• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Stories
  • Games
    • View All
    • FAQ
  • Encyclopaedia
  • About
  • Support TGIMM
  • Shop
  • Contact

The Ghost In My Machine

Stories of the Strange and Unusual

Encyclopaedia of the Impossible: The Smith Sisters, Murdered Anonymously

January 7, 2015 by Lucia

Previously: The Noise Coming from Inside Children.

Type: EV (Electronic Virus)

Period/location of origin: Unknown. The earliest record of subject, aka “the Smith Sisters, murdered anonymously,” appears in June of 2005; however, portions of the story held within subject take place in the early ‘90s. Subject’s time frame may change depending on its version number. Subject’s location of origin is similarly unknown, although the story within takes place in Plainfield, Wisconsin.

A pair of young women, standing next to each other and holding hands

Appearance: Subject appears to be a chain letter of the sort commonly circulated in the early days of the Internet. Many versions of subject exist; the details of the story told by subject, subject’s time frame, and subject’s grammatical correctness may vary depending on which version has been cast to snare target.

[Like what you read? Check out Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark, available from Chronicle Books now!]

Modus operandi: Subject presents itself to target as a chain letter shared via email, ostensibly sent from a person of target’s acquaintance. The chain letter tells the story of a boy in Plainfield, Wisconsin who begins receiving either emails or instant messages from a pair of girls claiming to be his sisters. The boy, who has grown up as an only child, tells them he has no sisters and requests forcefully that they leave him alone.

In the next message, he receives from them, they inform him that not only did they live in his house many years ago, but moreover, that they died there, as well. This message may or may not contain a photograph of two girls with the caption, “THE SMITH SISTERS, MURDERED ANONYMOUS” and/or a newspaper article detailing their brutal murder. The sisters, angry at having been ignored or forgotten by their parents, may then close the story in one of two ways: Either they murder the boy in the same manner of their own deaths, or murder the parents the same way. Subject then informs target that target must pass the letter on, or else face either their own death or take responsibility for the deaths of their parents.

Although subject’s story is widely understood to be fictional, subject continues to insist story is factual, often including a post-script resembling the following:

“P.S. Guys… I looked it up on Google and it really happened. Creepy, eh? I don’t normally do these… but this one bothers me a bit. Here’s the article:

“‘In 1993, two sisters were brutally murdered in the small-town community of Plainfield, Wisconsin. Lisa Smith, 19 and her sister, Sarah Smith, 15 were attacked in their parent’s home on the night of November 17th, around 1:30am. The Smith sisters were lying in bed when a crazed killer broke into the house. No-one heard them scream. In the morning, their parents found the dead bodies of the Smith sisters hidden in the bedroom closet. They had been skinned alive. The killer was long gone and no trace of him could be found. They had been murdered anonymously. Police conducted an extensive investigation, but to no avail. The motives for the attack were never discovered, nor was the attacker ever found. The only lead authorities had was a series of strange emails found in Lisa’s computer. The case was closed in October of 2000.’”

The immediate goal of subject appears to be to spread to as many targets and computers as possible. Subject’s long-term goals remain unknown.

Containment: Subject is currently still at large on the Internet; however, measures may be taken to neutralize subject when necessary. Liberal use of the “delete” or “trash” button is recommended.

Additional notes: Plainfield, Wisconsin is best known for being the hometown of serial killer Edward Theodore “Ed” Gein.

Although subject may not necessarily enact the revenge specified in the letter on target (should target fail to pass on the letter), exposure to subject may result in target behaving unusually or erratically. Target may: Feel the urge to pass on the chain letter, even though he or she does not consider themself the “type” to do so; experience a pervasive sense of unease; or spend a few evenings looking over his or her shoulder. Long-term effects of subject on targets have yet to be documented.

It should be noted that although subject’s sender both appears and is understood to be a human being known personally to target, it is unknown whether this is actually the case. Further research may be required to determine origin of subject, including whether subject sends itself — or whether subject is somehow sent by the titular sisters.

The Smith sisters themselves have yet to be encountered, either in corporeal or incorporeal form.

Recommendation: Should you find subject in your inbox, do NOT open, read, or forward it.

I mean it.

Resources:

Smith Sisters Murdered Anonymously.

Skinned Flick.

Real Life Mysteries — The Smith Sisters Murdered Anonymously.

***

Follow The Ghost In My Machine on Twitter @GhostMachine13 and on Facebook @TheGhostInMyMachine. And don’t forget to check out Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark, available now from Chronicle Books!

[Photo via]

Filed Under: Encyclopaedia Tagged With: chain letter, Encyclopaedia of the Impossible, EV, Smith Sisters, The Smith Sisters Murdered Anonymously

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Top Stories

‘Dangerous Games To Play In The Dark’ Is Now Available From Chronicle Books!

15 Creepy, Scary Phone Numbers To Call That Actually Work (UPDATED For 2023)

The Backrooms, Explained: How To Make Sense Of The Internet’s Favorite Non-Reality

About

The Ghost In My Machine is an internet campfire of sorts. Gather round, because it wants to tell you strange stories, take you on haunted journeys, and make you jump at unexpected noises.

Continue Reading >

Support

Like what you read? Support The Ghost In My Machine!

 

Support

Follow

Facebook Twitter

From the Vault

  • Bloody Mary & Other Games We Shouldn’t Play

    Scare Yourself Silly

  • This Man

    Creepy Things That Seem Real But Aren’t

  • The Dionaea House

    Creepy Things That Seem Real But Aren’t

  • The Noise Coming From Inside Children

    Scare Yourself Silly

  • NoEnd House

    Is It Real?

  • Killswitch

    Creepy Things That Seem Real But Aren’t

  • The “Lost” Mickey Mouse Cartoon

    Is It Real?

  • 200 Phenomena In The City Of Calgary

    Scare Yourself Silly

View All >

Letters from the Beyond

Enter your email to receive blog posts and updates by email

  • Stories
  • Games
  • Encyclopaedia
  • About
  • Support TGIMM
  • Shop
  • Contact

Privacy Policy

We use cookies to give you the best online experience. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of all the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT