Joe Ball
Joseph Douglas Ball (January 7, 1896[2][1] – September 24, 1938)[1] was an American murderer and suspected serial killer, sometimes referred to as the "Alligator Man",[3] the "Butcher of Elmendorf"[2] and the "Bluebeard of South Texas".[3]
Joe Ball | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Joseph Douglas Ball January 7, 1896 San Antonio, Texas, U.S.[1] |
| Died | September 24, 1938 (aged 42)[1] Elmendorf, Texas, U.S. |
| Cause of death | Suicide by gunshot |
| Other names | The Alligator Man The Butcher of Elmendorf The Bluebeard of South Texas |
| Spouse |
Dolores Goodwin (m. 1937) |
| Details | |
| Victims | 2–20 |
Span of crimes | 1937–1938 |
| Country | United States |
| State(s) | Texas |
Background
Joseph Douglas Ball was born in San Antonio to Elizabeth Hart (née Lawler; 1868–1922) and Frank Xavier Ball (1868–1937), a rich farm owner later turned general store owner, as the second of eight children.[2][4] Joseph Ball's brother, Raymond Ball, was the first mayor of Elmendorf, Texas.[2]
After serving on the frontlines in Europe during World War I, Ball started his career as a bootlegger, providing illegal liquor to those who could pay for it. After the end of Prohibition, he opened a saloon called the Sociable Inn in Elmendorf, Texas. He built a pond that contained five alligators and charged people to view them, especially during feeding time; the food consisted mostly of live cats and dogs.[2]
Murders
After a while, women in the area were reported missing, including barmaids. When two Bexar County deputy sheriffs went to question him in 1938, Ball pulled a handgun from his cash register and killed himself with a bullet through the heart (as noted on his death certificate by the coroner, but some sources report that he shot himself in the head).[3]
A handyman who conspired with Ball, Clifford Wheeler, admitted to helping Ball dispose of the bodies of two of the women he had killed.[3] Wheeler described how Ball had killed barmaid Minnie Gotthardt in June 1937, and, later on, fellow barmaid Hazel Brown, also known as "Schatzie", after she fell for a regular customer at the bar and wanted to stop working for Ball. Wheeler led them to the remains of Hazel Brown and Minnie Gotthard. He was imprisoned for 2 years as an accessory to murder, whereas the alligators were donated to the San Antonio Zoo.[2] In a 1957 interview, Ball's wife Dolores "Buddy" Goodwin (whose temporary disappearance had been previously attributed to a murder by Ball) claimed that no actual women were thrown into the alligator pit, saying that there were only ever 2 murders. Ball's nephew, Richard "Bucky" Ball Jr., attributes the crimes to violent trauma experienced during his World War I service.
Few written sources from the era could verify Ball's crimes. Newspaper editor Michael Hall investigated the story in depth in 2002 and wrote on his findings for Texas Monthly.[2]
In popular culture
The film Eaten Alive by Tobe Hooper was inspired by Ball. The film features a man named Judd, a serial killer who runs a hotel and disposes of his victims' bodies by feeding them to a Nile crocodile.[5]
Ball was referenced in Bones in the fifth episode of season eight, "The Method in the Madness".
Macabre wrote a song called "Joe Ball Was His Name" on their album Carnival of Killers.
See also
- List of serial killers nicknamed "Bluebeard"
- List of serial killers in the United States
- List of serial killers by number of victims
References
- Texas Deaths, United States census, 1890–1976; Texas; roll 4030421, page 2025, line cn 40253. Retrieved on February 14, 2011.
- Hall, Michael (July 1, 2002). "Two Barmaids, Five Alligators, and the Butcher of Elmendorf". Texas Monthly. Retrieved January 20, 2024.
- "Drag Texas Dunes for Alligator Man's victims". The Evening Herald. Rock Hill, S.C. October 19, 1938. Archived from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved March 4, 2011.
- "United States Census, 1920". FamilySearch.
- "Deep Red Horror Handbook".