The Mad Gasser of Mattoon (also known as the "Anesthetic Prowler", the "Phantom Anesthetist", or simply the "Mad Gasser") was the name given to the person or people believed to be responsible for a series of apparent gas attacks that occurred in Mattoon, Illinois, during the …

Nov 23, 2022 · In 1944, the “Mad Gasser of Mattoon” allegedly terrorized this small Illinois town with a series of poison gas attacks — but was the entire episode simply a case of mass hysteria?

Aug 5, 2011 · The Mad Gasser of Mattoon, also known as the Phantom Anesthetist or Anesthetic Prowler, was the supposed perpetrator of a series of alleged gas attacks targeting the residents of Mattoon, Illinois. The incidents began on August 31, 1944, and lasted two weeks.

Aug 20, 2019 · Given the amount of bloodshed that was unfolding around the world, it is easy to miss the newspapers’ coverage of one particularly strange event, one that would come to be called the Mad Gasser of Mattoon. Mattoon, Illinois is a small town that lies around 49 miles south of Champaign and has a population for around 18,000.

Dec 4, 2023 · Meanwhile, armed vigilante gangs began patrolling the streets of Mattoon at night, on the hunt for what had come to be known as the “Mad Gasser.” The police began assembling a list of...

Jan 26, 2023 · The Mad Gasser of Mattoon is often cited as the premier case of mass hysteria. In the 1940s, a town was terrorized by a mysterious gas-spraying culprit.

May 1, 2003 · For several weeks in September 1944, people in the town of Mattoon, Illinois, showed the symptoms of exposure to poison gas--nausea, vomiting, weakness leading to near paralysis, light headedness, even spitting up blood. All of the victims reported a "sweet cheap perfume odor" permeating their homes prior to the onset of sickness.

Jul 25, 2024 · The Mad Gasser of Mattoon is a curious case that gripped a small Illinois town in 1944. This mysterious figure, also known as the “Anesthetic Prowler” or “Phantom Anesthetist,” was believed to be responsible for a series of peculiar gas …

The Mad Gasser of Mattoon. In the first half of September 1944, a Phantom “Anesthetic Prowler,” a “Mad Anesthetist,” a “Mad Gasser” threatened the City of Mattoon, Illinois. Police increased nighttime patrols, in an attempt to catch the gasser. Citizens began to keep nightly watch.

Mar 11, 2025 · The mystery of the Mad Gasser of Mattoon remains one of the most fascinating unsolved cases in American history. Unlike many urban legends, this case had real police reports, real victims, and real panic.