Serial killer Albert Fish, executed in 1936 for the murder of Grace Budd, alleged he had 100 victims and stated he "had children in every state."

As of November 1934, Grace Budd, aged 10, had been missing for six years without any significant leads or developments about her vanishing from her Manhattan residence. This situation persisted until her mother, Delia Flanagan Budd, received an unidentified letter.
“Dear Mrs. Budd,” it read. “On Sunday June the 3 — 1928 I called on you at 406 W. 15 St. Brought you pot cheese — strawberries. We had lunch. Grace sat in my lap and kissed me. I made up my mind to eat her.”

The strange, meandering letter received by Mrs. Budd on a chilly evening in November started with a story about a sailor who acquired a liking for human flesh, and concluded with a chilling account of her daughter's murder — describing her being cooked in an oven.

Though the confession letter was anonymous, it was actually sent by Albert Fish, a cannibalistic serial killer. The origins of his extreme insanity and murderous tendencies are as dark and inconceivable as the tragic end of Grace Budd.

This narrative delves into the life of Albert Fish, a deranged predator who tortured and killed at least three children in New York during the 1920s, and possibly many more.

The Disturbing Early Years Of Albert Fish Before He Became “The Gray Man”
Hamilton Howard "Albert" Fish, born on May 19, 1870, in Washington, D.C., to parents Randall and Ellen Fish, was known by various aliases, including the Brooklyn Vampire, the Werewolf of Wysteria, and the Gray Man. He was a small, inconspicuous man whose ordinary appearance belied a private life that was shockingly sinister.

Fish's childhood was shadowed by mental health issues, a common plight in his family. His brother was institutionalized, his uncle diagnosed with mania, and his mother suffered from visual hallucinations.