User:Richard Arthur Norton (1958- )/Carl Tanzler
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Carl Tanzler, also known as Carl von Cosel (February 8, 1877 – July 23, 1952) was a radiologist in Key West, Florida who developed a morbid obsession for Elena Milagro Hoyos (1910–1931). She was one of his patients, and she died from tuberculosis in 1931 at the hospital. With her parents' permission he had an above ground mausoleum built for her, so she wouldn't decompose underground. He visited the tomb every night and by 1933 he had taken the body home with him and kept it in his bed. He restored her body as best he could and kept a full wardrobe to dress her.
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[edit] Name
Tanzler went by many names; he was listed as Georg Karl Tänzler on his German marriage certificate. He was listed as Carl Tanzler von Cosel on his US citizenship papers, and he was listed as Carl Tanzler on his Florida death certificate. Some of his hospital records were signed Count Carl Tanzler von Cosel.
[edit] Biography
He was born as Karl Tänzler or Georg Karl Tänzler on February 8, 1877 in Dresden, Germany. Around 1920 he married Doris A. (1889–1977) and he was listed as "Georg Karl Tänzler" on the marriage certificate. Together they had two children: Ayesha Tanzler (1922–1998) aka Ann Tanzler; and Crystal Tanzler (1924–1934) aka Crysta Tanzler, who died of diphtheria. Ayesha was born May 1, 1922, and died December 27, 1998. Tanzler emigrated to the United States in 1926, sailing from Rotterdam on February 6, 1926 to Havana, Cuba. From Cuba he settled in Zephyrhills, Florida and was later joined by his wife and two daughters. Leaving his family behind in Zephyrhills in 1927, he took a job as a radiologist at Marine Hospital in Key West, Florida under the name Carl von Cosel. By 1930 Doris, living in Zephyrhills, could still not speak English and didn't hold a job.
[edit] Elena Milagro Hoyos
At the hospital, Carl became obsessed with Elena Milagro "Helen" Hoyos (1910–1931), a patient at the hospital suffering from terminal tuberculosis. Elena was the daughter of Frank Hoyos (1883–?) and Aurora Milagro (1881–?), and her siblings were Florinda Milagro Hoyos (1906–1944) aka Nana, who married Mario Medina (c.1905–1944) and also died of tuberculosis in 1944 or 1946; and Celia Milagro Hoyos (1913–?). On February 18, 1926, Elena married Luis Mesa (1908–?), the son of Caridad and Isaac Mesa. Luis eventually moved to Miami. Mario Medina, Nana's husband, was electrocuted trying to rescue a coworker who hit a powerline with his crane at a construction site.
[edit] Morbid obsession
Elena died in October of 1931, and Carl carried his obsession with her beyond the grave. With the permission of her family he paid for the construction of an above ground mausoleum in the Key West City Cemetery, and he visited her body every night. In April of 1933 he took the body from the mausoleum to his home. He attached her bones together with piano wire, and fitted her face with glass eyes. As her skin decomposed he replaced it with silk cloth soaked in hot wax. As her hair fell out of her decomposing scalp, he collected it and made a wig for her head. He filled her abdominal and chest cavity with rags to keep her original form. Carl dressed her in stockings and white gloves and kept the body in his bed. In 1940 Elena's sister, Florinda had heard rumors of his sleeping with the body in his bed, and confronted Carl in his home, and discovered her sister's body. She notified the authorities and Carl was arrested, but could not be prosecuted because the statute of limitations had run out for grave desecration. Elena's body was put on display at the Dean-Lopez Funeral Home, and then was returned to Key West City Cemetery. Her remains were buried in an unmarked grave to prevent further tampering.
[edit] Death and Burial
In 1944 Tanzler moved to Pasco County, Florida close to Zephyrhills, Florida and he wrote an autobiography in 1947. He received United States citizenship in 1950 in Tampa and he died on July 3, 1952. His body was discovered on the floor of his home three weeks after his death. He died under the name "Carl Tanzler".
[edit] Apocryphal stories
- He died in the arms of an effigy adorned with her death mask. He died on the floor behind one of his organs. His obituary recounts: "a metal cylinder on a shelf above a table in it wrapped in silken cloth and a robe was a waxen image".
- He had the bodies switched, and he died with the real body of Elena. There is no evidence from the examination of the waxen effigy found in his house at the time of his death, that it contained bones, or other human materials.
- He had sex with the corpse with a tube that acted as a vagina. No mention was made of this at the 1940 trial when they were looking for a reason to keep him in jail and challenge his sanity. This anecdote surfaced in 1975, 35 years later. No contemporary photograph of the autopsy, or photographs taken at the public display, show a tube. No mention is made in the contemporary press accounts when journalists were covering the already sensational story.
[edit] References
- Ben Harrison; Undying Love: The True Story Of A Passion That Defied Death ISBN 0312978022.
- Tom Swicegood; Von Cosel ISBN 0595275338.
- Karl Tanzler von Cosel; The Secret of Elena's Tomb (1947).
- Miami Life; November 2, 1940.
- Tampa Tribune; Tampa, Hillsborough County, Florida, Wednesday, May 11, 1977; Page 3 Funeral notice of Doris Tanzler.
- HBO Autopsy (2005).
[edit] Timeline
- 1877 Birth of Carl Tanzler in Dresden, Germany on February 8th.
- 1920 (circa) Marriage to Doris in Germany.
- 1922 Birth of Ayesha Tanzler, his daughter.
- 1924 Birth of Crysta Tanzler, his daughter.
- 1926 Rotterdam to Havana on February 6th.
- 1926 Enters USA and goes to Zephyrhills, Florida where he may have had a sister.
- 1927 Begins work at Marine Hospital in Key West, Florida.
- 1930 1930 US Census with Doris Tanzler in Zephyrhills, Florida.
- 1930 1930 US Census with Hoyos family in Key West, Florida.
- 1931 Death of Elena Milagro Hoyos in October.
- 1933 Removal of the body of Elena Milagro Hoyos to his home.
- 1934 Death of Crysta Tanzler, his daughter, from diphtheria.
- 1940 Arrest for desecration of a grave.
- 1940 Released on bond from jail on October 12th.
- 1944 Moves to Pasco County, Florida near Zephyrhills, Florida.
- 1950 Receives United States citizenship in Tampa.
- 1952 Death of Carl Tanzler on July 23rd.
- 1977 Death of Doris Tanzler, his estranged widow, on May 11th.
- 1998 Death of Ayesha Tanzler, his daughter.
[edit] See also
- The Secret of Elena's Tomb a musical EP by ...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead inspired by the story
