This question may seem absurd, but I am curious. Has anyone come across any serial killers of the ilk of London's 1880s Jack the Ripper in the Indian Territory. There were other serial killers of the era such as Dr. Holmes in Chicago, plus the notorious Benders in Kansas. But what about the Indian and Oklahoma Territories? Some outlaws, such as Cherokee Bill, were seen to be homicidal in their actions. But what about pre-meditation? Look forward to your responses.

Interesting question, Art. The twin territories certainly harboured many murderous types, but whether any of them reached the notoriety of a Jack the Ripper seems doubtful.

To a certain extent the question hinges upon the definition of a "serial killer." For example, was Deacon Jim Miller a serial killer? At the point of his lynching he boasted of killing more than 50 men ("not counting Mexicans"). But since most of his killings were motivated by money, and presumably not for the sheer joy of bloodshed that seems to have behind the Ripper murders, he probably doesn't qualify.

There was in the 1890s a killer named Jack Thorne, known as the "Swamp Angel" in Arkansas, who seems to have been something ofa wildman and a hermit who killed four people seemingly for the thrill of it. One account reads Thorne's "frequent escapes were miraculous, and once in the cane breaks he defied arrest and was more dangerous than the bears that made their home with him."

--meursault

There was suppose to have been a wooly near naked wild man in the woods of the Osage Nation who was killing people at one time in the late 1800s. I read this in that book, title can't remember, about the crimes in the Osage Nation.

You ask the dangest questions...I have to agree that it depends on the definition, so I looked it up and it doesn't include hired killers.

Serial killers are individuals who have a history of multiple slayings of individuals usually unknown to them beforehand. Although the terms serial killer and mass murderer are often used synonymously, the following distinctions are commonly made:
A serial killer is one who commits a number of murders over a long period of time, with the killings separated often by long periods of apparent normalcy. A serial killer tends to "lure" victims to their death.
A mass murderer on the other hand, is an individual who kills several people in a single event.
A spree killer is one who kills in a series of closely connected events. A spree killer tends to go hunting.

Seems I can recall a number of mass murderers, spree killers, but I can't think of a single serial killer in the territory. 'Fraid you got me, but I'll keep looking.

Oklahoma Kid,

I believe you are referring to "Tangdhangtanke" aka "The Panther".

Old West,
What do you know about "Tangdhangtanke" aka "The Panther". I would be most interested in finding out about this character.

Old West,
Never mind my question. I see you had answered it in the most recent post. Thanks