Adolph Luetgert | |
|---|---|
 Luetgert, depicted in 1897 | |
| Born | Adolph Ludwig Lütgert December 27, 1845 |
| Died | July 7, 1899 (aged 53) |
| Resting place | Forest Home Cemetery, Forest Park, Illinois |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Spouse(s) | Caroline Roepke (1872-1877) Louisa Bicknese (1878-1897) |
| Conviction(s) | Murder |
| Criminal penalty | Life imprisonment |
| Details | |
| Location(s) | Chicago |
Adolph Louis Luetgert (December 27, 1845 – July 7, 1899) was a German-American businessman in Chicago, Illinois, convicted of murdering his second wife Louisa Bicknese in 1897 and dissolving her body in a sausage vat filled with lye at his A. L. Luetgert Sausage & Packing Company.
Luetgert, born in Gütersloh, Westphalia (now Germany), moved to Chicago in the 1870s. He married Louisa Bicknese on January 18, 1878, some months after his first wife died. They had four children together.[1] Luetgert had founded his own business, the successful A. L. Luetgert Sausage & Packing Company, and was considered the "sausage king" of Chicago.
Prosecuted by State's Attorney Charles S. Deneen, later a two-term governor of Illinois, Luetgert was convicted and sentenced to life in prison on February 9, 1898. He died in prison a year and a half later.
After the trial was publicized, rumors spread that Luetgert had ground up his wife's remains as sausage and sold this "sausage" to unknowing consumers. Sales of sausage in Chicago dropped off for a while. The tale was later proved false, as her body was shown to have been dissolved and the remains mostly burned, but the legend persists to this day. Another common legend related to the murder is that the ghost of Louisa Luetgert haunts the old factory grounds and the couple's former home in Chicago.
- ^ "Alchemy of Bones: Adolph Luetgert". www.alchemyofbones.com. Retrieved 2022-07-15.