Adolph Louis Luetgert (December 27, 1845 – July 7, 1899) was a
German-American
German Americans (german: Deutschamerikaner, ) are Americans who have full or partial German ancestry. With an estimated size of approximately 43 million in 2019, German Americans are the largest of the self-reported ancestry groups by the Unite ...
businessman in
Chicago
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,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
, convicted of murdering his second wife Louisa Bicknese in 1897 and dissolving her body in a
sausage
A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs may be included as fillers or extenders.
...
vat filled with
lye
A lye is a metal hydroxide traditionally obtained by leaching wood ashes, or a strong alkali which is highly soluble in water producing caustic basic solutions. "Lye" most commonly refers to sodium hydroxide (NaOH), but historically has been us ...
at his A.L. Luetgert Sausage & Packing Company.
Luetgert, born in
Gütersloh
Gütersloh () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the area of Westphalia and the administrative region of Detmold. Gütersloh is the administrative centre for a district of the same name and has a population of 100,194 peo ...
,
Westphalia
Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants.
The territory of the regio ...
(now
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
), moved to Chicago in the 1870s. He married Louisa Bicknese on January 18, 1878, some months after his first wife died. They had four children together.
Luetgert had founded his own business, the successful A.L. Luetgert Sausage & Packing Company, and was considered the "sausage king" of Chicago.
Prosecuted by
State's Attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a loc ...
Charles S. Deneen
Charles Samuel Deneen (May 4, 1863 – February 5, 1940) was an American lawyer and History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican politician who served as the List of Governors of Illinois, 23rd Governor of Illinois, from 1905 to 1 ...
, later a two-term
governor of Illinois
The governor of Illinois is the head of government of Illinois, and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by p ...
, Luetgert was convicted and sentenced to
life in prison
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
on February 9, 1898. He died in prison a year and a half later.
After the trial was publicized, rumors spread that Luetgert had ground up his wife's remains as sausage and sold this "sausage" to unknowing consumers. Sales of sausage in Chicago dropped off for a while. The tale was later proved false, as her body was shown to have been dissolved and the remains mostly burned, but the legend persists to this day. Another common legend related to the murder is that the ghost of Louisa Luetgert haunts the old factory grounds and the couple's former home in Chicago.
Early life
Adolph Louis Luetgert, born on December 27, 1845, was originally named Adolph Ludwig Lütgert. He was born in
Gütersloh
Gütersloh () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the area of Westphalia and the administrative region of Detmold. Gütersloh is the administrative centre for a district of the same name and has a population of 100,194 peo ...
, located in the
province of Westphalia
The Province of Westphalia () was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1815 to 1946. In turn, Prussia was the largest component state of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918, of the Weimar Republic and from 1918 ...
, which is now a part of
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
.
His parents, Christian Heinrich Lütgert and Margreta Sophia Severin, had a total of sixteen children; twelve other sons and two daughters. Adolph was the fourth born in the family. He had a twin brother named Heinrich Friedrich "Fritz" Luetgert, who died in 1894 or 1895. While Adolph Luetgert and his twin were growing up, their father dealt with animal hides and tallow wool, as well a dabbling in real estate.
Luetgert's schooling lasted from about the age of seven until the age of fourteen, as was typical of the time for tradesmen's sons. He worked as an apprentice under Ferdinand Knabel, who taught him the
tanning
Tanning may refer to:
*Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather
*Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin
**Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun
**Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dye t ...
business. During his apprenticeship, Luetgert continued to live in Westphalia, and lived with his boss instead of his family. After working for Knabel for two and a half years, Luetgert began to travel around Germany, working wherever he could. At the age of nineteen, Luetgert traveled to
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
, where he stayed for about six months. He left because he was unable to find a job other than scrubbing restaurant floors.
Life in America
Luetgert immigrated to
New York City
New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
around 1865 or 1866, when he was about twenty years old. He had heard that thousands of his countrymen were going to America with very little money but were able to find work. With about thirty dollars to his name, Luetgert boarded a ship bound for the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
After a short time in New York, Luetgert traveled to
Quincy,
Illinois
Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...
, to join some friends of his eldest brother Henry, who were living there. He stayed in Quincy for about four months before moving to
Chicago
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, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
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, subdivision_type = Country
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in search of a job at a tannery, which he found at Union Hide and Leather Company. Luetgert did not have a steady job or constant pay at the tannery, so he began also to take on random jobs such as working as a moving man. From 1867 to 1868, Luetgert worked at another tannery called Engle, Crossley & Co. He next worked at a tannery called Craig, Clark & Company, but returned to the Engle tannery, working there until 1872.
He had saved four thousand dollars and started his own business, initially dealing in
liquor
Liquor (or a spirit) is an alcoholic drink produced by distillation of grains, fruits, vegetables, or sugar, that have already gone through alcoholic fermentation. Other terms for liquor include: spirit drink, distilled beverage or hard ...
before starting his eponymous
sausage
A sausage is a type of meat product usually made from ground meat—often pork, beef, or poultry—along with salt, spices and other flavourings. Other ingredients, such as grains or breadcrumbs may be included as fillers or extenders.
...
company in 1879.
Luetgert married his first wife, Caroline Roepke, on April 13, 1872, at Chicago, Illinois; their two sons, Max and Arnold, were born there in 1873 and 1875. Caroline died on November 17, 1877.
He married his second wife Louisa Bicknese, two months after Caroline's death, on January 18, 1878. Luetgert fathered a total of six children—two with Caroline and four with Louisa. Only three of these children survived past the age of 2.
Murder and police investigation
Louisa Luetgert was reported as
missing
Missing or The Missing may refer to:
Film
* ''Missing'' (1918 film), an American silent drama directed by James Young
* ''Missing'' (1982 film), an American historical drama directed by Costa-Gavras
* ''Missing'' (2007 film) (''Vermist''), a Bel ...
on May 1, 1897. Adolph Luetgert told their children that their mother had gone to visit her sister on the previous night but never came back. After a few days, Louisa's brother, Diedrich Bicknese, went to the police to report her disappearance. Luetgert told the police that she ran away with another man.
During their investigation, the police learned that the couple had a history of
domestic violence
Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for ''intimate partner ...
and that they fought on a regular basis. According to a source, Luetgert had financial difficulties during the
Panic of 1896
The Panic of 1896 was an acute economic depression in the United States that was less serious than other panics of the era, precipitated by a drop in silver reserves, and market concerns on the effects it would have on the gold standard. Deflatio ...
. He had started courting a rich widow whom he planned to marry once he got rid of his wife.
The police discovered that on the night of May 1, 1897, the night Louisa disappeared, she was seen entering the sausage factory with her husband at 10:30pm. A watchman from the factory confirmed the account, saying that Luetgert gave him an errand to run and told him that he could take the rest of the night off. The police also came across bills that documented Luetgert having bought
arsenic
Arsenic is a chemical element with the symbol As and atomic number 33. Arsenic occurs in many minerals, usually in combination with sulfur and metals, but also as a pure elemental crystal. Arsenic is a metalloid. It has various allotropes, but ...
and
potash
Potash () includes various mined and manufactured salts that contain potassium in water-soluble form. the day before the murder. Due to all the accumulated evidence, they were convinced that Luetgert had killed his wife, boiled her in
lye
A lye is a metal hydroxide traditionally obtained by leaching wood ashes, or a strong alkali which is highly soluble in water producing caustic basic solutions. "Lye" most commonly refers to sodium hydroxide (NaOH), but historically has been us ...
, and disposed of her remains by burning them in the factory furnace.
The officers started searching in the furnace, where they found burned foul sausages and human remains. They also found two of Louisa's rings, including one that had the initials "LL" engraved on it. Bone fragments identified by a
forensic anthropologist
Forensic anthropology is the application of the anatomical science of anthropology and its various subfields, including forensic archaeology and forensic taphonomy, in a legal setting. A forensic anthropologist can assist in the identification o ...
included
metatarsal
The metatarsal bones, or metatarsus, are a group of five long bones in the foot, located between the tarsal bones of the hind- and mid-foot and the phalanges of the toes. Lacking individual names, the metatarsal bones are numbered from the med ...
bones, toe
phalanx
The phalanx ( grc, φάλαγξ; plural phalanxes or phalanges, , ) was a rectangular mass military formation, usually composed entirely of heavy infantry armed with spears, pikes, sarissas, or similar pole weapons. The term is particularly use ...
, and the head of rib.
Due to the overwhelming evidence, Luetgert, still claiming his innocence, was arrested and tried.
Trials
Luetgert's first murder trial began in August 1897 and took place in the
Cook County
Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...
courthouse
A courthouse or court house is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English-spe ...
with Judge Richard Tuthill presiding. Luetgert was
defended by William Vincent and
prosecuted
A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the case in a criminal trial ...
by
State's Attorney
In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or state attorney is the chief prosecutor and/or chief law enforcement officer representing a U.S. state in a loc ...
Charles S. Deneen
Charles Samuel Deneen (May 4, 1863 – February 5, 1940) was an American lawyer and History of the Republican Party (United States), Republican politician who served as the List of Governors of Illinois, 23rd Governor of Illinois, from 1905 to 1 ...
. The latter was later elected as
governor of Illinois
The governor of Illinois is the head of government of Illinois, and the various agencies and departments over which the officer has jurisdiction, as prescribed in the state constitution. It is a directly elected position, votes being cast by p ...
for two terms, and as
US Senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
for Illinois.
The prosecution presented bone fragments and the ring inscribed "LL", recovered from one of the grinders in Luetgert's sausage factory, as its main evidence that Louisa had been killed there. The defense argued that Louisa Luetgert had left her house freely on May 1, 1897, citing many claims of people around the US who said that they had seen her after the trial began. During the trial, observers thought that Luetgert seemed unconcerned and overly confident that he would be found innocent. The jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict, resulting in a
hung jury
A hung jury, also called a deadlocked jury, is a judicial jury that cannot agree upon a verdict after extended deliberation and is unable to reach the required unanimity or supermajority. Hung jury usually results in the case being tried again.
...
.
The case was retried in January 1898 at the same courthouse. The prosecution used
George Amos Dorsey
George Amos Dorsey (February 6, 1868 – March 29, 1931) was an American ethnographer of indigenous peoples of the Americas, with a special focus on the Caddoan and Siouan tribes of the Great Plains. He is credited with helping develop the ant ...
, an
anthropologist
An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...
from the
Field Columbian Museum
The Field Museum of Natural History (FMNH), also known as The Field Museum, is a natural history museum in Chicago, Illinois, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum is popular for the size and quality of its educational ...
in Chicago, as an
expert witness
An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...
to prove that the bones found were human. This time, the jury came to a unanimous verdict that Luetgert was guilty. Luetgert was convicted and sentenced to
life in prison
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
on February 9, 1898. Eighteen months later, on July 7, 1899,
Luetgert was found dead in his cell at the
Illinois State Penitentiary.
The official cause of death was "fatty degenerative heart disease".
This case was one of the first trials to be widely covered by the media. Newspapers from Chicago reported on it daily, and some of the reporters tried to eavesdrop on the
jury deliberation
Deliberation is a process of thoughtfully weighing options, usually prior to voting. Deliberation emphasizes the use of logic and reason as opposed to power-struggle, creativity, or dialogue. Group decisions are generally made after deliberatio ...
s. It is credited with making murder trials a subject of general interest in the media. This case also was one of the earliest to use an anthropologist as a
forensic expert in a trial.
[Elizabeth Royte, "Let the Bones Talk is the Watchword for Scientist-Sleuth," ''Smithsonian Magazine'', May 1996, vol. 27, 2, p. 82]
Myths about Mrs. Luetgert
There were many "sightings" of Louisa Luetgert after the trial began. She was sighted in twelve different states but never found. One of the most famous myths was that she was seen boarding a ship in New York bound for Europe. When Adolph Luetgert heard this, he said that he thought she was definitely fleeing the country. Louisa, however, was never reported as seen outside the United States.
The factory
Some claim that the Luetgert factory burned to the ground in 1902. Robert Loerzel documented that the factory still stands, although a fire took place there on June 26, 1904. Today, the factory stands on the south side of the 1700 block of West Diversey Parkway. It has been converted into residential
condominium
A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...
s.
References
External links
Kelleher, "Dark Destinations — The A. L. Luetgert Sausage and Packing Company", The Cabinet website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Luetgert, Adolph
1845 births
1899 deaths
Murder in Illinois
American people of German descent
Businesspeople from Chicago
American people convicted of murder
German people convicted of murder
American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment
American food company founders
Incidents of domestic violence
19th-century American businesspeople