The Mad Gasser of Mattoon

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Mad Gasser
Daily Journal-Gazette (Mattoon),
September 2, 1944
Creature
Name: Mad Gasser
AKA: The Anesthetic Prowler,
The Mad Anesthetist,
The Phantom Anesthetist,
The Mad Gasser of Mattoon,
The Mad Gasser of Roanoke
Classification
Grouping: Human
Sub Grouping: Phantom Attacker
Data
First Reported: 1933 (Botetourt),
1944 (Mattoon)
Last Sighted: 1944
Country: United States
Region: Botetourt,Virginia,
Mattoon, Illinois
Status: Identity unknown

Mad Gasser (Also known as "The Anesthetic Prowler", "The Mad Anesthetist", and "The Phantom Anesthetist", "The Mad Gasser of Mattoon" or "The Mad Gasser of Roanoke") was the name given to the person or persons believed to be behind of a series of apparent gas attacks that occurred in Botetourt County, Virginia during the early 1930s, and in Mattoon, Illinois during the mid-1940s.

Whether the attacks actually occurred, whether or not they were connected, and their explanation remain debated.[1]

Contents

[edit] Appearance

Most contemporary descriptions of the Mad Gasser are based on the testimony of Mr. and Mrs. Bert Kearney of 1408 Marshall Avenue, the victims of the first Mattoon case to be reported by the media. They described the gasser as being a tall, thin man dressed in dark clothing and wearing a tight-fitting cap. [2][3] Another report, made some weeks later, described the gassers as being a female dressed as a man. [4][1] The Gasser had also been described as carrying a flit gun, an agricultural tool for spraying pesticide, which he purportedly used to expel the gas.[5]

[edit] Botetourt

The first actually recorded Mad Gasser incident occurred in Botetourt County, Virginia, with attacks occurring between December 22, 1933 and February 1934.

[edit] Chronology

The first reported gasser incident occurred at the home of Cal Huffman, in Haymakertown, Botetourt county, where there were three reported attacks over the course of a single night.

At 10pm on December 22nd, 1933, Mrs. Huffman reported smelling an unusual odor, and was overcome by a feeling of nausea. The odor and the nausea returned again at 10:30pm, at which time Cal Huffman contacted the police. A third attack occurred around 1am, this time affecting the entire house; in total, 8 Members of the Huffman family were affected by the gas, along with Ashby Henderson, a guest staying at the house. Their symptoms included headaches, nausea, facial swelling, and constriction of the mouth and throat. Alice Huffman, the daughter of Cal Huffman, suffered a more severe reaction to the gas than the other residents. Her throat became so constricted that she stopped breathing and had to be resuscitated. She also suffered convulsive fits for an extended period after the attack, though local physician Dr. S.F. Driver recorded at the time that this was most likely due to anxiety brought on by the attack, rather than the effects of the gas itself. [1][6][7][8]

The next recorded incident occurred in Cloverdale on the 24th of December. Clarence Hall, his wife, and their two children returned from a Church service at 9pm. They detected a strong, sweet odor and immediately began to feel weak and nauseated. Police investigating the case discovered that a nail had been pulled from a rear window, near where the the gas appeared to be the most concentrated, and presumed that the hole had been used to inject it into the house. [8]

A third incident occurred on the 27th of December, in which Troutville resident A Kelly and his mother reported similar signs and symptoms to the Huffman and Hall cases. A fourth and fifth incident occurred on the 10th of January when Mrs. Moore, a guest in home of Haymakertown resident Homer Hylton, reported hearing voices outside before gas was injected into the room through a damaged window. The second attack that night was reported in Troutville, at the home of G. Kinzie. [1][7]

Other reported attacks include:

Date Victim/s Location Notes
Jan 16 F.Duval Bonsack Suspect car seen near attack
Jan 19 Mrs. Campbell Cloverdale Victim was ex-judge's wife
Jan 21 Mr. And Mrs Howard Crawford Cloverdale Victims were out at the time of the attack, but were almost overcome by fumes upon their return home
Jan 22 Ed Reedy
George C. Riley
Raymond Etter		 Carvin’s Cove The three houses were located within 2 miles of one another, and attacked in consecutive order moving southwards
Jan 23 Mrs. R H Hartsell Pleasantdale Church A barricade was constructed outside the door to prevent easy escape, though the Hartsells were not at home when the attack occurred
Jan 25 Chester Snyder Cloverdale Although no gas was released, Snyder is reported to have scared off a prowler. Evidence found at the scene by police confirmed that an unidentified individual had hidden close to the Snyder residence, and had tracked across the property (It was never confirmed whether or not the prowler was related to the gassing incidents).
Jan 28 Mr. and Mrs. Ed Stanley + 3 House guests Cloverdale Four people seen running from the scene
Feb 3 Mr and Mrs. A Scaggs + five adults Nace Victims were unusually badly effected by the gas.
Feb 9 J.G. Schafer Lithia After the attack, sections of discolored snow were discovered near the victim's house. The Snow had a sweet odor, analysis showed it to contain sulfur, arsenic and mineral oil. Authorities speculated that it might be insecticide residue.

[1][7][8][9]

Several other incidents were recorded, but authorities determined most to be a combination of hoaxes and worried residents reporting common odors as signs of an attack. [8]

The gas used in the attacks was never identified. Dr. W.N. Breckinridge, working with the police, determined that it was not chloroform or tear gas, and that it appeared to contain traces of formaldehyde. At one point, the gas was thought to be Chlorine, though this was later discounted. [7][9]

[edit] Mattoon

The second spate of "mad gasser" incidents occurred in Mattoon, Illinois. It began in late August 1944, and attacks continued for several weeks.

[edit] Chronology

The first of the 1944 gasser incidents occurred at a house on Grant Ave., Mattoon, on August 31, 1944. Mr. Urban Raef was awakened during the early hours of the morning by a strange odor. He felt nauseated and weak, and suffered from a fit of vomiting. Suspecting that he was suffering from domestic gas poisoning, Raef's wife tried to check the kitchen stove to see if there was a problem with the pilot light, but found that she was partially paralyzed and unable to leave her bed.[1][7][8][2]

Later that night, a similar incident was also reported by a young mother living close by. She was awakened by the sound of her daughter coughing but found herself unable to leave her bed. [1] (due to differing depictions of the night of the 31st and the morning of the 1st, some contemporary accounts list the second attack as having occurred the following day).

The next day, September 1, there was a third reported incident. Mrs. Kearney, of Marshall Avenue, Mattoon, reported smelling a strong, sweet odor around 11pm. At first she dismissed the smell, believing it to be from flowers outside of the window, but the odor soon became stronger and she began to loose feeling in her legs. Mrs. Kearney panicked and her calls attracted her sister, Mrs. Ready, who was in the house at the time. Mrs. Ready also noticed the odor, and determined that it was coming from the direction of the bedroom window, which was open at the time. The police were contacted, but no evidence of a prowler was found. At around 12:30 that night Bert Kearney, Mrs. Kearney's husband (a local taxi driver who had been absent during the time of the attack), returned home to find an unidentified man hiding close to one of the house's widows. The man fled and Kearney was unable to catch him. Kearney's description of the prowler was of a tall man dressed in dark clothing, wearing a tight fitting cap. This description was reported in the local media, and became the de facto description of the gasser throughout the Mattoon incident. [7][8][2]. After the attack, Mrs. Kearney reported suffering from a burning sensation on her lips and throat, which were attributed to the effects of the gas.[1][8]

Initially, it was suspected that robbery was the primary motive for the attack. At the time of the incidents, the Kearneys had a large sum of money in the house, and it was surmised that the prowler could have seen Mrs. Kearney and her sister counting it earlier that evening. [2][7] Local newspapers incorrectly reported this incident as being the first gasser attack. [2]

In the days following the Kearney attack, there were half a dozen similar attacks (See table), though none of the purported victims were able to provide a clear description of the prowler, and no clues were found at the scene of the attacks. The first specimen of physical evidence was found on the night of September 5, when Carl and Beulah Cordes of North 21st street returned home around 10pm. After spending a few minutes in the house they noticed a piece of white cloth, slightly larger than a man's handkerchief, sitting on their porch next to the screen door. Mrs Cordes picked up the cloth and smelled it. As soon as she inhaled, she became violently ill. She described the effect as being similar to an electric shock. Her face quickly began to swell, she experienced a burning sensation in her mouth and throat, and began to vomit. As with other victims, She also reported feeling weak and experiencing partial paralysis of her legs. Mrs. Cordes later hypothesized that the cloth had been left on the porch in order to knock out the family dog, which usually slept there, so that the prowler could gain access to the house unnoticed. [10]

In addition to the cloth, a skeleton key, described as looking "well used," was reportedly found on the sidewalk adjacent to the porch, along with a large, almost empty, tube of lipstick. The presence of the skeleton key appeared to lend weight to the idea that the prowler intended to gain access to the Cordes residence.[1][10].

The cloth was analyzed by the authorities, but they were unable to determine what chemicals were involved or why the cloth had produced such a violent reaction in Mrs. Cordes.[1][5]

The night of the Cordes attack, there was a second incident in North 13th Street, at the home of Mrs. Leonard Burrell. She reported seeing a stranger break in through her bedroom window, and then attempt to "gas" her.

Public concern over the gassings quickly rose, the FBI became involved, and the local police were soon forced to issue a statement calling on residents to avoid lingering in residential areas, and warning that groups set up to patrol for the gasser should be disbanded for reasons of public safety. Chief of Police C.E. Cole also warned concerned citizens to exercise due restraint when carrying or discharging firearms. [11].

During this period, there was also an apparent increase in physical evidence of attacks taking place, ranging from footprints being discovered underneath windows to tears being found in window screens. [7][8]

By the 12th of September, local police had received so many false alarms (mostly from citizens believing that they smelled gas, or that they had seen a prowler) that they reduced the priority afforded to gasser reports, and announced that the entire incident was likely the result of explainable occurrences exasperated by public fears, and a sign of the anxiety felt by women while local men were on war service. [11][12][7] (See Mass Hysteria and Toxic waste or pollution).

After the police announcement, gasser reports declined, or at least ceased to be recorded. The only incident of arguable note after that date was the case of Bertha Burch, who described the gasser as a woman dressed as a man (See Farley Llewellyn). [1]

Date Victim/s Location Notes
Aug 31 Mr. and Mrs. Urban Reef Grant Avenue N/A
Sept 1 Unnamed N/A Name not reported in the media
Sept 1 Mrs. Charles Rider Prairie Avenue N/A
Sept 1 Mrs. Bert Kearney Marshall Avenue First case reported in the media [1] Most Gasser descriptions derive from this case
Sept 5 Mrs. Beulah Cordes North 21st Street Became ill after smelling cloth found on porch
Sept 5 Mrs. Leonard Burrell North 13th Street N/A
Sept 6 Mrs. Laura Junken Richmond Avenue N/A
Sept 6 Ardell Spangle North 15th Street N/A
Sept 6 Mr. Fred Goble N/A Saw Prowler believed to be Gasser
Sept 6 Mrs. Glenda Hendershott South 14th Street N/A
Sept 6 Mr. Daniel Spohn North 19th street N/A
Sept 6 Mrs. Cordie Taylor Charleston Avenue N/A
Sept 6 Miss Frances Smith
Miss Maxine Smith		 Moultrie Ave N/A
Sept 7 As Above As Above Saw blue vapor and heard a motorized buzzing sound believed to be from gassing machinery
Sept 8 Mr C.W. Driskell DeWitt Avenue N/A
Sept 9 Mrs. Genevieve Haskell
Grayson Wayne Haskell
Mrs. Russell Bailey
Miss Katherine Tuzzo		 Westwood N/A
Sept 9 Mrs. Lucy Stephens North 32nd Street N/A
Sept 10 Unnamed Champaign Avenue Name not reported in the media
Sept 10 Unnamed Moultrie Avenue Name not reported in the media
Sept 10 Miss Frances Smith
Miss Maxine Smith		 Moultrie Ave Third reported attack
Sept 13 Bertha Burch N/A Described gasser as being a woman dressed as a man. Woman's footprints found at scene

(List incomplete) [1][2][4][7][8][13][3][14]

[edit] Explanations

There are three primary theories about the Mad Gasser incident: mass hysteria, industrial pollution, or an actual physical assailant.

[edit] Mass hysteria

Almost 2 weeks after the Mattoon attacks began, the local Commissioner of Public Health, Thomas V. Wright, announced that there had undoubtedly been a number of gassing incidents, but that many instances were likely due to hysteria: residents hearing of alarming events, and then panicking when confronted by an out-of-place odor or a shadow at the window.[7]

“There is no doubt that a gas maniac exists and has made a number of attacks. But many of the reported attacks are nothing more than hysteria. Fear of the gas man is entirely out of proportion to the menace of the relatively harmless gas he is spraying. The whole town is sick with hysteria.” -Thomas V. Wright

On September 12, local Chief of Police C E Cole took Wright's hypothesis a step further, announcing that there had likely been no gas attacks at all, and that the reported incidents had probably been triggered by chemicals carried on the wind from nearby industrial facilities, and then exacerbated by public panic. [1]

Wright and Cole's diagnosis was given further validity in 1945 when the Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology published "The 'phantom anesthetist' of Mattoon: a field study of mass hysteria" by Donald M. Johnson, which documented the Mattoon incident as a case study in mass hysteria. [15] In 1959, his opinion was seconded by psychologist J P Chaplin[16], and went on to form the basis for several subsequent studies of the phenomena of mass hysteria. [17]

In 1972, Johnson's and Wright's joint diagnosis was challenged by paranormal researcher Jerome Clark and anthropology expert Loren Coleman, who specializes in contagious social phenomena. Upon examining the Mattoon incident they concluded that authorities, and those researching the events at a later date, had glossed over several aspects of the case in order to diagnose mass hysteria, and proposed that there may have been several real incidents that were surrounded by several "hysteria" incidents. [13][1]

In 1994, the empirical value of Johnson's study was called into question, along with the validity of findings based on his work, after it became publicly known that Johnson was still an undergraduate without significant field experience at the time during which his study was written. [17][18]

A hypothesis has also emerged that mass hysteria was put forward as an explanation to the Mattoon incident as part of a conspiracy to hide the true identity of the gasser (See Farley Llewellyn).

Most of the physical symptoms recorded during the Botetourt and Mattoon incidents (including choking, swelling of mucus membranes, and weakness/temporary paralysis) are all known symptoms of a hysterical reaction. [19]

[edit] Toxic waste or pollution

On the 12th of September, Chief of Police C E Cole told a press conference that odors and symptoms reported may have been the result of pollutants or toxic waste released by nearby industrial plants, and speculated that carbon tetrachloride or trichloroethylene, both of which have a sweet odor and can induce symptoms similar to those reported by purported gasser victims, may have been the substance released. [1][12]

In response to Cole's statement, Atlas-Imperial, the primary company implicated in this affair, released a statement of its own saying that their facility had only 5 gallons of carbon tetrachloride in stock, which was contained in firefighting equipment. It also denied that any quantities of trichloroethylene (an industrial solvent used by Atlas) could be responsible for sickness in the town, reasoning that it would have taken significant quantities of the chemical to sicken the townspeople, and that factory workers would have experienced similar symptoms long before anybody outside of the factory was effected.[12]

At the time of the gassing, the Atlas plant had been certified as safe by the State Department of Health. [12]

[edit] Actual assailant

After analyzing events, some researchers have concluded that at least some of the gasser incidents were the work of an actual attacker who carried out a series of gassings as reported by witnesses. [13]

Whether the events in Botetourt and Mattoon are connected remains a point of conjecture. Historian Mike Dash cites female footprints and similar smells/symptoms as evidence of there being a connection between the two incidents. [17]. Jerome Clark however notes that the two incidents took place at different times and in different locations, and that the former received little publicity outside of the immediate areas. [1] Factors make it unlikely that a single assailant could be involved, and which raise doubts as to whether a Mattoon resident might have learned of the Botetourt incident and carried out copycat attacks.

[edit] Farley Llewellyn

The Mad Gasser of Mattoon: Dispelling the Hysteria, by Scott Maruna
Enlarge
The Mad Gasser of Mattoon: Dispelling the Hysteria, by Scott Maruna

In 2003, Scott Maruna, a former resident of the area affected by the 1944 Mattoon incident, published a book detailing the hypothesis that the attacks were the work of a mentally disturbed man named Farley Llewyllen. [4]

Maruna writes that Llewellyn, who was studying at the University of Illinois at the time of the attacks, was an accomplished chemistry student who was isolated from the local community; which suspected him of being a homosexual. Giving him both the knowledge and the motive to commit the attacks. Maruna furthers his hypothesis by noting that many of the attacks were clustered around Llewellyn's home, and the first victims had attended high school with him.

In addition to naming him as the gasser, Maruna also claimed that Llewellyn's two sisters, Florence and Kathryn Llewellyn, were involved, and that they had carried out one or more attacks in order to draw suspicion away from their brother. This is, in part, circumstantially corroborated by the case of Bertha Burch (attacked on the 13th of September), in which the attacker was described as being a woman dressed as a man, and following reports that an unidentified woman's shoe print was found outside at the Burch residence after a purported gasser attack. [1]

Maruna believed that the gas used by Llewellyn was either nitromethane, an industrial solvent also used in the manufacture of explosives, or 1,1,2,2-, tetrachloroethane, an ingredient used in the manufacture of insecticide. Both of these chemicals are sweet smelling and produce symptoms found in the victims of these cases. [4]

Although Llewellyn had been a suspect at the time of the incident, and was placed under surveillance for a time, he was never charged with the gassing. It has since been speculated that his involvement might have been covered up by local residents or officials because his father, a local grocer, was a respected member of the local community. [4][20]

Llewellyn was never charged with the gassings, and shortly after the gassings ended, the Llewellyn family had him committed to a mental institution.

[edit] In Popular culture

During early releases of Monster in My Pocket, there was a character named "The Mad Gasser of Mattoon"(monster number 110). When the franchise was re-released in 2006, it was renamed "The Mad Gasser".

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Clark, Jerome (1993). Unexplained! 347 Strange Sightings, Incredible Occurrences, and Puzzling Physical Phenomena. Detroit: Visible Ink Press. ISBN 0-8103-9436-7.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Aesthetic Prowler” on the loose Mrs. Kearney and daughter first victims.", Daily Journal-Gazette (Mattoon), 1944-09-02. Retrieved on 2006-11-01.
  3. ^ a b "Victims of gas prowler now 25", Charleston Daily Courier, 1944-09-09. Retrieved on 2006-11-01.
  4. ^ a b c d e Maruna, Scott (2003-02-27). The Mad Gasser of Mattoon: Dispelling the Hysteria. Swamp Gas Book Co. ISBN 0-9728605-0-9.
  5. ^ a b (1944-09-18) "At Night in Mattoon". Time Magazine. 0040-781X. Retrieved on 2006-11-01.
  6. ^ McHenry, Travis (2006). Into the Abyss: The Memoirs of a Paranormal Adventurer.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Taylor, Troy (2002). The mad gasser of Virginia and & Mattoon, Illinois. Ghosts of the Prairie. Retrieved on 2006-10-01.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i Taylor, Troy (2002). Into the shadows. Whitechapel Productions. ISBN 1-892523-21-3.
  9. ^ a b The Mad Gasser of Roanoke. MysteryMag (2005). Retrieved on 2006-10-01.
  10. ^ a b "Anesthetic prowler adds victim: Mrs. C. Cordes burned, Ill two hours", Daily Journal-Gazette (Mattoon), 1944-09-06. Retrieved on 2006-11-10.
  11. ^ a b "Many Prowler Reports; few Real - To all citizens of Mattoon", Daily Journal-Gazette (Mattoon), 1944-09-11. Retrieved on 2006-11-01.
  12. ^ a b c d "Police get two false alarms during night", Daily Journal-Gazette (Mattoon), 1944-09-13. Retrieved on 2006-11-01.
  13. ^ a b c Clark, Jerome, Coleman Loren (1972-02-01). "The Mad Gasser of Mattoon". Fate 25 (2).
  14. ^ Mio, Leslie (2001). Location of "Gasser Attacks". Eastern Illinois University. Retrieved on 2006-11-10.
  15. ^ Johnson, Donald M (1945). "The 'phantom anesthetist' of Mattoon: a field study of mass hysteria". Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology (40): 175-186.
  16. ^ Chaplin, J. P (1959). Rumor, fear and the madness of the crowd. Ballantine Books. ASIN B000AMUL5M.
  17. ^ a b c Dash, Mike (2000). Borderlands: The ultimate exploration of the unknown. Overlook. ISBN 0-87951-724-7.
  18. ^ Smith, W (1994). "Mattoon Revisited".
  19. ^ Janet, Pierre (1965). "Major Symptoms of Hysteria (2nd edition)".
  20. ^ Downes, Jonathan (2006-11-01). "In Search of the Mad Gasser". Fortean Times (216): 36-39. ISSN 0308-5899.

[edit] External links

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