- Date:
- 1870
- Original Format:
- Fine Print Illustration
- Item#:
- MES19358
Francis Tumblety (1833-1903)
Francis Tumblety is today a prime Jack the Ripper suspect. Born in Ireland, he made his career in the U.S. as a quack doctor. Tumblety became wealthy selling "herbal remedies." He was first arrested for trying to perform an abortion on a prostitute. In the 1870s and 1880s he expanded his practice to Europe. A colorful con man, Tumblety used many false names and disguises. Tumblety openly admitted he hated women. In 1888, when the Ripper crimes ended, he fled London using the pseudonym of Frank Townsend. He was buried in Rochester, New York.