Hello all
Here is a strange story I can across. I am wondering if anyone can shed some more light on this story?
The following event is attributed to the New Orleans Times of November 1872. Tells the strange story of a series of suicides.
The 4th precient Police station in New Orleans had one cell which over the years had 22 prisoners. One night Police brought in Crazy Mary Murphy a destitute vagrant. She was the 23rd inmate to be confined in that cell.
The following morning inmate 23 was found hanged by the neck from the window of her cell. She had used a strip of skirt as a rope. She had prided loose a a brick, the 5th brick from the floor which, used as a jump off, served to break her neck like a gallows trap. She hung so that she faced the south wall of the cell. All these details were recorded by the inspecting officers. The cell was tited and the loose brick replaced, it was ready for service again.
Inmate 24:
A petty thief, he was found after one nights imprisonment hanged by the neck from the cell window bar. He'd used a strip torn from his shirt as a rope, and had loosened the 5th brick as a jump off in death facing the south wall.
Inmate 25:
He was a horse thief. All forgoing circumstances prevailed. When he was discovered dead after one night in the cell. There were the shirt strip rope. The 5th brick used as a platform. And a body facing the south wall.
Inmate26:
This was an arson suspect. Everyone of the details were the same. Death occurred the night of his incarceration.
Inmate27:
A street brawler experienced the identical events. Length of stay over night, discovered dead.
Inmate28:
A pickpocket had the same experience without variation. After one night in the cell he was found dead in the same position.
Inmate29:
A drunkard was incarcerated over night. Shortly after midnight he was found as his predecessors but was cut down not quite dead. He was hopelessly incoherent and remanded to an asylum.
Inmate30:
This was a woman accused of poisoning her husband. After one night in the cell she was found dead under the same circumstances.
Inmate31
A drunkard. He underwent the same in every detail: Overnight dead.
Inmate32:
A burglar, he was found underwent the same conditions, death over night!
Inmate33:
A woman shoplifter after one night in the police cell was found not quite dead. the heel of her shoe had caught on the 5th brick from the floor. She was released hysterical in the custody of her parish priest.
Inmate34:
A drunkard died after one night in the cell under the same circumstances.
Inmate35:
A gambler accused of cheating suffered the same fate in exactly the same way- very dead.
Inmate36:
this pickpocket cut down by guards while still alive was screaming about someone in his cell about midnight. He was released after fruitless questioning.
Inmate37:
A street woman was charged with robbing her customers. Hearing screams at dawn, her warders cut her down. Every detail down to the 5th brick was the same. Her description of a nocturnal visitor who urged her to hang her self fitted the description of crazy Mary Murphy the 23rd inmate.
Inmate38:
They set 2 reliable observers into a position where they could watch the cell into which they installed a vagrant from another parish as he could know nothing of the cells history.
The same thing occurred. they watched with astonishment as the man tore a strip from his shirt, loosened the 5th brick, and attempted to hang himself!
After his rescue, he reported quite firmly that an old woman had entered his cell, and urged him to hang himself. He was unable to resist. As if in a trance, he followed her instructions. The woman he described was Crazy Mary Murphy!
Thereafter the somewhat baffled police decided there after to use the cell only for storage. And after that there was no other suicides recorded.
The story of these events was reported in 1872. Was there any truth to this story was was it a ghostly urban legend?
I would be interested in hearing any other versions of this story and perhaps discovering if this police cell block is still in existence today?
But most of all if there is any evidence to support this legend.
Hardluck.
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