Who was the English dressmaker, nurse and housekeeper who was hanged in 1873 for the murder of 20 people, including 3 of her husbands, by arsenic poisoning?
"Mary Ann Cotton Mary Ann Cotton (' Robson; 31 October 1832 – 24 March 1873) was an English serial killer, convicted of, and hanged for, the murder by poisoning of her stepson Charles Edward Cotton. It is likely that she murdered three of her four husbands, apparently in order to collect on their insurance policies, and many others. She may have murdered as many as 21 people, including 11 of her 13 children. She chiefly used arsenic poisoning, causing gastric pain and rapid decline of health. Mary Ann Robson was born on 31 October 1832 at Low Moorsley (now part"
"Daisy de Melker Daisy Louisa C. De Melker (née Hancorn-Smith; 1 June 1886 – 30 December 1932) simply known as Daisy de Melker, was a trained nurse who poisoned two husbands with strychnine for their life insurance while living in Germiston in the central Transvaal (now Gauteng), and then poisoned her only son with arsenic for reasons which are still unclear. She is the second woman to have been hanged in South Africa. Daisy de Melker was accused of three murders but was only convicted of one, that of killing her son. The charges of poisoning her husbands were never"
"to other women who had infamously used poison or violence to murder men, including Madame LeFarge and Mrs. Cutts of England. In 1989, a publication on New England genealogical records argued that Hanson had attempted to convince the doctors conducting Kinney's autopsy to cite cholera as the cause of death. Hannah Hanson Kinney Hannah Hanson Kinney (born Hannah Hanson in 1805) was an American seamstress who was charged with the murder of her third husband, George Kinney in 1840. Arsenic, the alleged murder weapon, was found in Kinney's stomach during an autopsy. Though Kinney was acquitted, public records indicate that"
"Hannah Hanson Kinney Hannah Hanson Kinney (born Hannah Hanson in 1805) was an American seamstress who was charged with the murder of her third husband, George Kinney in 1840. Arsenic, the alleged murder weapon, was found in Kinney's stomach during an autopsy. Though Kinney was acquitted, public records indicate that Kinney's second husband, Reverend Enoch W. Freeman, and Freeman's father, died of arsenic poisoning years earlier. Public consensus following Kinney's trial deemed her guilty, and she published an autobiography in 1841 to defend herself. Hannah Hanson was born in 1805 in Lisbon, Maine. At seventeen, she met Ward Witham, and"
"Catherine Wilson Catherine Wilson (1822 – 20 October 1862) was a British serial killer who was hanged for one murder, but was generally thought at the time to have committed six others. She worked as a nurse and poisoned her victims after encouraging them to leave her money in their wills. She was described privately by the sentencing judge as ""the greatest criminal that ever lived."" Wilson worked as a nurse first in Spalding, Lincolnshire, and then moving to Kirkby, Cumbria. She married a man called Dixon but her husband soon died, probably poisoned with colchicum, a bottle of which"
"Martha Needle Martha Needle was an Australian woman known for poisoning her husband, three children and future brother-in-law. She was hanged on 22 October 1894 at the age of 30. Martha was convicted for the murder of Louis Juncken, brother of her fiance Otto Juncken, on 15 May 1894. Although Martha collected substantial sums of insurance money, her exact motive for murdering her family has not been determined. Several times she stated her innocence, but she was eventually hanged. Needle was born Martha Charles on the 9th of April 1863 in Morgan, South Australia; her father died when she was"
"Frederick Seddon Frederick Henry Seddon (sometimes called Sedden) (21 January 1872 – 18 April 1912) was a British murderer hanged in 1912 for the arsenic poisoning murder of his lodger, Eliza Mary Barrow. Frederick Seddon was born in Liverpool to William Seddon and Mary Ann (née Kennen) on 21 January 1872. He married Margaret Ann (née Jones) (1878–1946) on 31 December 1893, and had five children with her: William James Seddon (b. 1894); Margaret Seddon (b. 1896); Frederick Henry Seddon Jr (b. 1897); Ada Seddon (b. 1905), and Lilian Louisa Agnes Emma Seddon (b. 1911). His father also lived with"
"Marie Manning (murderer) Marie Manning (1821–13 November 1849) was a Swiss domestic servant who was hanged outside Horsemonger Lane Gaol, London, England, on 13 November 1849, after she and her husband were convicted of the murder of her lover, Patrick O'Connor, in the case that became known as the ""Bermondsey Horror"". It was the first time a husband and wife had been executed together in England since 1700. The novelist Charles Dickens attended the public execution, and in a letter written to ""The Times"" on the same day wrote, ""I believe that a sight so inconceivably awful as the wickedness"
"partners of her adultery and sensuality. Hers was an undeviating career of the foulest personal vices and the most cold-blooded and systematic murders, as well as deliberate and treacherous robberies."" It was generally thought that Wilson was guilty of more crimes than the one she was convicted of. Harper's went on: Catherine Wilson Catherine Wilson (1822 – 20 October 1862) was a British serial killer who was hanged for one murder, but was generally thought at the time to have committed six others. She worked as a nurse and poisoned her victims after encouraging them to leave her money in"
"Mary Ansell Mary Ann Ansell, a housemaid, was hanged at St Albans Prison, England on 19 July 1899, for poisoning her sister Caroline, who was an inmate in an asylum. Her motive was asserted to be to obtain £11.5s from a life insurance policy which she had taken out on Caroline. At 18 or 22 years old (reports differ), she was the youngest woman to be hanged in the UK in the 'modern era' (after the 1868 reform act, so non-public, and also by the 'long drop' method). Before Ansell's execution, there was considerable public pressure for a reprieve, on"
"to detect the arsenic in William Dazley's body and the result was used as forensic evidence against Sarah. It only took 30 minutes for the jury to convict Sarah for the murder of her second husband. Judge Baron Alderson sentenced Sarah Dazley to hang. She was executed on Saturday, 5 August 1843, at Bedford Gaol. She was the only woman to be publicly hanged at Bedford Gaol. Thousands of people came to watch the execution. She became known as the Potton Poisoner. Sarah Dazley Sarah Dazley (1819 – 5 August 1843), later known as the ""Potton Poisoner"", was an English"
"said it was probably a good thing she was to be executed, as she did not think she would be able to stop. Anna Maria Zwanziger Anna Margaretha Zwanziger (7 August 1760 – 17 September 1811) was a German serial killer. She used arsenic, which she referred to as ""her truest friend"". From 1801 until 1811, Zwanziger was employed as a housekeeper at the home of several judges in Germany. She would poison her employers with arsenic, and then nurse them back to health to gain their favour. She poisoned three people, and attempted to poison several others She killed"
"Hélène Jégado Hélène Jégado (1803 – 26 February 1852) was a French domestic servant and serial killer. She is believed to have murdered as many as 36 people with arsenic over a period of 18 years. After an initial period of activity, between 1833 and 1841, she seems to have stopped for nearly ten years before a final spree in 1851. Hélène Jégado was born on a small farm in Plouhinec (Morbihan), near Lorient in Brittany. She lost her mother at the age of seven and was sent to work with two aunts who were servants at the rectory of"
"Elizabeth Martha Brown Elizabeth Martha Brown (c. 1811–9 August 1856), née Clark, was the last woman to be publicly hanged in Dorset, England. She was executed outside Dorchester Prison after being convicted of the murder of her second husband, John Brown, on 22 July, just 13 days earlier. The prosecution said she had attacked him with an axe after he had taken a whip to her. Among the crowd of 3,000–4,000 who watched the hanging of Brown was the English novelist, Thomas Hardy, 16 years old at the time, standing close to the gallows. He wrote 70 years later that"
"came to the fore. By the age of 25 Dazley had poisoned two husbands and a child. She was about to marry a third husband when villagers warned him of her past and subsequent investigations took place. These commenced with exhumation of the bodies and a Coroner’s Inquest which was held in The Chequers Pub. Traces of arsenic were found and several local residents gave evidence against Dazley during her trial at Bedford Assizes. At the end of the case, Dazley was found guilty and sentenced to be hanged outside Bedford Gaol. She was the last woman to be publicly"
"Elizabeth Brownrigg Elizabeth Brownrigg (1720 – 14 September 1767) was an 18th-century English murderer. Her victim, Mary Clifford, was one of her domestic servants, who died from cumulative injuries and associated infected wounds. As a result of witness testimony and medical evidence at her trial, Brownrigg was hanged at Tyburn on 14 September 1767. Born in 1720 to a working class family, Elizabeth married James Brownrigg, an apprentice plumber, while still a teenager. She gave birth to sixteen children, but only three survived infancy. In 1765, Elizabeth, James and their son John moved to Flower de Luce Road in London's"
"Elizabeth Ridgeway Elizabeth Ridgeway (died 24 March 1684) was an English woman convicted of poisoning her husband. While awaiting execution by burning at the stake, she confessed to previously poisoning her mother, a fellow servant, and a lover. Elizabeth Ridgeway, née Husbands, was born in the late 17th century on a farm outside Ibstock, Leicestershire, England. She lived at home until about age 29, poisoning her mother after an argument, about a year before she took a job in town as a household servant. She poisoned a male co-worker in her household with arsenic after developing a grudge against him."
"Amy Archer-Gilligan Amy Duggan ""Sister"" Archer-Gilligan (October 1873 – April 23, 1962) was a nursing home proprietor and serial killer from Windsor, Connecticut. She murdered at least five people by poisoning them. One of her victims was her second husband, Michael Gilligan; the others were residents of her nursing home. It is possible that she was involved in more deaths. The authorities counted 48 deaths in her nursing home, the ""Archer Home for the Elderly and Infirm."" The case attracted wide publicity at the time and has been cited as an inspiration for the play ""Arsenic and Old Lace"" and"
"Mary Blandy Mary Blandy (1720 – 6 April 1752) was an eighteenth century English murderer. In 1751, she poisoned her father, Francis Blandy, with arsenic. She claimed that she thought the arsenic was a love potion that would make her father approve of her relationship with William Henry Cranstoun, an army officer and son of a Scottish nobleman. Mary's parents raised her to be an intelligent, articulate Anglican woman. Her reputation in Henley, where she lived her entire life, was that of a well-respected, well-mannered, and well-educated young woman. In 1746, Mary met Captain William Henry Cranstoun. The two intended"
"Margaret Waters Margaret Waters was an English serial killer hanged by executioner William Calcraft on 11 October 1870 at Horsemonger Lane Gaol (also known as Surrey County Gaol) in London. Waters was born in 1835 and lived in Brixton. She was known for baby farming, that is, taking in other women's children for money; a practice often resulting in infanticide. Waters drugged and starved the infants in her care and is believed to have killed at least 19 children. Charged with five counts of wilful murder as well as neglect and conspiracy, Waters was convicted of murdering an infant named"
"gave place in a few hours to her habitual cold, reserved demeanour and while she harbours a strong conviction that the royal clemency will be extended towards her, she staunchly asserts her innocence of the crime that she has been convicted of."" Several petitions were presented to the Home Secretary, but to no avail. Mary Ann Cotton was hanged at Durham County Gaol on 24 March 1873 by William Calcraft; she died, not from her neck breaking, but by strangulation caused by the rope being rigged too short, possibly deliberately. Of Mary Ann's 13 children, only two survived her: Margaret"
"Anne Turner (murderer) Mrs Anne Turner (5 January 1576 – 15 November 1615), aka Mistress Anne Turner or Mrs. Anne Turner, was the widow of a respectable London doctor who was hanged at Tyburn for her role in the famous 1613 poisoning of Sir Thomas Overbury referenced in the plays ""A New Trick to Cheat the Devil"", ""The Widow"", ""The World Tossed at Tennis"" and ""The City Nightcap"". She was born Anne Norton on 5 January 1576, one of ten children to Thomas and Margaret Norton of Hinxton, Cambridgeshire. Later, as her reputation came in question, rumours spread that she"
"her last two husbands revealed high levels of phosphorus. Her defence claimed the substance was contained in their medication. Wilson was convicted of murdering two of her four husbands with beetle poison in 1956 and 1957. The remains of her earlier two husbands were exhumed at a later date and pointed to the same cause of death. There was no reason, however, to have a second trial. While Wilson was sentenced to death, her advanced age allowed her to get a reprieve. Her sentence was commuted to life imprisonment. She died while incarcerated at Holloway. Mary Elizabeth Wilson Mary Elizabeth"
"to kill their children for gain. Examples are Mary Ann Cotton, who murdered many of her 15 children as well as 3 husbands, Margaret Waters, the 'Brixton Baby Farmer', a professional baby-farmer who was found guilty of infanticide in 1870, Jessie King hanged in 1889, Amelia Dyer, the 'Angel Maker', who murdered over 400 babies in her care, and Ada Chard-Williams, a baby farmer who was later hanged at Newgate prison. The Times reported that 67 infants were murdered in London in 1861 and 150 more recorded as ""found dead"", many of which were found on the streets. Another 250"
"she had poisoned her mother, a fellow servant, John King and her husband on the morning of her execution and confessed that she had thought of suicide around the time of her mother's death three years previously. Elizabeth Ridgeway Elizabeth Ridgeway (died 24 March 1684) was an English woman convicted of poisoning her husband. While awaiting execution by burning at the stake, she confessed to previously poisoning her mother, a fellow servant, and a lover. Elizabeth Ridgeway, née Husbands, was born in the late 17th century on a farm outside Ibstock, Leicestershire, England. She lived at home until about age"
"Sarah Basset Sarah Bassett , also known as Sally or Sary Bassett (died 21 June 1730), was an enslaved 'mulatto' (mixed-race) woman in Bermuda. She was declared guilty and executed in 1730 for the poisoning of three individuals. This led her to be well-known in Bermuda and a part of Bermudian history. Sarah Bassett was a mulatto and raised many grandchildren. In 1713 she was found guilty of killing livestock and was whipped through the parish. Prior to 1727 she was owned by a Southampton blacksmith, Francis Dickinson of Pembroke Parish. Dickinson died around 1726, leaving Bassett for his children"
"Amelia Dyer Amelia Elizabeth Dyer (née Hobley; 1837 – 10 June 1896) was one of the most prolific serial killers in history, murdering infants in her care over a 20-year period in Victorian Britain. Trained as a nurse, and widowed in 1869, she turned to baby farming – the practice of adopting unwanted infants in exchange for money – in order to support herself. She initially cared for the children legitimately, in addition to having two of her own, but whether intentionally or not, a number of them died in her care, leading to a conviction for negligence and six"
"Mary Ann Britland Mary Ann Britland (""née"" Hague, born 1847 – 9 August 1886) was an English serial killer. She was the first woman to be executed by hanging at Strangeways Prison in Manchester by James Berry. Mary Ann was born in 1847 in Bolton, Lancashire, the second eldest daughter of Joseph and Hannah (née Lees) Hague. She married Thomas Britland at St Michael's Church, Ashton-under-Lyne in 1866. They lived in a rented house at 133 Turner Lane, Ashton-under-Lyne with their two daughters Elizabeth Hannah and Susannah. Britland held two jobs; she was a factory worker by day and barmaid"
"Alice Arden Alice Arden (1516–1551) was an English murderer. She was the daughter of John Brigantine and Alice Squire, who conspired to have her husband, Thomas Arden of Faversham, murdered so she could carry on with a long-term affair with a tailor, Richard Moseby. The murder took place on 14 February 1551. She was tried, convicted, and burnt at the stake for her part in the murder. The murder was described by Raphael Holinshed and later had entries in both The Newgate Calendar and the Chambers Book of Days. Alice Brigantine married Thomas Arden on an unknown date. They made"
"Elizabeth Woolcock Elizabeth Woolcock (20 April 1848 – 30 December 1873) was born Elizabeth Lillian Oliver in Burra Burra and was hanged in Adelaide Gaol for the murder of her husband Thomas Woolcock by mercury poisoning. She remains the only woman ever executed in South Australia and is buried between the outer and inner prison walls. It has been argued that she may have been a victim of domestic violence and suffered from battered spouse syndrome. Born 20 April 1848, Elizabeth and her family lived in Burra Burra in South Australia. In January 1852, Elizabeth's father joined the Victorian gold"
"Vera Renczi Vera Renczi (dubbed the Black Widow or Chatelaine of Berkerekul), of Romania or Hungary, reportedly confessed to poisoning 35 individuals—including her two husbands, multiple lovers, and her son—with arsenic during the 1920s. The earliest report published in the United States was in May, 1925. The story has surfaced repeatedly, but without traceable details such as specific dates of her birth, marriages, arrest, conviction, incarceration or death. Most sources place the murders at Berkerekul, Yugoslavia (present-day Serbia), or Bečkerek, which changed the name to Zrenjanin in 1946. In 1972, the ""Guinness Book of World Records"" found no authoritative sources"
"30 years she was pardoned in 1833 and rejoined the upper-class society of Glatz until her death in 1836. The work of Valentin Rose in proving that the victims in this case were actually poisoned showed that the evidence of doctors who were present at death was not sufficient. In 1836 the Marsh test, a highly sensitive method in the detection of arsenic, was developed by the chemist James Marsh. Sophie Ursinus Sophie Charlotte Elisabeth Ursinus (""née"" Weingarten; 5 May 1760 – 4 April 1836) was a German serial killer believed to have been responsible for poisoning her husband, aunt,"
"Anne Askew Anne Askew (née Ayscough , Ascue; married name Anne Kyme; 152116 July 1546) was an English writer, poet, and Protestant martyr who was condemned as a heretic in England in the reign of Henry VIII of England. Apart from Margaret Cheyney, wife of Sir John Bulmer, who was similarly tortured and executed after the Pilgrimage of Grace in 1537, she is the only other woman on record known to have been both tortured in the Tower of London and burnt at the stake. She is also one of the earliest-known female poets to compose in the English language"