North America was at one time the unknown, the wild and forbidden continent that Europeans would risk life and limb to reach and eventually conquer and enslave. Slowly, the new continent came to life; well, it was already alive with life, but through the prejudice of “civilized” Europeans, the continent only began its history once the boot of the old world was firmly planted on the neck of the new.
To be sure, there was violence among the peoples of the new world, but it is unlikely that it resembled the crime and justice evidenced in the streets of London and Paris. Our current preoccupation with violence is something that we can go back many years and find afficiandos in the dark ages. The printing press brought the gift of the written word to people who had to rely on rather skilled orators with long, long memories of rather bland ballads, putrid poems, and odious odes. Prior to Johannes Gensfleisch zur Laden zum Gutenberg and his marvelous movable mechanical print ushering in the age of the printed word, there was a dearth of avenues for the human mind to seek distraction. No wonder the extracurricular activities our ancestors pursued are hideous when examined in the cold light of enlightened day.
That said, we are bloodthirsty by nature and our proclivity to seek voyeuristic venues to satiate our desires has meant that it would not take long for someone to realize that we would love to read about executions, murders, thefts, robberies and so on. Along came the tabloids of the day — the broadsides.
As Newgate was London’s busiest processing point for those who had transgressed the law of the era, we still have copies of broadsides (or broadsheets) that allow many to feel intense feelings of sympathy and outrage for the persecuted criminals. In fact, it is shocking to the more modern liberal sensitivities to realize the sheer number of people executed under the “Bloody Code” where theft of a loaf of bread meant death — regardless of sex or age.
In the harsh climate of the day, it seemed that the violence perpetuated against innocent citizens also had a rather shocking component. And while there were occasionally depraved individuals littering Europe’s criminal history, the truly debauched killers of history were usually aristocracy, for who among the peasantry could afford to kill on a large scale and escape punishment for long? And so we see the likes of Giles de Rais and Countess Elizabeth Bathory, each murdering hundreds of males and females for what is generally thought to be a twentieth century reason — sexual satisfaction through bloodshed and murder. It isn’t that there weren’t violent psychopaths roaming in the lower classes; it is simply that they were likely apprehended and terminated quicker as the ruling classes did not suffer such actions from the serfs.
Since the new world was controlled at a distance by the power brokers of Europe, it should not be surprising that the truly demented killers of the new world would be of the “common” class. The debate is only curious for the fact that there is a disagreement as to who among our blood drenched ancestors should be crowned as the “first” serial killer(s). Modern writers have focused on Belle Gunness, H.H. Holmes, the Benders – a Kansas family of murderers, and several others, but the two men who definitely fit the bill for the title of America’s first serial killers are often overlooked or disqualified for some unfathomable reason.
Perhaps it is due to the fact that the research has been clouded by varying accounts. There are conflicting records on even the familial relationship that existed between the two men.
However, these historical discrepancies agree on the important points: the two men murdered many people without discretion, without discrimination and with great ferocity. They enjoyed killing their fellow humans. Age, gender and relationship mattered not one whit to them. And so it is based on their psychological nature that I believe they are the first serial killers we can identify in our history of murderous mayhem belongs to the Harpe men.
Many accounts have the two men as cousins while still others list them as brothers. The facts agree that Big Harpe was older than Little Harpe. It is conceivable that the men were cousins as their fathers would have been brothers and living close to one another. The nicknames were not based on age; Big Harpe was a huge man and must have engendered fear merely at his presence. How unfortunate that his inner nature was dark and depraved. This was no gentle giant. Like modern day killer Edmund Kemper, still living out his days in California’s penal system, the giant truly is a murdering monster.
Or maybe the reluctance to recognize the men is due to the fact that they acted in tandem. If that is the reason, then there should at least be an acknowledgement that they are the first team serial killers to grace our new world shores. Sort of an early version of California killer cousins Kenneth Bianchi and Angelo Buono, the Hillside Stranglers. Of course, America also suffered from killer cousins on its east coast as well, though cousins David Gore and Fred Waterfield are less well known for their Florida murders as a tag team of death.
Whether the men were in fact cousins or brothers, it is irrelevant to the history they have left behind. There was obviously a familial streak of violence that cannot be denied. It remains a rather disconcerting fact that they had wives and had off-spring. Their descendants walk among us today.
And so it goes — the battle to see which stain among our patchwork quilt of crime will win the coveted honour of being considered number one, the first among evils to be selected as our premiere excursion into darkness.
So, you see, when canvassing the depths of depravity, there is a scuffle, a fight if you will, to be considered the first among many.
Vestiges of Violence 