The Mad Gasser of Mattoon (also known as the Phantom Anesthetist, or simply the Mad Gasser) was the name given to an event of alleged mass hysteria in which a person or people allegedly committed a series of apparent gas attacks in Mattoon, Illinois, during the mid-1940s. More than two dozen separate cases of gassings were reported to police over the span of two weeks, in addition to many more reported sightings of the suspected assailant. The gasser's supposed victims reported smelling strange odors in their homes which were soon followed by symptoms such as paralysis of the legs, coughing, nausea and vomiting. No one died or had serious medical consequences as a result of the gas attacks. Police remained skeptical of the accounts throughout the entire incident. Many reported gassings had simple explanations, such as spilled nail polish or odors emanating from animals or local factories. Victims made quick recoveries from their symptoms and suffered no long-term effects. Nevertheless, local newspapers ran alarmist articles about the reported attacks and treated the accounts as fact. Although the explanation that the reports were only a case of mass hysteria is widely accepted, others maintain that a Mad Gasser actually existed.
Descriptions Most contemporary descriptions of the Mad Gasser are based on the testimony of Mr. Bert Kearney of 1408 Marshall Avenue, the husband of the victim of the first Mattoon case to be reported by the media. His wife, who was the one claiming to be attacked, did not describe seeing a prowler. He described the gasser as being a tall, thin man dressed in dark clothing and wearing a tight-fitting cap. Another report, made some weeks later, described the gasser as being a female dressed as a man. The Gasser had also been described as carrying a flit gun, an agricultural tool for spraying pesticide, which he purportedly used to expel the gas.
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