The Murder of Albert Snyder
Morbid
08/12/24
•74m
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On the morning of March 20, 1927, nine-year-old Lorraine Snyder was awakened by the sound of gentle knocking at her bedroom door and when she opened it, she found her mother bound and gagged on the floor. According to the girl’s mother, Ruth Snyder, someone had broken into the house in the middle of the night, knocked her unconscious and tied her up, then murdered her husband, Albert. Ruth claimed the motive was robbery, but investigators were immediately suspicious of her. Not only was there no sign of forced entry, but Albert’s murder had been particularly brutal and appeared personal. A day later, when police found Ruth’s supposedly stolen items hidden in the house, her story started to fall apart.
The murder of Albert Snyder had everything depression-era Americans were looking for in a media distraction—sex, extramarital affairs, fraud, and murder. From the moment Ruth and her boyfriend, Judd Gray, were arrested for the murder of her husband, they were thrust into the spotlight and would remain fixtures on the front pages of the papers across New York up to and including the final moments of their lives.
Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research!
References
Beckley, Zoe. 1927. "Ruth Snyder to escape chair, is Zoe Beckley's forecast." Times Union, April 19: 1.
Brooklyn Daily Eagle. 1927. "Suspect is held after cops grill dead man's wife." Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 21: 1.
Brooklyn Times Union. 1927. "Hid lover in her home, then went to party." Brooklyn Times Union, March 21: 25.
—. 1928. "Ruth and Judd die, she first, in sobs; each is forgiving." Brooklyn Times Union, Janaury 13: 1.
MacKellar, Landis. 2006. The Double Indemnity Murder: Ruth Snyder, Judd Gray, and New York's Crime of the Century. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse University Press.
New York Times. 1927. "Cross-examination of Mrs. Ruth Snyder on her last day on the stand." New York Times, May 4: 16.
—. 1927. "Girl finds mother bound." New York Times, March 21: 1.
—. 1927. "Gray's first story was full of denial." New York Times, March 22: 3.
—. 1927. "Judge warned jury to avoid sympathy." New York Times, May 10: 1.
—. 1927. "Mrs. Snyder and Gray found guilty in the first degree in swift verdict; both to get death sentence Monday." New York Times, May 10: 1.
—. 1927. "Not a cruel killer, Gray writes in cell." New York Times, April 8: 25.
—. 1927. "Says Gray was hypnotized." New York Times, March 26: 9.
—. 1927. "Slayers indicted; Snyder case trial sought for April 4." New York Times, March 24: 1.
—. 1927. "Slayers of Snyder face speedy trial; racant confession." New York Times, March 23: 1.
—. 1927. "Slayers of Snyder hear doom unmoved; put hope in appeals." New York Times, May 14: 1.
—. 1927. "Snyder jury hears Gray's confession accusing woman." New York Times, April 28: 1.
—. 1927. "Snydwer was tricked into big insurance, state witness says." New York Times, April 26: 1.
—. 1927. "Widow on stand swears Gray alone killed Snyder as she tried to save him." New York Times, April 30: 1.
—. 1927. "Wife betrays paramour as murderer of Snyder, and he then confesses." New York Times, March 22: 1.
Sutherland, Sidney. 1928. "Ruth and Judd die in chair, asking for forgiveness for sin." Daily News, January 13: 1.
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.
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Introducing GOSSIP'S BRIDLE: A Chat with Spencer Henry & Madison Reyes!
August 10, 2024
•27m
Weirdos! Spencer and Madison drop by to give us a SNEAK PEAK at their new show, Gossip's Bridle! Get ready to gossip about the gossips! So, pull up a chair, sit crooked, and talk straight with us!
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)
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The Radium Girls
August 15, 2024
•82m
When Marie and Pierre Curie discovered radium in 1898, the chemical element was quickly adopted by manufacturers for its luminescent properties that would go on to be used in, among other things, the painting of clock faces, watches, and instrument panels, allowing them to be seen in the dark. At the time, the introduction of radioluminescent materials into manufacturing was hailed as a scientific solution to an age-old frustration, but it didn’t take long before that solution was shown to have terrible consequences.
As a radioactive element, radium is highly toxic to humans, particularly when ingested or inhaled. While it seemed unlikely that anyone would ingest or inhale the radium used to paint a clockface, this fact posed a serious problem for the largely female factory workers whose job it was to paint the dials. These “Radium Girls,” as they would come to be known, not only spent most of their day in close proximity to the paint, but also employed a technique in which they frequently wet their paintbrushes with their mouths, consuming small amounts of radium in the process.
Throughout the first half of the twentieth century, hundreds of young women working in at least three radium dial factories in the United States suffered deadly radiation poisoning as a result of working so closely with radium, all without any safety protocols and completely unaware of the dangers. After dozens of deaths, a group of factory workers successfully sued their employers for damages, exposing the widespread disregard for worker safety. While the suits were generally a major victory for the American labor movement, it was ultimately hard-won and little comfort to those who would die within a few years.
Thank you to the incredible Dave White of Bring Me the Axe Podcast for research!
References
Camden Courier-Post. 1928. "Woman radium victim offers living body to aid in search for cure." Courier-Post, May 29: 1.
eGov Newswire. 2021. "Menedez leads colleagues in introducing senate resolution to honor the lives and legacy of the 'Radium Girls'." eGov Newswire, June 26.
Evening Courier. 1927. "Radium poison victims want damage suit limits raised." Evening Courier, July 19: 2.
Galant, Debbie. 1996. "Living with a radium nightmare." New York Times, September 29: NJ1.
Lang, Daniel. 1959. "A most valuable accident." New Yorker, April 24: 49.
McAndrew, Tara McClellan. 2018. The Radium Girls: An Illinois Tragedy. January 25. Accessed July 8, 2024. https://www.nprillinois.org/equity-justice/2018-01-25/the-radium-girls-an-illinois-tragedy.
Moore, Kate. 2017. The Radium Girls: The Dark Story of America's Shining Women. New York, NY: Sourcebooks.
New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. n.d. Radium Girls: The Story of US Radium’s Superfund Site. Environmental Preservation Snapshot, Orange, NJ: New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection.
New York Times. 1928. "Finds no bar to suit by radium victims." New York Times, May 23: 11.
Prisco, Jacopo. 2017. "Radium Girls: The dark times of luminous watches." CNN, December 19.
United Press. 1928. "Woman, dying by degrees, tells of symptoms of radium posioning." Courier-News, May 16: 6.
—. 1928. "3 more are victims of radiun poisoning." Evening Courier, May 22: 1.
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.
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