The Soap Lady

 Author: Nyree Hardwick

Imagine you are invited to a popular older woman’s house. Say you have been looking for a job or love and she says she found you someone, but you must go quite a distance away just to meet them. Here’s the kicker, she tells you to promise her not to tell a living soul about where you’re going or what she has told you. All of a sudden… you pass out and then? You’re dead. This was how it was for the victims of “The Soap Lady”

According to many sources and records, Leonarda was both a mother and a wife to 18 children. She had become very superstitious over the years, having believed her mother cursed her and her marriage out of spite since she refused to marry the man who her parents wanted her to. She also believed this due to them not giving her marriage their blessing. After this, she had gotten arrested for fraud and her home was destroyed by one of today’s deadliest earthquakes. 

Now, it wasn’t as bad at first but due to her getting pregnant 17 times, having 3 miscarriages, and losing 10 of her children from a young age. Due to this she went and spoke to a fortune teller in hopes that everything would turn up but instead was told that in her right hand they saw prison and in her left they saw an insane asylum. That didn’t drive her off the edge though, what drove her off the edge was when her eldest and favorite son came to her and told her that he was going to join the war. All her effort to protect her children was going to fail if he went to war so she did one thing in hopes to protect him. Blood sacrifices. 

This was how “The Soap Lady” came to be, she went and collected three women. Managed to trick them and turned two of them into tea cakes while she turned the last one into tea cakes and soap before going on about how sweet they each were. She even went as far as to demonstrate how she did it seeing as the police had begun to assume her son, who she had been trying to protect, was the one who murdered those woman. Just like the fortune teller told her, she was arrested and sent to prison as well a insane asylum for her crimes and died there as well.

Works cited:

Serena, Katie “Serial Killer Leaonarda Cianciulli: Turning People Into Soap” Topic. August 2022. https://thecrimewire.com/multifarious/The-Cannibal-Leonarda-Cianciulli-Famous-Female-Serial-Killers. Accessed 29 Oct. 2023.

M, Pilar. “Serial Killer Leonarda Cianciulli: Turning People into Soap” The Crime Wire. August 12, 2022. Accessed 29 Oct. 2023.

The Infographics Show. “Leonarda Cianciulli AKA The Human Flesh Soap Maker” Youtube. May 4, 2018. Accessed 29 Oct. 2023.

Eniqma. “Leonarda Cianciulli | True Crime Story of the Soapmaker of Correggio” Youtube. July 30, 2022. Accessed 29 Oct. 2023.

Rowlatt, Justin. “Sodium: Getting Rid of Dirt – and Murder Victims.” BBC. May 3, 2014.  Accessed 29 Oct. 2023.

Links for Further Research:

1.      The Crime Wire, https://thecrimewire.com/multifarious/The-Cannibal-Leonarda-Cianciulli-Famous-Female-Serial-Killers, A clear view of ‘The Soap Lady’ and how she killed and used her victims as well as her reason for doing such things.

1.      Museo Criminologico, The Correggio soap-maker - Mucri - Criminology Museum (archive.org), It gives you the quotes of what Leonarda said about each of her victims when she was on trial.

1.      All That’s Interesting,  Meet Leonarda Cianciulli, Italy's Infamous Female Serial Killer (allthatsinteresting.com), It gives more of an insight on her backstory.

Killer in the Backseat

Author: Elizabeth King

This Can of Mystery may have captured your attention due to its terrifying title. The Killer in the Backseat is a very well-known and chilling urban legend. As I was doing research on this tale, I even had my hair stick up on the back of my neck. The tale goes like this: In the Beginning, in 1967, a woman who is driving and she was being followed by a weird car. The mysterious car flashes the high beams, gets super close to her and sometimes even slams the car into her vehicle. This on its own sounds absolutely horrific but it gets worse. She realizes that the driver was trying to warn her that there was a strange man hiding in her back seat! She decides that she just needs to keep on driving as the man behind her kept screaming “Lock your doors and call the cops!”

Thats when she realizes that the man behind her was helping her. Each time the man sat up to get to the woman, the man behind used the high beams to scare the killer in the womans car which causes him to duck down. So, the man who was ramming her car was not the killer and he was trying to warn the lady. Though out the years plenty of variations of the tale as said in this article if you would like to read more. The articles tells another story with the same idea as the original.

I read up on a true story may have been the inspiration for this urban legend and this honestly made the legend more scary. It was based off an incident in 1964 in New York City. A escaped killer hid in a backseat of a car. But, the car ended up belonging to an police officer who ended up killing the man hiding in the backseat. Which just sounds like bad luck on the killers side. The police officer ended up shooting him and that was the end of it. There are obviously some differences between the two stories but they also have the same ideas. I just found it interesting that it is based off of an actual event. The Killer in the Backseat is one of those tales that sounds realistic enough that it gives you a heavy feeling. I quite enjoyed tale about this story and I hope you have as well. Always remember to check your backseat.

Works Cited:

Brunvand, Jan Harold. “TALE OF BACKSEAT KILLER IS SIMILAR TO NEWS STORIES.” Deseret News, 13 Dec.1991.

“History/Origin.” The Killer in the Backseat: An Urban Legend, killerinthebackseat.weebly.com/historyorigin.html.

Laws, Katherine. The Killer in the Backseat, 22 Oct. 2012, canofmystery.blogspot.com/2012/10/the-killer-in-backseat.html.

Maykr, Khan. “The Killer In the Backseat.” Villains Wiki, 2011, villains.fandom.com/wiki/The_Killer_In_the_Backseat.

Schlosser, S.E. “ Urban Legends.” Urban Legends at Americanfolklore.net, 2002, americanfolklore.net/folklore/urban-legends/.

Links for further research:
The Killer in the Backseat
http://www.snopes.com/horrors/madmen/backseat.asp
Articles of different places from which the urban legends “The Killer in the Backseat” was founded.

American Folklore
http://americanfolklore.net/folklore/urban-legends/
A website that contains all kinds of urban legends and different types of folklore.

5 Ridiculous Origins of Famous Urban Legends
http://www.cracked.com/article_19800_5-ridiculous-origins-famous-urban-legends.html
More Information of the origins of different Urban Legends and American Folklore.

The Axe Man of New Orleans

Author: Musa Kareem

Hell, March 13, 1919, Esteemed Mortal of New Orleans: The Axe Man.They have never caught me and they never will. They have never seen me, for I am invisible, even as the ether that surrounds your earth. I am not a human being, but a spirit and a demon from the hottest hell. I am what you Orleanais and your foolish police call the Axe Man.

This is a supposed quote from the infamous murderer known as the Axe man of New Orleans. If this is a genuine quote, it pretty much sums up the type of person we are dealing with here. Even if this quote isn’t genuine, the events that happened in New Orleans, 1918 through 1919 are creepy enough.

It’s the night of May 23rd, 1918; a couple named Catherine and Joseph Maggio are in their home,419 Magnolia St.and in that night, they became known as the first victims of the Axe Man.The story is the Axe Man crept through the darkness of the Maggio home, knocked the couple with an axe andcuttheir throatswithone of Joseph’s straight razors.Catherine was found almost entirely decapitated, while her husband suffered from multiple severe injuries.Their bodies were discovered by joseph’s brother, who lived with the couple.When the attack was investigated,the only leads that were found was a missing panel from the kitchen door and a bloody axe.This break-in was abnormal because no valuables or money were.The Maggio attack is only beginning of the many disturbing attacks supposedly committed by the Axe Man, some more gruesome or disturbing than others.

On March 10th,1919, the Cortimiglia family was attacked.Charles attempted to protect his family by engaging in a fight with the Axe Man. Charles Cortimiglia would lose that fight and the Axe Man would go on to attacking Charles wife Rose and their two-year-old daughter, Rose. Charles and Rose would survive the attack, but their daughter tragically didnot.Like all the other Axe Man attacks the only thing police found was the bloody axe the attacker used.The attacker was described as dark, tall,heavy-set, wearing a dark suit and a black slouch hat.Three days later, on March 13th, 1919, the letter quoted up above was sent to a New Orleans newspaper called The Times-Picayune.In the letter he would go on to threaten and insult the police.The most sinister thing about this letter is threat aimed towards the citizens of New Orleans.

Undoubtedly, you Orleanians think of me as a most horrible murderer, which I am, but I could be much worse if I wanted to. If I wished, I could pay a visit to your city every night. At will I could slay thousands of your best citizens (and the worst), for I am in close relationship with the Angel of Death.

Now, to be exact, at 12:15 (earthly time) on next Tuesday night, I am going to pass over New Orleans. In my infinite mercy, I am going to make a little proposition to you people. Here it is:I am very fond of jazz music, and I swear by all the devils in the nether region that every person shall be spared in whose home a jazz band is in full swing at the time I have just mentioned. If everyone has a jazz band going, well, then, so much the better for you people. One thing is certain and that is that some of your people who do not jazz it out on that specific Tuesday night (if there be any) will get the axe.

This letter put fear in the hearts of the New Orleans citizens. On the Tuesday mentioned in the letter the people of New Orleans blasted jazz music in their homes and those who didn’t have a record player poured into local jazz clubs, just to stay clear from the Axe Mans wrath.What is interesting is the fact that no one was attacked on that night.The letter would also go on to spark the creation of a jazz song called“Don’t Scare Me Papa,” also known as the mysterious Axe Mans jazz.

October 27th,1919 was the last time the Axe Man attacked someone.He attacked and killed a man named Mike Pepitone. Mike was bashed in the head eight-teen times. He initially survived the attack but died only two hours later. After this the Axe Man seemed to just vanish from the city of New Orleans. He was never caught or even identified.

Work Cited:

BuzzFeed Multiplayer. “BuzzFeed Multiplayer: The Terrifying Axeman of New Orleans.” YouTube,2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrMGIqecu0Y&t=456s.

Kelly, Meghan. “The Axe Murderer Who Loved Jazz.” Wbur.com, 2018. https://www.wbur.org/endlessthread/2018/06/22/the-axeman-serial-killer-new-orleans

For more information check the links below:


The Axeman of New Orleans.
https://www.legendsofamerica.com/la-axeman/2/.
This article is essentially a timeline of the Axe man’s murders and other important events related to the Axe man.

The Legends of History: The Axe Man of New Orleans (Serial Killer History Explained). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O9iHBtN0DaE.
This video goes in detain of each murder done by the Axeman and his possible motivations.

“Criminal Profiles: The Axeman of New Orleans
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8XX7k5Jt84
In this video the narrator goes through each one of the Axe man’s murders and attacks. He mentions the important dates in the story that is the notorious Axe man.

Murders of the Bog

Author: Shaila Adia

Paint Me Like One of Your Irish Bog Bodies

In the area of northern Europe, there has been a series of murders… two-thousand year old murders that is. Since about 700 B.C. there has been multiple accounts of people being thrown into peat bogs and being found around the 18th century. Originally people thought these bodies were recently killed until an in-depth evaluation and one murder confession later anthropologist find out these bodies aren’t from our time (“Were the Mysterious Bog People Human Sacrifices”).

These people are now called bog bodies. Bog Bodies are bodies that have been cast into or who fell into bogs while alive\(“What are Bog Bodies”). Throwing these people into bodies of water was believed to be a human sacrifice or just plain murder that turned into mummification of a body. Mummification is a method of embalming or treating a dead body used in ancient Egypt (“Egyptian Mummies”). When pulled out of the peat bog, these people had their skin still intact, but very burnt, facial features prominent, clothes and hair still on their body, the only thing that disintegrated was their bones. This was able to happen because of a moss called sphagnum found in peat bogs, that produces a substance that keeps out or kills bacteria and small bugs that could eat or ruin the flesh on the body and the material of the clothing they (“Bless This Boggy Book: How Do Bogs Keep Things Fresh?”). Bog bodies are akin to getting tanned because the bog cures the body in a way that it preserves skin but eats away at bones leaving no trace of DNA and them being shrunken (“Were the Mysterious Bog People Human Sacrifices”).

A Peaceful Death

One of the most well-known bog body is Tollund Man, found in Aarhus, Denmark 1950. He is known for his peaceful like resting face being the most recognizable and intact. His death was ruled as a murder because of the noose that was found tied around his neck with the fact that he was placed into the bog. Being laid in a sleeping position with eyes and mouth shut, this led archeologist to believe he was a human sacrifice.

Other bog bodies that have been found include Cashel Man (2011), Old Croghan Man (2003), Lindow Man (1984), Yde Girl (1897), Grouballe Man (1952), Windeby Girl (1952). Yde Girl was believe to be murdered with half of her hair cut off because of her having a disfigurement. Windeby Girl was about 13/14 and was believed to be murdered for being an adulteress with a man found five yards away from her body. Lindow man still had his facial hair intact with good teeth and well-manicured nails. He had a violent and brutal death, with it obviously being a murder. Grouballe Man was analyzed and x-rayed the most and it was found that his last meal with a hallucinogenic fungus (“Bog Bodies of the Iron Age”).

Poem "The Tollund Man" by Seamus Heaney

Works Cited:

Clark, Robert. Grauballe Man was found in 1952 in Nebelgard Mose, a small bog in Jutland, Denmark. Forhistorisk Museum, Højbjerg, Denmark. “Bodies of the Bogs.” Archaeology, 10 Dec. 1997. https://archive.archaeology.org/online/features/bog/images/GrauballeBog.gif.

Tollund Man. “Tollund Man,” Atlas Obscura, contributed by Ronin. https://assets.atlasobscura.com/media/W1siZiIsInVwbG9hZHMvcGxhY2VfaW1hZ2VzLzk0ZDgwYmY0MGRkZmJlYzU4MjU1Yjk3ODE0MjIxZjc1YjI3MzBjZmEuanBnIl0sWyJwIiwiY29udmVydCIsIi1hdXRvLW9yaWVudCAiXSxbInAiLCJ0aHVtYiIsIjYwMHg0MDArMTUrMTIiXSxbInAiLCJjb252ZXJ0IiwiLXF1YWxpdHkgODEgLWF1dG8tb3JpZW50Il0sWyJwIiwidGh1bWIiLCI3ODB4NTIwIyJdXQ/94d80bf40ddfbec58255b97814221f75b2730cfa.jpg . Accessed on 27 March 2019.

“Egyptian Mummies.” Smithsonian, https://www.si.edu/spotlight/ancient-egypt/mummies. Access Day March 24, 2019.

Engber, Daniel. “Bless This Boggy Book: Ho Do Bogs Keep Things Fresh?” Slate, 28 July 2006, https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2006/07/how-do-bogs-keep-things-fresh.html.

FirstscienceTV, “The Tollund Man: Denmark’s remarkable bog mummy.” YouTube, 19 Oct. 2007, https://youtu.be/5CQE4c8UJkM

Gazur, Ben. “10 Ancient Bog Bodies That Will Amaze You.” Listverse, 28 Jan. 2017, https://listverse.com/2017/01/28/10-ancient-bog-bodies-that-will-amaze-you/.

Heany, Seamux. “The Tollund Men” pbs.org, Nova, Jan. 2006, https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/bog/toll-heaney.html.

Lewis, Susan K. “The perfect Corpse: Bog Bodies of the Iron Age.” pbs.org, Nova, 2006, https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/bog/iron-nf.html#fea_top

Mikanowski, Jacob. “Where the Mysterious Bog People Human Sacrifices?” The Atlantic, 11 March 2016, https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/03/were-europes-mysterious-bog-people-human-sacrifices/472839/.

For further reading:

Mystery of the Bog Bodies https://scienceworld.scholastic.com/issues/2017-18/103017/mystery-of-the-bog-bodies.html#1120L This source explains not only the science of bogs but specifics on one of the cases for bog bodies. This source breaks down the mystery of bog bodies in a kid friendly way along with diagrams.

Bog Bodies Uncovered: Solving Europe's Ancient Mystery https://www.amazon.com/Bog-Bodies-Uncovered-Solving-Europes/dp/0500051828 This book explains in depth about who the bog bodies were, more bog bodies mentioned, and how or why they died.

Man-Eating Peat Bogs? 10 Top Tips For Crossing Treacherous UK Bogs https://www.tripsavvy.com/stay-safe-on-a-uk-bog-1661537 This source gives readers who are into wilderness and become more interested in bogs, a safe way to travel and how to become more conscious and not end up like the bog bodies discovered.