Amelia Dyer, Britain’s worst serial killer, is the subject of a new exhibit in Totterdown focusing on her gruesome crimes.
Dyer was a baby farmer whom the authorities hanged in 1896. She killed seven babies in London and Reading. Detectives think the real number is much higher; she may have murdered 400 babies over 35 years, with most of her crimes occurring in Bristol.
Dyer grew up in Pylle Hill, which is now Totterdown. Around 1869, she started her baby farming “career.” Baby farming was common but controversial back then; women cared for unmarried mothers or their babies because there was no social care or adoptions then.
The Museum of Totterdown focuses on local stories and is creating an Amelia Dyer exhibit. The museum, near Wells Road and Firfield Street, will present the exhibit like a crime scene.
John O’Connor directs the Museum of Totterdown and wants people to help solve the mystery since many parts of Dyer’s life remain unknown.
“She is familiar to locals”, O’Connor stated, noting that Totterdown was her old neighborhood, and the museum researched her time there.
They understand the societal factors at play, which made women like Dyer unavoidable. The story is both gruesome and socially interesting. The museum has a large archive, but questions linger.
Dyer is known as Britain’s worst serial killer, and people compare her to Jack the Ripper. The museum will look past the simple image of a monster and help build a complex view to help folks understand the society that created her.
The exhibit starts soon and will run for two weeks in March. The museum is open from 2 PM to 6 PM every afternoon until March 16.
Zone A will become the “incident room.” Locals can explore evidence from 19th-century crimes, hoping they can solve this murder since the events occurred in Totterdown then.