The Shocking Story of Helmuth Schmidt..., Tobin T. Buhk
The Shocking Story of Helmuth Schmidt..., Tobin T. Buhk
List: $15.99 | Sale: $11.20
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The Shocking Story of Helmuth Schmidt
Michigan's Original Lonely Hearts Killer

Author: Tobin T. Buhk

Narrator: Jim Seybert

Unabridged: 6 hr 29 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 09/30/2025

Synopsis

In the fall of 1916, New York housemaid Augusta Steinbach fell in love with a man she met through a matrimonial advertisement in her local newspaper. She traveled to Detroit to marry her correspondent, but in March 1917, she mysteriously disappeared. What began as a routine search for a missing person turned into a baffling case of deception, bigamy and murder. Follow detectives as they unravel the tangled web spun by Michigan's original lonely hearts killer—a criminal mastermind the Detroit News dubbed "one of America's master outlaws."

About Tobin T. Buhk

A teacher by day and a crime writer by night, Tobin T. Buhk began his unique moonlighting when he did a brief stint as a morgue volunteer, which led to his first two books. A love of history and a fascination with crime led to True Crime Michigan, a history of the Great Lake State through its most inglorious moments, and True Crime in the Civil War.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Laura on March 01, 2017

As a direct descendant of Helmuth Schmidt, this book helped our family unravel some of the mystery of a long hushed family secret of horrific deeds committed by my great grandfather. Tobin Buhk had an unbelievable wad of ancient research to search through, and back then (1918), newspapers were one o......more

Goodreads review by Christine on April 14, 2023

3.5 stars rounded up A good story and extremely well researched. There was some repetition but it wasn't too bad. The author includes plenty of photos and documents throughout the book rather than at the end and that just enhances the tale. A recommended read for any true crime buff.......more

Goodreads review by Bill on June 08, 2023

I followed up a couple of books on Raymond Fernandez and Martha Beck, the "Honeymoon Killers" with this story of Helmuth Schmidt, a German immigrant who had a similar career path, luring women through lonely hearts ads. Helmuth had at least four wives and a number of would-be brides. Some were never......more

Goodreads review by Ronnie on February 13, 2021

The author does a good job making this century-old case come alive. I also enjoyed his books MICHIGAN'S STRYCHNINE SAINT and TRUE CRIME: MICHIGAN (one of the better entries in that series).......more

Goodreads review by Mary on April 05, 2018

Great read! This is an entertaining, fact-filled true crime story. It's a window on life for immigrant spinsters in the early 1900s, and a fascinating look at a lonely-heart type killer. In quality, this book is way above the typical Kindle true crime. It kept my interest throughout, a really good re......more

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