In spite of his best efforts, Cosel could not save Elena and she succumbed to the illness on October 25, 1931 and entombed in a family crypt. Whether he meant me I did not know and cared less (p. 37). Count Carl Tanzler von Cosel by Flagler / Florida KeysPublic Librariess photostream / Flickr / CC BY 2.0. Search above to list available cemeteries. American Hauntings writes that it's unlikely she ever requited his affections. Forever and ever she is with me. Little did they know, Elena, my darling, we are alone on this shore. What he did next is unthinkable, and he never really paid a price for it.Join Ash, Alaina and special guest, comedian Rachel O'brien, as we dig deep into Karl's crazy world. Not only were reporters sympathetic to Count Von Cosels May-December romance, jurors acquitted Von Cosel of the theft, preservation, and mistreatment of Elenas cadaver. "[8] By all accounts, Hoyos was viewed as a local beauty in Key West.[1][8][9]. All That's Interesting is a Brooklyn-based digital publisher that seeks out stories that illuminate the past, present, and future. ", Learn how and when to remove this template message, Martello Gallery-Key West Art and Historical Museum, And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead, "Autopsy 6: Secrets of the Dead - The Strange Obsession of Dr. Carl Von Cosel", "The Living Doll of Key West: Elena Hoyos & Count Von Cosel", "Ep. Please check your email and click on the link to activate your account. No matter how hard Tanzler tried, he couldnt save Hoyos. Some asked if Key West could seal Elena within a glass case as a permanent exhibit. Instead of a cure, she found a radiologist named Karl Tanzler who instantly became obsessed with her. On October 25, 1931, Maria finally succumbed to TB, after struggling against the illness for a year and a half, which was how long Carl had spent orbiting her. This one had a story in it somebody was renovating a cottage and when they tore down the wall, they found a confession note. He even installed a telephone line to Elenas crypt so that he could continue speaking to her. As of that day, he was fifty-three years old and Elena was close to twenty-one. The findings of which were most prominently reproduced in an episode of HBOs Autopsy series: I found a tube [in Elenas vagina] wide enough to permit sexual intercourse. She forbade the family to let von Cosel know until she was too far across the border to be recalled (p.1). Together they had two children: Ayesha Tanzler (19221998), and Clarista Tanzler (19241934), who died of diphtheria.[7]. She repeatedly told him he was too old for her and additionally, she was not yet divorced from her husband (Perez 1952, Harrison 1996, Sloan 2012, Meek 2017). On April 22, 1930, while working at the Marine Hospital, Tanzler met the one person in his life he had been searching for since he was 12 years old: his soulmate. In 2003, two bands released their musical interpretations of the Tanzler story, In 2008, the Swedish band ChansoNoir released the EP. She died on October 25, 1931 at the age of 22. . More than two years had already passed since Elena's death and her body had shown all the normal signs of decomposition. . Use Escape keyboard button or the Close button to close the carousel. Mesa left Elena shortly after she suffered a miscarriage of the couple's child, and moved to Miami. He was examined by doctors and found to be perfectly sane though it remains a mystery of how he lived with a corpse for so many years. When he was 12 years old, he dreamed of a woman who would leave an impression on his life forever. The following "Editorial Note" accompanying the autobiographical account "The Trial Bay Organ: A Product of Wit and Ingenuity" by "Carl von Cosel" in the Rosicrucian Digest[3] of March and April 1939, gives details about his stay in Australia before his internment during the Great War, as well as his subsequent return to Germany after the War:[4][5]. Carl died alone in 1952, at the age of 75. He also claimed nine university degrees and self-titled himself Count von Cosel, taking the name of an alleged ancestor. Elena's body was reclaimed and buried by the family in a secret location so that neither Von Cosel or the curious could disturb her grave. Maria would soon become the object of somebodys very morbid obsession. It is also worth noting that Elenas body was not autopsied (Michelfelder 1982) and Tanzler (1947) specifically recounts [after Elenas funeral was over], some Cuban who I had never seen before, indulged in a piece of fiery oratory wherein he demanded punishment for the person responsible for her early death. All he had to do was find her. Finally, I want to acknowledge Elena herself. [8] Tanzler filled the corpse's abdominal and chest cavity with rags to keep the original form, dressed Elena's remains in stockings, jewelry, and gloves, and kept the body in his bed. Year should not be greater than current year. Please enter your email and password to sign in. After this, Maria was finally laid to rest at Key West Cemetery in an unmarked grave, to deter Carl from disturbing her eternal rest. Most curiously, he had made a death mask of her face to preserve her beauty. He was cradling Hoyos doll. Yet Carl Von Cosel was unable to resist peeking at Elena Hoyos. To view a photo in more detail or edit captions for photos you added, click the photo to open the photo viewer. As the hair fell out of Elena's decomposing scalp, Tanzler fashioned a wig from her hair, which he had previously obtained from her mother. It was there in 1930 that Tanzler met the woman he believed was the love of his life; Maria Elena Milagro de Hoyos. Marias sister heard weird rumours about Carl. Von Cosel robbed her body from the grave. Leaving his family behind in Zephyrhills in 1927, he took a job as a radiology technician at the U.S. Marine Hospital in Key West, Florida under the name Carl von Cosel. This [incident] makes so much sense. When she passed away in 1931 from tuberculosis, Tanzler refused to leave her side. Ginsburg, Arthur, director. In order to post comments, please make sure JavaScript and Cookies are enabled, and reload the page. Death . While working at the U.S. Marine Hospital, on April 22, 1930, Carl Tanzler came face to face with the woman of his dreams. When the King grew tired of the feisty and headstrong Countess, he had her exiled, and she stayed that way for 49 years until her death. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. During his childhood in Germany, and later while traveling briefly in Genoa, Italy, Tanzler claimed to have been visited by visions of a dead, purported ancestor, Countess Anna Constantia von Cosel, who revealed the face of his true love, an exotic dark-haired woman, to him. Tanzler went by many names; he was listed as Georg Karl Tnzler on his German marriage certificate. A devastated Tanzler made a death mask of her and told her family that he would pay for her funeral and . He was charged with wantonly and maliciously destroying a grave and removing a body without authorization.. This all seems like silly speculation, to get people to read an old story. He kept her body in his bed, where he slept beside her every night. Learn about one of Key West's most haunted homes. Quickly see who the memorial is for and when they lived and died and where they are buried. The former three, as he describes them, are quite applicable to Tanzler. Fifty years ago she appeared to me in a vision, and she promised then to be my bride. Save to an Ancestry Tree, a virtual cemetery, your clipboard for pasting or Print. "[1] After a preliminary hearing on October 9, 1940 at the Monroe County Courthouse in Key West, Tanzler was held to answer on the charge, but the case was eventually dropped, and he was released, as the statute of limitations for the crime had expired. Police Officer Bienvenido Perez Only Living Person Who Knows Where Elena Buried. He was charged with wantonly and maliciously destroying a grave and removing a body without authorization, but the statute of limitations saved him from prosecution. He asked if he could have Elenas body returned to him. Her body belonged to him. Edit a memorial you manage or suggest changes to the memorial manager. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. When a Cuban-American woman named Maria Elena Milagro de Hoyos walked into the hospital, the doctor saw before him an actual dream come true. Elena was dying of tuberculosis, but Tanzler felt that she was his destinydespite having already having a wife and children. Born in Key West in 1909, the daughter of a cigar maker and a homemaker, Hoyos was raised in a large family and was brought to the hospital by her mother after becoming ill. Tanzler also used perfume, disinfectants, and preserving agents to mask the odor of Hoyos decomposition. This engraving with Elenas name can now be found at the Fort Martello Museum in Key West. These cookies do not store any personal information. By all appearances, she was an attractive dark haired beauty queen who often wore red roses in her hair, drawing the attention of strangers who desired to photograph and court her. At least she got to keep her hair. With pretty much the entire town talking about the reclusive man often seen buying womens clothing and perfume on top of one local boys account of witnessing the doctor dancing with what appeared to be a giant doll Hoyos family began to suspect that something was off. To some, it is the ultimate romance, and to others, it is a grotesque tale of violation. He would use this wig on Marias corpse, as the decomposition process had caused her hair to fall out. But unfortunately, this was a true story. You can always change this later in your Account settings. The County Jail charged him of malicious and wanton disfigurement of a burial vault, yet the jurors found no law that he had broken. Headlines like A Key West Story of Necrophilic Love, Undying Love, and A Grave Affair proliferated newspapers, immortalizing the infamous necrophile. What is is known for is for having a love affair that lasted 7 years after her death. He dressed her corpse in a wedding gown after stuffing her body cavity with rags. She was his soulmate and he would do whatever it took to always be by her side. Because of his medical knowledge, Tanzler knew he could save Hoyos. He even exaggerated his achievements to her parents, claiming he was Count von Cosel (even though he wasnt a count). Hes got this plan to be with her after shes dead. Please ensure you have given Find a Grave permission to access your location in your browser settings. Maria Elena Milagro De Hoyos Birth 31 Jul 1909. I foremost would like to acknowledge writer and historian David L. Sloan. To his absolute horror, Elenas putrefied body had begun to deteriorate. Learn more about merges. To many bystanders, this would seem romantic, but nobody knew he had a key to her tomb and that he was secretly preserving her corpse. Elena Hoyos died of tuberculosis at the age of twenty-two. Tanzler immediately recognized Hoyos as the woman from his dream. Concocting potions and tonics out of gold, Tanzler would shock Elena by connecting electrodes to her body via transformers and then give her medicinal wines. Elena was once again reduced to an object of spectacle, only this time she was a tourist attraction. Journalists reported that the judge denied Von Cosels request, screaming at Von Cosel with disgust. Tanzler himself would publish an account of this period in a 1939 publication of the Rosicrucian Digest (Tanzler von Cosel 1947, Harrison 1996, Meek 2017). After Hoyos sister showed up at Tanzlers home in 1940, the jig was up. The Untold Story Of Kate Warne, The World's First Female Private Eye, 27 Scathing H.L. Additionally, there is his threat towards Elenas father if there is not a wedding before Christmas, there will be a funeral (Michelfelder 1982, p.56) and his declaration to Perez that he would kill Elena if necessary (n.d., p 68). Carl Tanzler. His obituary said that a metal cylinder on a shelf above a table in it wrapped in silken cloth and a robe was a waxen image.. He reportedly said he felt her spirit come to him when he sat by her tomb and serenaded her with her favorite Spanish song. (Yes, to a real, live, breathing woman.). Becoming a Find a Grave member is fast, easy and FREE. Most curiously, he had made a death mask of her face to preserve her beauty. Her full name was Maria Elena Milagro de Hoyos, a heaven-sent love of his life for Carl, and the moment he first saw her, the beginning of a long-lasting "loving" relationship with literally the woman of his dreams-of which she would know nothing about . 1910 - d. October 25, 1931; Key West, Florida, USA) Contents 1 Parents 2 Siblings 3 Marriage 4 Death Parents Francisco Hoyos (1883-1934), aka Pancho Hoyos Aurora Milagro (1881-1940) Siblings Use the links under See more to quickly search for other people with the same last name in the same cemetery, city, county, etc. In April of 1930, the beautiful but doomed Elena Hoyos arrived at the Marine Hospital for blood tests. You accept the use of cookies or other identifiers by accepting, ignoring or dismissing this notice. Harrison, B. Creepy, crawly Count Carl Von Cosel wasnt a count at all. However, he managed to keep Marias body in his home for seven years without being discovered. Tanzler was properly examined by a psychiatrist, who decided he was mentally competent to have a court trial. Try again. Join today and youll get up to twenty dollars in shopping credit toward your first order. He even bought her a mahogany bed, which would become her deathbed. Shortly after Elenas death, Tanzler talked the family into giving him residence in her room, paying them a fee of $20 a month (about $345 in todays money). This is a carousel with slides. They vow to stay together, even after death. One even died from diphtheria whilst these events were unfolding (Harrison 1996, Sloan 2012). Mrs. C.S. She had dark hair, was beautiful and was a foreigner. Thus, they found it odd that Tanzler stopped visiting the mausoleum two years after her death. The extent of this has never been revealed fully, only that Tanzler had been interned in Australia as a prisoner-of-war for a time. He who has given you to me, will not reject our souls, united as they are in His undying love.. It has been recounted that Tanzler was found in the arms of Elena's effigy upon discovery of his corpse, but his obituary reported that he died on the floor behind one of his organs. Tanzler insisted on purchasing a pricey stone mausoleum in Key West Cemetery for her remains to lay, and with her parents permission, hired a mortician to prepare her body before locking her inside. Please enter your email address and we will send you an email with a reset password code. Weve updated the security on the site. For memorials with more than one photo, additional photos will appear here or on the photos tab. In 1940, it was finally over. cemeteries found in Key West, Monroe County, Florida, USA will be saved to your photo volunteer list. That's when things took a turn for the macabre. This article seeks to bring light to these, with the hope that people will learn what really happened as per these key findings. Life is dormant, inactive, sleeping, in a person who has died. Elenas doctors decided to not disclose possibly the most disturbing discovery they had made until after Carls death. Tanzler loved everything about Hoyos. He reportedly said that Elenas spirit would come to him when he would sit by her grave and serenade her corpse with a favorite Spanish song. Autopsy 6: Secrets of the Dead. It can be awakened. This American Life. He inserted glass eyes into her orbitals, and replaced her rotting skin with silk cloth coated by plaster of paris and wax. Which memorial do you think is a duplicate of Elena Hoyos (23114033)? Shes not dying fast enough. Still longing for his lost love, he created a "death mask" of her as the basis for a life-sized dummy, which he kept in his bed until . Tanzler was evidently consumed by obsessive lust for Elena. In their case report of an aconite overdose, Wood et al. Please try again later. Tanzler never met this mysterious woman. He died in 1934, but his nephew is finally requesting for his body to be exhumed. 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