A prominent criminal in Ithaca folklore, some may describe the story of Rulloff as someone who led a double life. He was a murderer, yes, but also a scholar with a knack for linguistics. Here are a few interesting facts about Rulloff’s strange life:
• It is suspected he didn’t like his wife very much and was suspicious of infidelity. When his wife and infant child went missing, speculation said that Rulloff murdered both, though neither bodies were ever found nor any other convicting evidence. It is assumed he dumped the bodies in Cayuga Lake. He is also suspected of poisoning and killing some other relatives.
• He created a theory on the origin of languages. His theory claimed that many words in various languages could be traced back to a set of fundamental roots—the idea that all human languages share a common origin and can be traced back to a single source.
• He was hung in Binghamton, New York, for murdering a store clerk. His execution was May 18, 1871, it was also the first public hanging in Broome County’s history.
• His brain was preserved and can now be viewed in the Wilder Brain Collection at Cornell University. His brain was approximately 30% larger than the average brain. Read more about the collection here.
• At the time of his arrest and execution, Rulloff was working on a comprehensive manuscript detailing his linguistic theories. This manuscript was never completed, and only fragments of his work have survived. Much of his theory has since been disproved and did not out live him like he intended—having zero impact on modern day linguistics.
• He was adept at escaping from prison. His most famous escape occurred in 1848 when he fled from the Tompkins County jail in Ithaca, New York. In 1870 he was convicted for burglary and the murder of a store clerk during a robbery attempt in Binghamton, New York. He was hung for this murder in 1871.
• His life has long continued to be of public interest inspiring books, articles, films and even theatrical performances. There was even a restaurant located in Collegetown of Ithaca named Rulloff’s, after the killer, that went out of business in 2020 during the pandemic.
