Morbid Podcast: The Atlanta Ripper

Hosts: Ash Kelley & Alaina Urquhart
Date: December 15, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode, Ash and Alaina dive into the disturbing, largely forgotten story of the Atlanta Ripper—a serial killer (or possibly killers) who terrorized Atlanta’s Black community in the early 20th century, brutally murdering dozens of Black women. The hosts interweave serious research with their signature levity, contextualizing the murders within Atlanta’s post-Civil War racial tensions and the impact of media and police neglect. This is a heavy episode, rich in social history and loss, but told with Morbid’s trademark candor and camaraderie.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Scene: Atlanta After the Civil War

• Migration and Resentment:

  • Black populations in Atlanta increased rapidly post-war (from under 10k to 35k by 1900) due to new opportunities and the rise of rich Black enclaves like Sweet Auburn (16:03–16:34).
  • Racial tensions remained high—culminating in the 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre, when thousands of white men and boys killed or terrorized Black Atlantans after local papers lied about assaults by Black men (17:48–19:38).

• Impact:

  • After the massacre, any hope of racial integration was obliterated, generating profound community trauma (20:23–20:39).

2. Media Sensationalism and Systemic Neglect

• The “Ripper” Moniker:
  • The idea borrowed heavily from Jack the Ripper hysteria, with the term "Ripper" applied whenever brutal, unsolved murders occurred, often ignoring crucial differences or context (13:05 onward, 29:32–29:56).
  • White-owned Atlanta newspapers frequently minimized, ignored, or mischaracterized the killings of Black women, rarely naming victims or offering follow-up (33:01–33:32).
  • Only when the killings drew the attention of national outlets (e.g., New York Times) did Atlanta’s own press and police feel pressure to act (41:23–42:02).

3. Chronology and Details of the Murders

• Early Cases:

  • Della Reed (1909) and several others were early possible victims. Many had varying causes of death, some shot, some bludgeoned, not all fitting the eventual Ripper pattern (27:23–29:56).

• Canonical Victims:

  • The first murder generally attributed to the Atlanta Ripper: Rosa Trice, Jan 26, 1911—bludgeoned, throat slashed (30:31–30:47).
  • Subsequent victims included Mary Bell Walker, Addie Watts, Lizzie Watkins, each found with skulls crushed and throats slashed, often after leaving work at night (31:56, 32:36, 36:49).

• Eyewitness Breakthrough – Emma Lou Sharp:

  • On July 2, 1911, Emma Lou Sharp survived a vicious attack that killed her mother, Lena Sharp. She described her assailant as a “well-dressed Black man…giant, well over six feet in height, tremendous breadth of shoulders and exceptionally strong and sinewy arms.” (39:04)
  • “Don’t be afraid. I never hurt girls like you,” the killer told Emma Lou—right before stabbing and slashing her violently (37:57–38:06).

• Patterns and Shifting MO:

  • Most victims attacked Saturday nights after work, suggesting a killer’s structured routine (43:06–43:20).
  • In later attacks, the killer sometimes took victims’ shoes, a detail that remains unexplained (45:47, 69:41).

4. Law Enforcement and Racism

• Lack of Police Action:

  • Police and newspapers either ignored or intentionally downplayed the danger to Atlanta’s Black community, contributing to the killer’s ability to operate for years (32:38–34:52).
  • Investigations often saw “strong circumstantial evidence” against various Black men—Henry Huff, Todd Henderson, Lawton Brown—but all were eventually acquitted; the killings continued while they were in custody (47:14–53:01, 63:01–66:19).

• Blaming Victims, Not Police:

  • Police blamed the Black community for not helping to solve the crimes:
    • "We won't get to the bottom of this thing until we get some help from the... black community... These murders are being committed among the lower class... ignorant, brutal beasts that know nothing else." —Unnamed Detective (56:20)
  • Ash's reaction: “I really hope that guy choked and died.” (57:02)

• Community Action:

  • The Black community was proactive, warning women, raising reward money, and holding mass meetings, while the city’s leadership and police failed them (58:36–59:19).

5. Unsolved Status and Legacy

• Too Many Murders, Too Little Evidence:

  • Over two dozen murders ultimately ascribed to the Ripper, but by the mid-1910s, evidence was so thin and definitions so vague that most could never be conclusively solved (67:02–67:56).

• Press and Police Conveniently Assigning Blame:

  • The Ripper legend grew to absorb many unrelated deaths—sometimes actually committed by abusive husbands or boyfriends, not a serial killer, muddying the waters further (63:01–68:11).

• Enduring Mystery:

  • Despite public outrage and eyewitnesses like Emma Lou, the racial prejudices and institutional failures of the time meant the case remains unsolved. Most of Atlanta’s murdered Black women never received justice or even recognition.
  • “Because of people's lack of humanity, this case isn't solved.” —Ash (70:05)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Era’s Racism and Violence:

  • “Anything that's labeled a massacre should horrify you.” —Alaina (17:47)
  • “One unnamed detective told reporters: 'We won't get to the bottom of this thing until we get some help from the black community… ignorant, brutal beasts that know nothing else.'” —Alaina [reading] (56:20)
  • “Not only is that the most racist thing ever, but also he's literally saying… we can’t solve this because the citizens who are being terrorized are not solving it for us.” —Alaina (57:05)
  • “How sad is it that they couldn't even have faith in their police force?... Do you want me to take a crack at it?” —Ash (55:20)

• Brutality of the Crimes:

  • “Her throat had been slashed. It severed the jugular vein.” —Elena, describing Rosa Trice (30:36)
  • “As Emma Lou slumped to the ground… she watched… as this man went back to her mother… and started slashing at her before finally slashing the knife across her throat from one side to the other several times.” —Alaina (38:05)

• Emma Lou’s Eyewitness Account:

  • "Don't be afraid. I never hurt girls like you." —Attacker, via Emma Lou (37:57)
  • “According to Emma Lou, the killer was a 'well dressed black man…well over six feet in height, tremendous breadth of shoulders and exceptionally strong and sinewy arms.'” —Alaina (39:04)

• On Police Incompetence:

  • “In their rush to show…progress…Atlanta's police arrested two men who vaguely matched the description…held them both for the same crimes…just shove them in front of a jury and…you guys decide who did it, A or B. Which is like, that's literally your job.” —Alaina (51:58)

• Harsh Realities:

  • “That goes what? Same way. Hello?” —Ash, mocking police logic (57:44)
  • “Because of people's lack of humanity, this case isn't solved.” —Ash (70:05)

Timestamps for Major Segments

| Timestamp | Segment/Topic | |-----------|---------------| | 11:26 | Content begins: Episode’s case, trigger warnings | | 13:05 | Jack the Ripper context / Atlanta’s “Ripper” | | 16:02 | Atlanta’s post-war growth/racial climate | | 17:48–20:39 | 1906 Atlanta Race Massacre | | 29:32 | Origins of the “Ripper” moniker, early cases | | 31:56 | Mary Bell Walker’s murder & victimization pattern | | 36:49 | Lizzie Watkins & press’s weak response | | 37:13 | Emma Lou Sharp’s attack: eyewitness account | | 41:23–42:02 | National media attention, pressure on police | | 43:06 | Saturday night murder pattern | | 47:14 | Arrests of suspects based on “circumstantial” evidence | | 51:58–53:16 | Police’s bungled, performative arrests | | 54:52 | Near-fatal attack on Ellen Maddox details | | 56:20 | Police blame the Black community for the crimes | | 58:36–59:19 | Black community’s response, city’s deflection | | 63:01–66:19 | Lawton Brown’s flawed confession, acquittal, confusion on “canonical” victims | | 67:02–68:11 | Press/police expand Ripper category, legacy of confusion | | 70:05 | Reflection on racism as cause for lack of justice |

Tone & Noteworthy Moments

• Hosts’ Banter:
  • The episode opens and closes with relatable, humorous banter about their personal lives and running gags, but the body is focused and compassionate, especially regarding victims (02:15–11:26, 70:25 onward).
  • Despite the grave subject, Alaina and Ash manage to keep moments of brisk energy and empathy, acknowledging their own discomfort while persistently refocusing on the historical and social failures that doomed the case.
  • Occasional lightness (“I think you guys are suspicious.” —Ash, 47:21) contrasts with harsh reality, but never trivializes the victims or broader issues.

Final Reflections

• The Atlanta Ripper case remains a tragic testament to the fatal consequences of racism and institutional neglect.
• With dozens of brutal, linked murders and surviving witnesses, this case could have been solved with better police work and genuine care for Black lives.
• The legacy of these unsolved murders lingers, a ghost of what might have been if communities had been valued equally.
• As Alaina puts it: “We don’t know who committed those murders, and which ones are even the work of the same person…It’s a result from zero effort being put into any of these cases.” (68:29–70:05)

Random Fun Fact (Levity Break)

• Did you know? The word LEGO is derived from the Danish “leg godt” (play well), and in Latin can mean “putting together.” (70:59)

Highly recommended for true crime aficionados interested in the intersection of race, media, and justice in America’s past. The episode is both sobering and engaging, capturing the injustices of the era with compassion and insight.