John Frank Hickey (October 29, 1865 – May 8, 1922) was an American

child molester Child sexual abuse (CSA), also called child molestation, is a form of child abuse in which an adult or older adolescent uses a child for sexual stimulation. Forms of child sexual abuse include engaging in sexual activities with a child (whether ...

and

serial killer A serial killer is typically a person who murders three or more persons,A * * * * with the murders taking place over more than a month and including a significant period of time between them. While most authorities set a threshold of three ...

. Due to the postcards he mailed to the police and media, he was dubbed The Postcard Killer.

Early life

John Frank Hickey was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, to

Irish immigrants The Irish diaspora ( ga, Diaspóra na nGael) refers to ethnic Irish people and their descendants who live outside the island of Ireland. The phenomenon of migration from Ireland is recorded since the Early Middle Ages,Flechner and Meeder, The ...

Michael J. Hickey and Mary Ann Magrath.McLaughlin, Vance. ''The Postcard Killer: The True Story of America's First Profiled Serial Killer and How the Police Brought Him Down'',

Thunder's Mouth Press Perseus Books Group was an American publishing company founded in 1996 by investor Frank Pearl. Perseus acquired the trade publishing division of Addison-Wesley (including the Merloyd Lawrence imprint) in 1997. It was named Publisher of the Ye ...

, New York, 2006. He was baptized

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

at St. Patrick's Church, which was only two blocks from his parents' lodgings. After his arrest for murder in 1912, Hickey claimed to have been physically abused by his father. In his early teens, Hickey joined Lowell's First

Congregational Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...

Church on Kirk Street. He also became an official of the Lowell

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

and the Christian Endeavor.

First murder

On September 1, 1883, 18-year-old Hickey contacted police and said that he had found 34-year-old pharmacist Edwin W. Morey dead on the floor of the McGibbon's Drugstore, where both had worked. Hickey claimed that Morey had been despondent for some time due to

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

and that he had been trying to help his co-worker regain sobriety. As the doctor believed that Morey had taken poison, a

stomach pump Gastric lavage, also commonly called stomach pumping or gastric irrigation, is the process of cleaning out the contents of the stomach. Since its first recorded use in early 19th century, it has become one of the most routine means of eliminating ...

was brought. At midnight, Morey showed some signs of life, but died shortly after three o'clock in the morning. Years later, Hickey admitted to having murdered Morey with

laudanum Laudanum is a tincture of opium containing approximately 10% powdered opium by weight (the equivalent of 1% morphine). Laudanum is prepared by dissolving extracts from the opium poppy (''Papaver somniferum Linnaeus'') in alcohol (ethanol). Red ...

. He had been afraid that if their employer had found Morey intoxicated, he might fire them both.

Freemasonry

Listing his occupation as "Secretary of the YMCA", Hickey applied for and received membership in Lowell's William North

Masonic Freemasonry or Masonry refers to Fraternity, fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of Stonemasonry, stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their inte ...

Lodge in 1887. In 1889, he became a

Master Mason Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

. Despite his later claims, Hickey never attained the rank of 32nd degree Freemason. Although his biographer Vance McLaughlin describes Hickey as having "quit the Masons in June 1895", Masonic records tell a different story. In March 1895, Hickey was arrested in Lowell for stealing 20 gallons of alcohol from his employer. In response, the

Grand Lodge of Massachusetts The Most Worshipful Grand Lodge of Ancient Free and Accepted Masons of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, commonly referred to as the Grand Lodge of Massachusetts and abbreviated GLMA, is the main governing body of Freemasonry within Massachusetts ...

ruled Hickey "a liar and profane" and expelled him "from all the rights and privileges of Freemasonry" on June 12, 1895.

Second murder

In 1896 Hickey left Lowell and would never live there again. Between then and 1902, he drifted around

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

and the

Northeastern United States The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...

, working various industrial jobs. On December 10, 1902, Hickey encountered Michael R. Kruck, an eleven-year-old newspaper vendor. When Kruck offered to sell him a newspaper, Hickey responded that he would purchase all of them if the boy would follow him into

Central Park Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...

. When Kruck did so, Hickey strangled him and left his body with the newspaper bundle under his head. The coroner later examined the body and found no evidence of

sexual assault Sexual assault is an act in which one intentionally sexually touches another person without that person's consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in a sexual act against their will. It is a form of sexual violence, which ...

. The coroner's inquest ruled that Michael R. Kruck met his death by being strangled "by some person or persons unknown to this jury." On December 12, 1902, Michael Kruck's body was released from the morgue and buried at Brooklyn's Washington Jewish Cemetery.

Third murder

On October 12, 1911, Hickey, then employed as a steel plant supervisor in

Lackawanna, New York Lackawanna is a Administrative divisions of New York#City, city in Erie County, New York, Erie County, New York (state), New York, United States, just south of the city of Buffalo, New York, Buffalo in western New York (state), New York State. T ...

, noticed seven-year-old Joey Joseph playing at his father's men's furnishing store. Later, when Joey was making mud puddles with a friend in the street near his house, Hickey motioned to them to join him. He gave Joey a few pennies to buy candy for himself and his friend. Upon Joey's return, Hickey abruptly told his friend that it was time for him to go home. Hickey then took Joey by the hand and led him to an outhouse behind a saloon on Ridge Road. There Hickey strangled Joey into unconsciousness, sexually molested him, and then strangled him to death. Hickey then dumped the boy's body into the outhouse pit.

Postcards

Despite the assistance of the Buffalo Police Department, the investigation into Joey Joseph's disappearance had almost no leads. Then, on October 30, 1911, a postcard was delivered to Lackawanna police chief Gilson. It read, "Joseph Joseph will be found in the bottom of a water closet with three seats, back of the saloon near Doyles, on Ridge Road. A drunk crazed brain done the deed, and remorse and sorrow for the parents is bringing results that will soon come to an end. The demon whisky will then have one more victim, making four in all. Drag the closet with the three seats."

Trial, imprisonment, and death

Hickey was charged with first degree murder, but in a verdict which surprised many, he was instead found guilty of second degree murder. Two jurors thought Hickey was insane and should not be executed. He was sentenced to life in prison, and died in prison on May 8, 1922.

References

Cited works and further reading

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hickey, J. Frank 1865 births 1922 deaths American murderers of children American people of Irish descent American serial killers Child sexual abuse in the United States Former Roman Catholics Male serial killers People convicted of murder by New York (state) Poisoners Prisoners who died in New York (state) detention People from Lowell, Massachusetts Serial killers who died in prison custody Violence against men in North America