Theodore Durrant "The Demon in the Belfry" Part 1

Theodore Durrant was the last person anyone would have assumed to commit a brutal murder, let alone two. He was well-known in town and well-liked. He served the town in countless ways; as the handyman for the church, the handyman to all his friends and neighbors, assistant superintendent of the church's Sunday School and all around friendly and giving man. But soon he would be linked to two absolutely horrific murders of two young women in town that he'd had relations with. Ones body would be discovered in the church that Theo seemed to love and the other? Well you'll have to wait for part two for that discovery.

Daily Inter Ocean. 1895. "Another Body Found." Daily Inter Ocean, April 15.

Dowd, Katie. 2016. "The tale of the 'Demon of the Belfry,' San Francisco's forgotten Jack the Ripper." SF Gate, October 31.

McConnell, Virginia. 2001. Sympathy for the devil: the Emmanuel Baptist murders of old San Francisco. Westport, Conn: Praeger.

New York Times. 1897. "Durrant Breaking Down." New York Times, October 18: 5.

—. 1895. "Durrant is Found Guilty." New York Times, November 2: 1.

—. 1898. "Durrant is Put to Death." New York Times, January 8.

—. 1895. "Lunatic Tries to Kill Durrant." New York Times, August 6: 1.

Peixotto, Edgar. 1899. Report of the trial of William Henry Theodore Durrant. Detroit, Michigan: The Collector Publishing Company.

San Francisco Caller. 1895. "Clews Still Lead to Theodore Durrant ." San Francisco Caller, April 18.

The Daily Picayune. 1895. "A San Francisco Jack the Ripper." The Daily Picayune, April 15.

The Morning Oregonian. 1895. "Mysteriously Missing." April 10: 3.

The Sunday Inter Ocean. 1895. "Murdered in a church." The Sunday Inter Ocean, April 14: 5.

The Sunday Oregonian. 1895. "In a Pastor's Study." The Sunday Oregonian, April 14: 6.

Cowritten by Alaina Urquhart, Ash Kelley & Dave White (Since 10/2022)

Produced & Edited by Mikie Sirois (Since 2023)

Research by Dave White (Since 10/2022), Alaina Urquhart & Ash Kelley

Listener Correspondence & Collaboration by Debra Lally

Listener Tale Video Edited by Aidan McElman (Since 6/2025)

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.