The new book by Dalton is called “With Malice Toward All: The Lethal Life of Oliver C. Haugh.”
“During my research for ‘Spilt Blood,’ I learned about him, then spent almost seven years researching and writing,” said Dalton, photography curator for Dayton History.
“I started with the Ohio Historical Society in Columbus, going through its penitentiary records,” he said. “Then, I read through old newspapers all over the state from 1891, when he was suspected of murdering his first victim, his fiance’s father, who didn’t approve of the marriage. I traveled all over Ohio twice, and then finished up with trips to Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin.”
Born, raised and married in Dayton, Haugh opened his first practice in 1893 on West Germantown Street, but was forced to move often within and outside the Dayton area to escape suspicious deaths and bad medical practices. Still married, he became a bigamist, marrying for financial support.
A morphine addict, Haugh did several stints in mental institutions, including Dayton’s State Hospital (now 10 Wilmington Place), for erratic behavior attributed to his addiction.
“Back then, a person had to be declared insane and committed to an institution to be treated for addiction, and Haugh bragged that if he were ever caught, he’d just be declared insane,” Dalton said.
With his medical knowledge, Haugh was familiar with the toxic effects of various chemicals, and that was his preferred mode of murder. Although some of his patients’ — and a few of his wives’ and in-laws’ — deaths seemed suspicious to the victims’ families, Haugh wasn’t convicted of murder until he returned to Dayton from Tiffin with his parents and brother. When he discovered his father was leaving everything to his brother, he fed them all poison, then set the house on fire.
Those interested can purchase “With Malice Toward All: The Lethal Life of Oliver C. Haugh” at Carillon Park or through Amazon.
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