27, 1881. They had two children: a son, James Chandler Maybrick, and later a daughter, Gladys Evelyn Maybrick. James continued to divide his time between the American and the English offices of the company. This apparently strained the marriage. There are some indications that both James and Florence conducted extramarrital affairs. In James' case a second wife, Sarah Ann Robertson, is mentioned, without his previously receiving a divorce.

James's health deteriorated suddenly, starting on April 27, 1889, ending in his death on May 11, 1889. The circumstances of death were deemed suspicious, and examination of the body indicated an arsenic overdose as the cause of death. Whether the overdose was self-administered, or administered by Florence (or another person) remains uncertain. Florence was convicted and sentenced to death.

Controversy over the case, especially regarding the fairness of Florence's trial, led to her sentence being commuted to life imprisonment. A re-examination of her case resulted in her release in 1904. Supporting herself through various occupations, she died on October 23, 1941. The case was famous at the time, but mostly forgotten following Florence's death.

[edit] Jack the Ripper Diary

In 1992 a document presented as James Maybrick's diary surfaced, which claimed that he was Jack the Ripper. The diary's author does not mention his own name, but offers enough hints and references consistent with Maybrick's established life and habits that it is obvious readers are expected to believe it is him. The diarist details his alleged actions and crimes over a period of several months, taking credit for slaying the five victims mostly commonly credited to Jack the Ripper, as well as two other murders which have to date not been historically identified.

The 'diary' was first introduced to the world by Michael Barrett, an unemployed former Liverpool scrap metal dealer, who claimed at the time that it had been given to him by a friend, Tony Devereux, in a pub. It was published as The Diary of Jack the Ripper in 1993 to great controversy. Few experts gave it any credence from the outset, and most immediately dismissed it as a hoax, though some were open to the possibility it might be genuine. Debate was often heated, and one writer notes that the "saga of the Maybrick diary is confusing, complicated and inescapably tortuous."[1]

Generally, the current consensus is that the diary is a modern (late 20th century) forgery. This conclusion was reached after various investigators noted that the diary contains mistaken notions about the Ripper crimes that were only introduced in the 20th century, as well as some textual anomalies that seem to refer to modern Liverpool landmarks not present (or not known by the name given in the text) in Maybrick's time. Also cited are tests conducted on the diary's ink, suggesting the diary was written recently, and in only a few sittings, not over the several months indicated in the diary's entries. It was written in an old scrapbook with the first forty-eight pages cut out, which indicated that an old half-used book was found and the original contents had been removed.

In 1995, Michael Barrett swore in an affidavit that he was "the author of the Manuscript written by my wife Anne Barrett at my dictation which is known as The Jack the Ripper Diary."[2] Adding to the confusion, however, was Barrett's solicitor's subsequent repudiation of his affidavit, then Barrett's withdrawal of the repudiation.

A minority of people, including Robert Smith, the present owner of the diary and original publisher of the associated book by Shirley Harrison, insist it may be genuine.

Also presented shortly after the 'discovery' of the 'diary' was a pocket watch, with the initials "J.M." scratched on the inside cover, along with the initials of the five so-called canonical Ripper victims. Again, general consensus is that the watch, though certainly antique, was enhanced by a modern forger adding the initials.