Ed Gein

1930 census Gein

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Ed Gein Headstone

Ed Gein
Born	Edward Theodore Gein (1906-08-27)August 27, 1906 La Crosse, Wisconsin, U.S.
Died	July 26, 1984(1984-07-26) (aged 77) Mendota Mental Health Institute, Madison, Wisconsin, U.S.
Cause of death	Respiratory failure
Other names	The Butcher of Plainfield, The Plainfield Ghoul
Parent(s)	George Philip Gein, Augusta Wilhelmine Gein
Conviction(s)	Murder
Criminal penalty	Not guilty by reason of insanity

Edward Theodore Gein (August 27, 1906 – July 26, 1984) was an American murderer and body snatcher. His crimes, committed around his hometown of Plainfield, Wisconsin, gathered widespread notoriety in 1957 after authorities discovered that he had exhumed corpses from local graveyards and fashioned trophies and keepsakes from their bones and skin.

Early Life

Ed Gein was born in La Crosse, Wisconsin, to George Philip Gein and Augusta Wilhelmine Gein. He had an older brother, Henry George Gein. The family moved to a farm in Plainfield, Wisconsin, where Gein spent most of his life. His mother, a fervent Lutheran, instilled in him a deep fear of the outside world and women, which significantly impacted his psychological development.

Crimes

Gein's criminal activities came to light on November 16, 1957, when hardware store owner Bernice Worden went missing. Upon investigating, police found Worden's decapitated body in Gein's shed, hung upside down and gutted like a deer. Further investigation revealed that Gein had exhumed bodies from local graveyards and used their skin and bones to create household items, clothing, and masks.

Trial and Incarceration

Gein was found unfit to stand trial and was committed to the Central State Hospital for the Criminally Insane (now the Dodge Correctional Institution). In 1968, he was found guilty of the murder of Bernice Worden but was declared legally insane and spent the rest of his life in a mental health institution. He died of respiratory failure at the Mendota Mental Health Institute in 1984.

Cultural Impact

Ed Gein's crimes have had a lasting impact on popular culture, inspiring numerous books, films, and music. Notably, he served as the inspiration for characters such as Norman Bates in Psycho, Leatherface in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, and Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs.

See Also

• Serial killer
• Grave robbery
• Insanity defense
• List of serial killers in the United States

Related Pages

• Plainfield, Wisconsin
• Mendota Mental Health Institute
• Psycho (1960 film)
• The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
• The Silence of the Lambs (film)