The discovery was as grim as it was puzzling.
Early one October morning in 1915, the mutilated body of Miss Sophie McCallin was found near the Pennsylvania Railroad tracks in Pittsburgh. She was not an unknown wanderer or a woman without connections. McCallin belonged to one of the city’s old families, was the daughter of a former mayor, and held a respectable position as an auditor in the city comptroller’s office.
At first glance, the railroad tracks seemed to offer an explanation. Perhaps she had been struck by a train. But as investigators and friends looked closer, that answer did not seem to fit. Her body showed no injuries consistent with being killed by a passing train. Valuable rings she was known to wear were missing. Even more disturbing, two fingers had been cut from her left hand.
A Mystery In Pittsburgh
PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania. — The headless body of Miss Sophie McCallin, member of one of Pittsburgh’s oldest families, and daughter of an ex-mayor of the city, was found on the Pennsylvania tracks early yesterday…