Albert Fish, later known as Hamilton Howard Fish, was born on May 19, 1870, in Washington, D.C., into a family marked by unusual and troubling traits. His father, Randall Fish, was an elderly 75-year-old fertilizer manufacturer and former riverboat captain when Albert was born, and was significantly older than Albert's mother, Ellen Francis Howell, who was of Scots-Irish American descent. Tragedy struck early in Fish's life when his father passed away from a heart attack in 1875, prompting his mother to place him in Saint John's Orphanage.

The orphanage was a harsh environment where Fish was subjected to frequent physical abuse. Instead of breaking him, the abuse strangely shaped his disturbing affinity for physical pain. After his mother secured a government job, she was able to remove him from the orphanage in 1880, but the damage to his psyche was already set in motion. By the time he was 12, Fish began exploring more extreme behaviors, including forming a relationship with a telegraph boy who introduced him to drinking urine and eating feces. Fish also frequented public baths to watch other boys undress, and this behavior extended into his adult years, where he wrote obscene letters to women he found through classified ads and matrimonial services.

In January 1917, Albert Fish faced a personal crisis when his wife left him for a handyman named John Straube, taking nearly all of their possessions. Now a single parent, Fish's mental health deteriorated sharply. He began experiencing auditory hallucinations and engaged in extreme self-harm. He claimed to be following divine instructions, such as wrapping himself in a carpet like the Apostle John. 

Fish's self-destructive behavior escalated to embedding needles into his groin and abdomen—X-rays later found at least twenty-nine needles lodged in his pelvic area. He also inflicted pain on himself with a nail-studded paddle and performed even more disturbing acts like inserting wool soaked in lighter fluid into his anus and igniting it. Despite these violent tendencies towards himself, Fish never physically abused his children but disturbingly encouraged them and their friends to use the paddle on him, further blurring the lines between victim and perpetrator in his twisted world.

Albert Fish, a seemingly harmless old man, shocked America with one of the most chilling crimes of the early 20th century. His crime involved the young Grace Budd, whom he abducted under a guise of kindness, only to reveal his true monstrous nature.

In 1928, Fish appeared at the Budd family's doorstep in Manhattan. He introduced himself as a man needing help on his farm, and he seemed friendly and trustworthy. Seeing an opportunity, Fish mentioned a birthday party for his niece and invited Grace to come along. The Budd family, deceived by his gentle demeanor, allowed their daughter to go with him.

Instead of a festive birthday party, Fish took Grace to a desolate house in Westchester County. There, the unthinkable happened. Fish had planned every detail with precision, turning from a kind old man into a cold-blooded monster. He brutally took Grace's life in that lonely house, committing acts too terrible to comprehend.

But the horror did not stop with murder. Fish's gruesome inclinations led him to cannibalism. He later boasted in horrifying letters to the Budd family, detailing exactly what he had done to Grace in a cold, emotionless tone. These letters, filled with gruesome details, were initially so shocking that the police considered them a hoax.

Fish's capture came about because of these very letters. He was arrested in 1934, two years after he sent the letters that confessed to his horrific acts. During his trial in 1935, Fish shocked the courtroom by admitting not just to the murder of Grace Budd but also to other crimes involving children. His confessions revealed a series of terrifying acts across several states.

Fish's trial was a media sensation, capturing the attention of the entire nation. He spoke of his deeds without remorse, detailing his actions with a detachment that chilled all who heard him. He revealed that his dark impulses were not new; he had harmed many before Grace, driven by delusions and a belief that he was carrying out some twisted duty.

In 1936, Fish faced execution at Sing Sing Prison. His final moments were as unsettling as his life, showing no fear or regret. He was put to death by the electric chair, his last words reflecting confusion, as if he never fully grasped the horror of his actions.