Mary Hogan: Ed Gein's first victim
Ed Gein: Original PsychoEd Gein is one of the most infamous criminals in the world, as well as a staple in American crime history. Gein is known for his sordid obsession with corpses and creating macabre items out of human skin. Although his body count could be much higher, he only ever confessed to two killings: Bernice Worden and Mary Hogan.
In this article, we’re going to be focusing on Mary Hogan, the very first victim of Ed Gein. Join us as Crime+Investigation dives deeper into who she was and how she caught the attention of Gein in the first place, as well as what he did to her.
Who was Mary Hogan?
Mary Hogan was the local tavern owner in Pine Grove, Wisconsin. She was born in Germany, but moved to Portage County in Wisconsin in 1949. Hogan had been married twice in her life, but at the time of her murder, she did not have a partner. In 1954, when she was last seen alive, Mary was 54 years old.
Mary did not keep her tavern open at night, only operating during the day and serving customers that she knew in person. This was because she did not trust strangers and was frightened of them. Mary also lived in the same building as her tavern. Gein often visited Mary’s tavern. Due to Hogan’s role as a staple of the community, Gein was likely an acquaintance of sorts to her.
The disappearance of Mary Hogan
The last time that Mary was seen alive was 8th December 1954 at some time between 4:30pm and 5:30pm. Bloodstains were found in the tavern alongside a spent bulling casing, but other than that, there were no traces of Mary. The case went cold when no leads were found following an investigation.
Mary Hogan’s fate
It wasn’t until three years later, in 1957, that the truth about what happened to Mary Hogan came to light. Bernice Worden disappeared from the hardware shop that she owned on 16th November 1957. Gein was one of the last people to see her alive. He had made a purchase at the hardware store on the morning of the disappearance. This led authorities to Gein’s farm, where they found the mutilated remains of both Worden and Hogan.
Police discovered Mary Hogan’s skull inside a box and her torn-off face inside a paper bag, which had been preserved and fashioned into a mask (though her face could not be identified at first). Gein had already been arrested at this point. When he was questioned about what had been found, he admitted to killing both women. Gein shot both Bernice and Mary in the head. With Mary, he put her body onto a sled and dragged it back to his house. However, Gein denied memory of any particular details when it came to Mary’s death.
Why did Ed Gein kill Mary Hogan?
Ed Gein is thought to have killed both Mary Hogan and Bernice Worten because they reminded him of Augusta Gein, his late mother. Gein’s relationship with his mother was significant when it came to his view of women. Due to her strong religious beliefs, she would often preach to Ed and his brother Henry that women were wicked and sinful.
This combined with Ed’s dedication to his mother and his spiralling grief when she died led him to commit atrocities to exhumed female corpses. This extended to Mary and Bernice, who he killed so he could use their body parts in various ways due to their resemblance to Augusta.
The death of Mary Hogan is a tragic spectacle of a case that tends to be overshadowed. The discovery of her corpse came about when all of Gein’s other gruesome crimes came to light. These elements of the case became more infamous than anything else, so Mary as a person and her murder tend to get pushed aside.
That being said, the discoveries also led to her missing persons case being solved, allowing her family and friends the chance to mourn and get closure. She will always be remembered as a victim of one of the most infamous criminals in the world. However, it’s also important to remember that she was a real person, and she deserved a lot more respect and dignity than Gein’s actions allowed.
Want to stay up to date with all the latest content here at Crime+Investigation? Be sure to sign up for the Crime+Investigation newsletter to get exclusive access to the newest articles, videos and more.
