Due to his actions as a serial killer in the United States of America, Edward Theodore Gein rose to fame. His heinous activities and exploits set the standard and impacted other horror novels and films in the US.
The Butcher of Plainfield, Edward Theodore “Ed” Gein, was a notorious American killer and corpse thief. He was raised in an isolated, oppressive, and small-town farming environment and had few social interactions as a child.
About Ed Gein
Wisconsin became well-known after authorities learned that he had exhumed bodies from cemeteries to make souvenirs and trophies out of their skin and bones. He later admitted to killing two women in 1954 and 1957, as well.
He was, however, sent to a mental health facility after being determined to be mentally unfit for trial. Years later, he was tried for murder, found guilty, and given a life sentence, which he served in a mental institution.
Several fictional characters in literature, film, and music have been inspired by his life story, including “Norman Bates” in “Psycho” (1960), “Ed Gein” from the Ziggens’ album “Rusty Never Sleeps” (1992), “Ezra Cobb” in “Deranged” (1974), and “Ed Gein: The Butcher of Plainfield” (2007).
Childhood years Of Ed Gein
Ed Gein was born on August 27, 1906, in La Crosse County, Wisconsin, to parents George Philip and Augusta Wilhelmine. Henry George Gein was the name of his elder brother.
His family relocated to Plainfield, Wisconsin when he was a child. He had a reputation for growing up alone and simply travelling to school.
He was bullied a lot as a kid because of his shyness and lack of social skills. His professors recalled him having odd behaviors, such as rapid laughter.
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His mother was a devout member of the Lutheran faith. She taught her sons about things like the world’s inherent immortality, the faults of carnal desire and drinking, etc. To protect her kids from outside influences, she forbade any interaction with strangers.
Ed Gein’s later years
The father of Ed Gein passed away in 1940 from heart failure brought on by drinking. He and his brother started working odd jobs in the area when their father passed away.
He had experience working as a handyman and nanny, and he was well-liked in the community.
His older brother was worried about him because of how strongly he felt for his mother. Henry Gein began challenging his mother’s worldview at about the same time.
Together with his brother, Ed Gein went to put out a brush fire near their farm on May 16, 1944. Records show that the brothers were split up by dusk, and Henry Gein was reported missing.
He was later discovered dead with head bruising. The county coroner, however, determined that asphyxiation was the cause of death.
Ed Gein moved in with his mother when his brother passed away; she had already had several strokes. He didn’t meet or date any other women throughout this time because he was so committed to her. His mother died on December 29, 1945.
After his mother passed away, he secured the spaces she had used and moved into the room next to the kitchen that she had been using.
He started reading adventure books about cannibals and Nazi horrors during this time, as well as magazines for death cults.
However, he kept doing odd jobs to pay his bills. He started getting a farm subsidy from the federal government in 1951. He occasionally participated in the community’s municipal or crop threshing crews.
Furthermore, he also sold 80 acres of land that belonged to his brother during this time.
A few years later, on November 16, 1957, police in Plainfield began to investigate Ed Gein in the disappearance of a store employee by the name of Bernice Worden. He was accused because he was the final customer to be charged at the business before Bernice Worden vanished.
The cops then looked over his land and shed, and they discovered some horrifying things. The body of Bernice Worden, who had been beheaded, was found first.
It was hanging upside down with ropes around her wrists and a crossbar at her ankles. Later it was revealed that the mutilation was done after she had been shot dead with a rifle.
He claims that Waushara County Sheriff Art Schley assaulted him during questioning by hitting his head against the wall, which rendered his original admission invalid.
Before the trial in 1968, the county sheriff passed away. It is thought that the trauma of Ed Gein’s heinous actions contributed to his death.
Ed Gein was admitted to the “Central State Hospital” in Waupun, Wisconsin after being deemed medically unable to stand trial. Later, he was moved to Madison, Wisconsin’s “Mendota State Hospital.”
He was deemed healthy by the doctors in 1968. Judge Robert H. Gollmar absolved him of all charges throughout the trial on the grounds of mental illness. He was incarcerated for the remainder of his life.
Last Words of Ed Gein
Ed Gein last words were, “I would like to give my love to my friends and family” in his final statement.
Personal Life and Death
On July 26, 1984, Ed Gein passed away from lung cancer in “Goodland Hall” at the Mendota Mental Health Institute.
His remains were laid to rest in the “Plainfield Cemetery.” Visitors have chipped away portions of the gravestone over time, vandalizing it.
The gravestone was largely taken in the year 2000. It was found again the following year, and a museum in Waushara County now looks after it.
Therefore, we may never learn how many people the Butcher of Plainfield killed. Ed Gein, though, is without a doubt one of history’s most horrifying serial killers.