William Hare (murderer)

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William Hare (born 1792 or 1804) was an Irish serial killer who, with William Burke, committed a notorious series of murders in Edinburgh in the 19th century.

His birthplace is as uncertain as his birth date, being variously given as Newry or Derry. He emigrated to Scotland and worked as a labourer on the Union Canal. He then moved to Edinburgh where he met a man named Logue. When Logue died in 1826, he took Margaret Laird, Logue's widow, as his common-law wife and the two ran a lodging house.

[edit] The Murders

Main article West Port murders

In 1827-1828 Hare and lodger William Burke, with the help of Hare's wife Margaret and Burke's mistress Helen, committed what became known as the West Port murders where they killed 17 people and then sold their corpses to the Edinburgh Medical College for dissection.

Once caught, the evidence against the pair was not overwhelming so Lord Advocate Sir William Rae offered Hare immunity from prosecution if he confessed and agreed to testify against Burke. Hare confessed to the murders[clarify] and gave evidence against Burke in return for his freedom. As a result, Burke was hanged.

Released the following February,[clarify] there are various conflicting and unreliable accounts of Hare's later life, none of which records his eventual death:

  • Deciding to lie low, Hare travelled to Kilkeel and eventually sought relief in the workhouse. His identity was only revealed to the locals when a Dr Reid, a former medical student from Edinburgh, recognized him.
  • Many popular tales tell of him as a blind beggar on the streets of London having been mobbed and thrown in a lime pit. However, none of these reports were ever confirmed.
  • Hare migrated to Carlisle, England and disappeared from history.
  • Hare moved to London and died there destitute in 1859.[clarify]

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