Edward Gein went from being known for being a sweet and innocent boy who would not hurt a fly to a murderer and a necrophiliac. Edward lived on a 195-acre farm in Plainfield, Wisconsin, with his parents Augusta and George Gain, and his older brother Henry. Gein’s actions caused him to be known as “The Butcher of Plainfield.”1 Edward’s father was an alcoholic and very abusive. Thus Edward grew up being extremely close to his mother. When his father passed away in 1940, Edward was not significantly affected by the loss, due to the lack of connection he had with his father. Four years later, his brother Henry passed due to a fire near their home; police suspected that Edward had had something to do with his death because he led them directly to his brother’s burnt body.2 The following year his mother Augusta also passed away, leaving Edward all alone on a big farm. After Augusta’s passing, Edward blocked off rooms in the house where his mother had spent most of her time, creating something of a shrine for her. With Edward being all alone it is said that this is what drove him into having psychopathic behavior.3
Edward’s first known victim was Bernice Worden in 1957. Worden worked in a hardware store in town. Edward went to the store as he usually did on Friday’s right before closing time, and asked Mrs. Worden to fill up his jug with antifreeze. Edward had recently started to question Mrs. Worden on whether or not she would like to go roller-skating or “try out the floor” in his words. When she declined, he left, and then he quickly returned to ask about a rifle she had on the wall. When Mrs. Worden handed Edward the rifle he desired, she proceeded to look out the window. While she had her back turned, Edward loaded the rifle with the .22 shells he had in his overall pockets. The next morning Bernard Muschinski, Sr. found something strange with Mrs. Worden’s store. It had seemed that the store had been closed for the weekend, but she had left the lights on, which was something she usually didn’t do.4
When police were tipped off by Mrs. Worden’s son that Edward was the one that had kidnapped and killed his mother, the police took off to find him. While Edward Gein was in custody, police officers went to explore his land to try and find Bernice Worden’s body. While examining the house for any signs of Mrs. Worden’s body, the two officers made their way into the summer kitchen and started making their way to the other side. Officer Schley stepped back and felt something rub against his jacket. When he beamed his light towards what was rubbing against him there, in the beam of light hung a large corpse. While looking at the body that was in front of them, they noticed that it was attached by its feet and was split open and decapitated the way a deer would be. Before running out from the sight of it, Schley had managed to get out a couple of words, “My God, there she is.” They had finally found the missing body of Bernice Worden. After other officers were called, they began exploring the central part of Gein’s house. While they were looking around the house, the officers found many ghoulish things, from a human skull to things like lampshades, wastebaskets, bracelets, and even a belt made from human body parts. Officers on the scene also found a chair upholstered from human flesh along with many other gruesome things. While being interrogated Gein was asked many questions regarding the strange things in his house, which he answered in a calm, truthful manner. When he was asked whether or not he would put on the skin face mask that was found in his home, Gein responded that he did without hesitation.5
With Gein admitting to the crimes and the evidence in his home, it was easy for the officers to charge him with murder. At the time of his trial, he was considered unfit to stand trial and was admitted to the Central State Hospital for the Criminally Insane in Wisconsin on January 6, 1958. After a decade of being charged with first-degree murder, Gein was finally considered to be fit to stand trial; he was then found not guilty because of insanity and went back to the State Hospital. Edward Gein’s crimes have subsequently become the basis for many Hollywood horror movies, including Psycho (1960), The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), and Silence of the Lambs (1991).6
- Harold Schechter, Deviant: the shocking true story of the original “psycho” (New York, NY: Pocket Books, 1998), 61. ↵
- Encyclopædia Britannica, 2018, s.v. “Ed Gein,” by John Philip Jenkins. ↵
- Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia, 2016, s.v. “Ed Gein,” by Charles Avinger. ↵
- Harold Schechter, Deviant: the shocking true story of the original “psycho” (New York, NY: Pocket Books, 1998), 67. ↵
- Harold Schechter, Deviant: the shocking true story of the original “psycho” (New York, NY: Pocket Books, 1998), 122, 124. ↵
- Salem Press EncyclopediaResearch Starters, EBSCOhost, 2013, s.v. “Serial killer,” by Kathy Warnes. ↵
84 comments
Richard Morales
The story of Edward Gein is a very disturbing one. That man is a true representation of evil in this world. He showed no remorse. I think he should have been found guilty of committing all of those gruesome acts. In my opinion he should have at least received a life sentence in prison. The things he has done are just unimaginable.
Karina Cardona Ruiz
I was had not heard of Edward Gein until reading this article. Reading the title I didn’t really know what to expect or what the article would be about, but I liked how upfront your first line was -it caught me by surprise. Since it was suspected that Edward may have had something to do with his brother’s death was there any investigation or proof or lack thereof? Maybe he had something to do with his father’s death as well. It’s extremely disturbing how he skinned people as if they were animals and used them to make decorations. I can’t even fathom someone being capable of something so horrendous. The idea of him putting on a human mask is terrifying.
Jocelyn Moreno
Wow, I have never heard of Edward Gein. It’s so interesting to read about a person who inspired some famous films. It is very sad what he did to Mrs.Worden; all because she nicely rejected his offer. I wonder if he had taken part in the death of his father or was it the lack of relationship with his father which turned him into a murder. This article was very engaging and interesting, I wish there was more to read!
Steven Hale
With all Gein’s appalling acts in mind, I assume the police looked into the details surrounding his father’s death. Since Gein’s father treated him so poorly, it seems possible that Gein could have killed his father out of revenge, discovered he enjoyed killing, and then began attacking people who had not done him any harm. I wonder if Gein would have been a normal adult had he been raised in a different family without an abusive father.
Alexandria Zapata
This story was sketchy. From all his family dying to basically making a human flash chair. Gross. What make it more sketchy, was that when his family all died, he just decided to stay in the house and keep living there, and just board up some of the windows. Also poor lady, all she did was say no to roller skating and then she was kidnapped. The article kept me on my toes, and it was fell written. I had a nice flow to it.
Alexandra Rodriguez
While being alone could drive someone mad, I believe that Gein was suffering from a form of PTSD after losing his mother. He was very attached to her, and PTSD can cause individuals to do some of the craziest things. While I don’t think that PTSD is an excuse to do those horrific things, it is definitely an explanation. Gein’s mind was twisting in ways to grasp the loss of his mother, and it eventually drove him to do the most chilling acts against another individual.
Mariah Garcia
The history of Ed Gein has always been something of a chilling tale, something so far removed from the forefront of our minds that it becomes hard to conceive that these events actually happened. It hurts to think that this inconspicuous individual could commit such atrocities. Like who would seriously conceive of making furniture out of people? The Nazis of course did things similar, but for this to occur so close in time to us, as well as here in Texas is truly upsetting.
Crystal Baeza
This article definitely had me on my toes, such a chilling and unexpected story. It’s sickening to my stomach to read about the torture he did to an innocent women’s body. Of course, his relationship with his father may have caused him to go insane but still doesn’t give the him the right of doing something so inhumane. I hate that we live in a world with such ugly people who think its ok to do injustice acts towards each other especially to those who had nothing to do or be a part of the reasoning the way they are. Defiantly a good read!
Hailey Stewart
While this article was short and sweet, Gein was gruesome and sick. I have read things about his face masks, and I find his mutilation of others far worse than just murdering them. The article introduces Gein as alone, which is significant. Many people deal with being alone, and loneliness all the time, but not all become serial killers. It seems that Gein compensated for being alone by killing people and forcing parts of them to keep him company. Maybe he understood that a person being a part of your life ultimately means they will leave at one point.
William Ward
The whole composition of this story felt more like a terrible horror movie than an actual, legitimate event. It is awful to comprehend why such a sick and twisted person could do such an awful deed. So in the police findings, is that implying he killed more people than just poor Ms. Worden? Anyway, nice article with nice build up.