Supernatural characters: Who is Francis Tumblety?

Francis Tumblety is the name of a guy in a suit in Supernatural Season 15, Episode 2. He has a connection to real lore. Who is Dr. Tumblety?

There are many mysteries of the world. Supernatural has often brought up some of the mysteries, introducing real people as characters into the series. One of those was Lizzie Borden, with the show explaining her actions against her father and step-mother as that of demon possession. It shouldn’t be that surprising that the name Francis Tumblety is taken from real history.

Francis will appear in Supernatural Season 15, Episode 2. He’s the guy in the suit that had us all talking when the first promo for the season was released. This is the guy that looks to be collecting the spirits together for one main goal: bringing Hell to Earth.

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But why do you recognize the name? This is someone Sam Winchester will likely know immediately since he has a fascination with serial killers.

Francis Tumblety was an American Indian herb doctor of the 1880s. He was in London in 1888. Time period ring a bell? Jack the Ripper enthusiasts will recognize it for sure.

Dr. Francis Tumblety was in London at the time of Jack the Ripper’s crime spree. In fact, Tumblety became one of Scotland Yard’s main suspects. There wasn’t enough evidence to charge him with the murders, so Scotland Yard found a misdemeanor as a way to hold him. After all, he was known for sexual acts with men, which was enough to arrest him for.

Francis made bail and used that chance to escape back to New York via France. Since the charge was a misdemeanor, America wouldn’t extradite Francis back to England to face all charges.

When there was a death in July 1889, Scotland Yard ruled out Francis as Jack the Ripper. After all, Francis was in New York at the time. Yet, we now know that the July death wasn’t at the hands of the infamous serial killer who was never caught.

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Many now believe that Francis Tumblety was, in fact, Jack the Ripper. After all, the killings stopped after Francis left London.

I wouldn’t be surprised if the show focused on Francis being Jack the Ripper. Whether people believe it or not, it’s a mystery that will never be solved and the show is known for taking facts loosely and creating a fictional tale. It makes sense to have an extravagant man like Francis Tumblety lead the spirits now that they’ve all broken free from Hell.

Did you realize the Jack the Ripper connection? Are you excited to see how the show will write the character? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Supernatural airs Thursdays at 8/7c on The CW.