Copy of a portrait of Elizabeth Bathory While the term “serial killer” is a relatively new one, it would seem that serial killers have existed for a very long time. There are some historical serial killers that have been documented as well as they can be, given the age of the killings. We can also safely assume that there have been cases of serial killings that have simply been lost to history. Some experts even think that early tales of werewolves, vampires and the like may have been based on historical serial killers. The following are three serial killers in history whose killings were documented well enough to be generally accepted cases. Jack the Ripper No list of historical serial killers would be complete without the man that some people mistakenly believe to be the world’s first serial killer. The case of Jack the Ripper certainly was one of the first highly publicized serial killings. However, there were unsolved cases in the United States and likely elsewhere ...
A look at some of history's most abhorrent, bizarre, obscure, famous and even funny crimes.