The Tale Of Illinois’ 1897 Sausage Vat Murder Is Too Strange To Make Up
Some of the most heinous crimes to take place in America happened before 1900, such as this historic serial killer’s deeds. One little-known tale is that of the sausage vat murder of 1897 that is creepier than a Sondheim musical. Scroll on for this true crime story.
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Adolph Luetgert moved to America when he was 24 and began a sausage processing plant on the northwest side of Chicago several years after his second marriage.
His first wife died in childbirth, and his business was in taverns prior to running the sausage plant.
Luetgert's business fell into financial ruin after a few years, and this caused many fights with his wife, Louisa. The neighborhood saw them through the window and even in the street being violent with one another.
Luetgert eventually started spending nights at his factory claiming that he needed to watch the place 24/7, but in reality he was carrying on an affair with the couple's maid, who was Louisa's cousin.
Louisa found out about the affair, and it wasn't long before the whole neighborhood knew. Then on May 1, 1897, Louisa was watching their son when her husband came home and sent the boy to bed. No one knows what happened to her after that.
Once it became clear that her husband was responsible, police drained a sausage vat in his factory where they found human bones and two rings that had belonged to Louisa, one of which was her wedding ring. It is believed that Luetgert used caustic potash, or potassium hydroxide, to dissolve the body.
Luetgert pleaded guilty through all stages of his trials. Juries had trouble convicting him but eventually decided he deserved life in prison for what he'd done.
His life sentence lasted less than a year as the sausage vat murderer died in 1900, likely from heart conditions.
Though not heard of today, this crime story certainly made waves in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The tale had such an impact on America that sausage retail declined due to a scare that human remains might be found in the meat.
An Illinois transplant who grew up and went to school in Indiana for 22 years, Elizabeth holds a BFA in creative writing and has enjoyed traveling across the country and parts of Europe. She has visited half of the states, as well as parts of Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean, and regularly travels home to the Hoosier State to see friends and family. With more than five years of writing experience, Elizabeth’s articles have been featured on several websites, and her poetry and short stories have been published in multiple literary journals.
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