Denver Strangler

Serial Killer

The Denver Strangler: The Unidentified Killer Who Terrorized Denver's Market Street

Overview

The Denver Strangler was the name given to an unidentified killer associated with a series of strangulation murders in Denver, Colorado, during the 1890s. The strongest part of the series consists of three women killed within approximately ten weeks in 1894. All three deaths occurred in Denver's notorious Market Street red-light district, an area that became so closely associated with the crimes that contemporary newspapers referred to it as "Strangler's Row." The killer was never conclusively identified. Numerous men were arrested, questioned, or publicly accused, and one prominent suspect was eventually tried for murder, but no conviction resulted. The deaths of Lena Tapper, Marie Contassoit and Kiku Oyama form the core of the Denver Strangler case. Two later Denver strangulation murders, those of Julia Voght in 1898 and Mabel Brown in 1903, have also been attributed to the same unidentified offender, although those connections remain speculative.

Denver's Market Street and the Beginning of the Murders

During the late nineteenth century, Market Street was the center of Denver's red-light district. Brothels, saloons, lodging houses and small rooms occupied by women working in prostitution lined portions of the street. Violence, robbery and exploitation were recurring dangers. Against that background, the strangulation murders of 1894 created unusual fear because of their similarities and their concentration within a very small geographic area. The first killing generally associated with the series occurred in September 1894. Two more women were strangled during the following ten weeks. The repeated method of attack, the proximity of the victims' residences and the absence of a successful prosecution convinced much of the public that a single killer was operating in Denver. ...

Confirmed Victims: (3)

Lena Tapper , Date of Death: 1894-09-03

Suspected Victims:

Julia Voght , Date of Death: 1898-10

Mabel Brown , Date of Death: 1903

Denver Strangler - Wikipedia