Colorado's 'other' cannibal committed acts even more disturbing than those of Alferd Packer

In the age of the Internet, most Coloradans have probably heard at least a few words about Alferd Packer, the infamous 'Colorado Cannibal' best known for consuming parts of his companions during an expedition gone wrong in 1874 . Heck, there's even a University of Colorado Boulder dining hall named after him – the Alferd Packer Grill . That said, most Coloradans probably haven't heard of an even more disturbing cannibal once said to frequent the saloons of the Centennial State – Charles 'Big Phil' Gardner.

According to a report from the Denver Library , Big Phil's story starts in Philadelphia, where he was later imprisoned for life for a murder during riots in 1844. Big Phil, who got his nickname thanks to his massive stature and his Philly roots, is said to have escaped from prison though, heading West to start a life anew.

After missing a Mormon wagon train in 1887, he is said to have linked up with two Army deserters, eventually participating in a fatal raid of a home and attracting the attention of a group of vigilantes seeking to stop the trio.

While on the run, Big Phil was able to outpace his companions, with the two who lagged behind soon being captured and killed, tossed onto a fire as Big Phil watched from afar. After the vigilantes moved on, the Denver Library reports that Big Phil had his first 'cannibal feast,' sneaking up to the fire and consuming roasted parts of those who had been killed. He then continued west, eventually reaching a group of Mormons and getting baptized as a Latter-Day Saint.

Big Phil is said to have later settled in Colorado, meeting Edward Wynkoop – who would become a founder of Denver – sometime in the winter of 1858 to 1859. At the time, Big Phil was said to be living with two wives and children in an Arapaho village on the South Platte River, showing Wynkoop ample kindness.

During their time together, however, Big Phil did share a dark story of how he once killed a Native American guide during a time of dire straits in a snowstorm, also claiming that the companion had allegedly sought to kill him first. Phil is said to have killed the guide, who was accompanying him during a treacherous winter journey, then allegedly claiming to have 'eaten his fill' of his partner before packing leftover remains for the rest of his journey, according to the Denver Library report .

Big Phil's account of this story is told in The Colorado History Gazette with the following quote: "So after we gets limpin’ along for the day, I slips up behind him with my gun already cocked just as he’s gettin’ his roll from his hoss. Bang. He kicks for a minute or two. It’s already dark and I hacks off one arm and fills up on raw meat as there ain’t no wood for fire. I knows I cain’t travel far without grub, so I hacks off the other arm and the two legs off at the hip bone, which I packs on the extra pony that I takes from the dead Inj*n, and starts out once agin’ the next mornin’."

Phil would go on to allegedly kill and eat his wife to make it through a particularly difficult winter.

"Boys, if I should tell you what I know about Mountain Phil, you would never believe it, but as sure as you live, he had killed his sq**w and eaten most of her," reads the account of someone who encountered Big Phil the following spring, according to The Colorado History Gazette .

The tale of Big Phil's cannibalistic acts continued to grow over the years, to include that he would brag about this horrific behavior and that he preferred to eat the feet and hands over other parts of a body, according to the report from the Denver Library .

So there you have it, the story of Charles 'Big Phil' Gardner and his alleged tendency for cannibalism – even more disturbing than the cannibalism of Alferd Packer, and perhaps even more so disturbing as records seem to show that Big Phil didn't face formal punishment for his crimes.

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