Before the Acid Bath Killer: Death in a Victorian Workhouse

Before the Acid Bath Killer: Death in a Victorian Workhouse
News of the Times | Episode 538 |1842
Long before the notorious Acid Bath Killer horrified Britain, one quiet town faced its own chilling tragedy — not in some alleyway, but inside the walls of a Victorian workhouse. In Bromsgrove, 1842, a surgeon prescribed a sulphur bath to treat "the itch" among impoverished children. Nineteen were immersed. One never came out alive.

Was it a medical miscalculation? Or did neglect tip into something darker?

Join us as we revisit the original inquest and the harrowing details of a chemical treatment so potent, it scalded the skin from a child’s body. This is Victorian medicine at its most dangerous — a haunting echo of how society treated its most vulnerable.

🔍 Featuring original newspaper reports, inquest testimony, and expert accounts, this episode dives into one of the most shocking workhouse deaths of the 19th century — and the doctor who walked away unpunished.

🚨 Further Particulars: The Donkey Who Refused to Go
Meanwhile, in Worcester, a separate scandal unfolds. A four-legged escapee, impounded for the grievous offence of wandering into town, becomes the centre of a bureaucratic standoff — by simply refusing to move. Officials plead, owners disclaim, and hay disappears at a remarkable rate. Only the donkey emerges unbothered and well-fed.

If you enjoy chilling true crime, Victorian absurdity, and a dash of the surreal, subscribe for more. And if you'd like to keep us in tea and donkey feed, you’ll find the Patreon link just below.
👤 Narrated by Robin Coles 

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📚 Related cases from the archive: 
1766 - 1848: Shocking Dark Crime Tales of Britain |  EP373 https://youtu.be/WIvzA4DAwUA
1849: The Curious Case of the Harvard Murder |  EP378
https://youtu.be/n23PlQFqhlw
1836 & 1843: The Trouble with Harriet |  EP398
https://youtu.be/BrZh10eMQ0s
 
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