The Corpse, the Fire, and the Vanishing Policy
William Radloff disappeared after putting a corpse in his house and torching the structure. With his life-insurance policy now lapsed, his wife has filed no claim—leaving Seattle to wonder what really happened.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
William Radloff's policy in the New York Life Insurance Company has finally expired. The policy was issued March 18 on the quarterly payment plan, and one payment was made. The second fell due June 18, but according to the rules of the company thirty days of grace were allowed. They expired on Monday, without an attempt at renewing the policy being made. When Radloff disappeared in April, after putting a corpse in his house and setting fire to the structure, there was a belief that a claim for the insurance money would be filed. But Mrs. Radloff has made no application for the $20,000 which would have been due her had Radloff really been dead.
“When Radloff disappeared in April, after putting a corpse in his house and setting fire to the structure, there was a belief that a claim for the insurance money would be filed.”
Staged deaths and insurance-fraud plots are familiar modern true-crime material, but in 1892 the story turned on policy deadlines and a wife's silence. The case remains a reminder that a disappearance is often a financial story as much as a criminal one.
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