H2H 3. 145 The Lover in the Attic: The Chilling Case of Walburga "Dolly" Oesterreich.

KRIS CALVERT
Feb 15, 2023
1 min read

Updated: May 6

At first glance, Walburga “Dolly” Oesterreich was the picture of a perfect 1920s housewife—elegant, sociable, and impeccably dressed. Married to Fred Oesterreich, a wealthy apron manufacturer in Milwaukee and later Los Angeles, she seemed to have it all. But beneath the satin and social charm, Dolly harbored a scandalous secret.

Los Angeles, 1922.

Gunshots rang out from the Oesterreich home. When police arrived, Fred was dead—shot three times. Dolly was found locked in a closet, unharmed, claiming a robbery gone wrong. But the truth was far more disturbing.

Fred hadn’t been killed by a burglar. He was murdered by Dolly’s secret lover—sixteen years her junior—a man who had been living in their attic for nearly a decade.

This is the twisted tale of Walburga “Dolly” Oesterreich:. Obsession, Sex and a Secret Lover.