Robert Stevenson vacationed in a Scottish village of Pitlorchy for a couple of summer months in 1881. (Richardson) Many urban legends involving ghosts and resurrectionists were circling in Edinburgh regions, including where Stevenson was settled. In this village, the land lady's daughter would share these stories with Stevenson. (Richardson)He became inspired by these tales and began to develop "The Body Snatcher" a story of ghosts and resurrectionists. With the knowledge of the Burke and Hare murders and the Victorian Era, Stevenson was able to develop a story based off of the murders and Dr. Robert Knox while focusing on key themes of the Victorian Era. The short story was put on hold from publication due to Stevenson's wife Fanny, his "critic on the hearht." (Richardson) She felt in needed "further contemplation" and "the story was felt too good" for a short story. "The Body Snatcher" was finally published in 1884. 

Works Cited:

Richardson, Ruth. “The Lancet.” Art of Medicine, vol. 385, no. 9966, 2015, pp. 412–13. The Lancet, doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(15)60144-1.