The Devil in the White City by Eric Larson

This intriguing story follows the actions of one of the world’s most famous serial killers. It tells the horrors of Chicago in the 1890’s and how the famous World’s Fair came to change our country. The Devil in the White City follows the true story of two architects, Burnham and Olmsted, and their struggles to build a fair beyond anyone’s beliefs. The two men ran into many problems in the process. One of their buildings burnt down while others merely collapsed from extreme winds. As the World’s Fair was occurring, a man who went by the name H.H. Holmes was making his mark in Chicago; building his hotel which was later called the “Castel” and murdering numerous women.

The World’s Fair, also known as the Chicago Columbian Exposition, was to be held in celebration of the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus’s arrival in the United States. In 1889 France held a very successful World’s Fair in Paris that was highly known for building the Eiffel Tower. The United States wanted to make a fair that would greatly surpass that of France in order to prove America’s powerful place in the world. After deciding to hold the fair in Chicago, Daniel Burnham and Frederick Olmsted were appointed as the main designers for the fair. Burnham was the lead architect, building classic architectural pieces that events would be held in during the fair. Olmsted was in charge of designing the landscape for the fair.

The fair’s designers ran into troubles in the process of building. For many months there was a stretch of terrible weather that brought extremely high winds. These winds made it very difficult for workers to safely build the structures for the fair. Many times structures collapsed from too strong of winds. Several men were killed in these events. It took a long time to finish the construction of the buildings which then delayed the landscape project. With only three months to create the landscape, it was a miracle that Olmsted was able to finish on time and still have everything look the way it was planned. On May 1, 1893, the fair finally opened its doors to the public. Millions of people came to see the fair and its biggest attraction, the Ferris wheel. It was the first successful Ferris wheel, with thirty cars that carried a grand total of 2000 passengers. Although there were many road bumps in the process of building the fair it turned out to be a great success.

The fair drew people to Chicago from all over the country, including many curious independent women. For H. H. Holmes, this was exactly what he wanted. Holmes came to Chicago in search of a job. He discovered and old widow who owned a small pharmacy. Holmes happened to be a doctor and soon began working for the woman. Oddly, the old widow suddenly disappeared. Costumers would ask Holmes why she was away for so long and he would simply tell them she had decided to move to California.

Holmes eventually purchased a lot across the street from the pharmacy and began to build a hotel. A hotel would be very successful during the fair especially when it was so close to the fair grounds. It also pleased Holmes to think of all the beautiful women who would be drawn to the fair and need a place to stay. Many women came looking for careers in Chicago and Holmes was able to offer them jobs at the hotel or “Castle.” Women accepted jobs offers from Holmes in a heart beat. Holmes was not only an intelligent man, but he was also very attractive, with piercing blue eyes that lured in many women. Mysteriously, numerous women who entered the “Castle” were never seen again.

Holmes was eventually arrested for insurance fraud in 1894 which forced police to start looking into his background. They talked to the custodian at the “Castle” who informed them that he was never allowed to clean the upper floors. This led police to thoroughly investigate the “Castle.” They soon discovered Holmes had built secret chambers within the “Castle” that were completely sound proof and had gas lines leading to them. In the basement they found surgical tables and instruments along with a kiln that was hot enough to burn a human body. They learned that when Holmes murdered someone, many times he would perform autopsies on them and remove everything from their bones. He would then proceed to sell the skeletons to hospitals and medical schools for a profit. The police were able connect twenty-seven disappearances to Holmes which he eventually confessed to. The police believed he killed more than he confessed to, and they estimated the numbers were between twenty-seven and one hundred victims. After being convicted Holmes was executed at Moyamensing Prison. Soon after, the “Castle” mysteriously burned down.