mary ann cotton surviving descendants

She complained that the last surviving Cotton boy, Charles Edward, was in the way and asked Riley if he could be committed to the workhouse. He was John Quick- Manning, who was probably the excise officer at West Auckland Brewery and who was definitely married to someone else. She rekindled the romance and persuaded her new family to move near him. Frederick followed his predecessors to the grave in December of that year, from gastric fever." Mary Anns first port of call after Charles' death was not the doctors but the insurance office. Here's the messed-up truth about this notorious 19th century murderess. One of her patients at the infirmary was engineer George Ward. He didnt. She was, as The Northern Echo reports, remembered after her 1954 death as "intelligent, warm and kind-hearted." However, the BBC points out that you're not alone. As per History Collection, Cotton was hanged at Durham County Gaol on March 24, 1873. However, the infant mortality was falling as the century progressed, making Cotton's mishaps all the more striking. She was convicted of just the one murder, of her young stepson, but the evidence against her was vague and circumstantial, and it is extremely doubtful that it would stand up in a modern court of law. Mary Anns trial began two months later, and the defense claimed that the deceased had inhaled arsenic dust from wallpaper dye, a conceivable explanation given that arsenic was then common in many household items. Today we dive into the serial killer Mary Ann Cotton. Then the local newspapers latched on to the story and discovered Mary Ann had moved around northern England and lost three husbands, a lover, a friend, her mother, and a dozen children, all of whom had died of stomach fevers. She was hanged at Durham County Gaol on March 24, 1873, but it was a bungled execution. The defense in the case was handled by Mr. Thomas Campbell Foster. Although she is often said to be Britains first female serial killer, this is a false claim. Dark Angel, is based on the extraordinary true story of the Victorian poisoner Mary Ann Cotton, played by Downton Abbey star Joanne Froggatt. What clouds hung over the family? A more complete version runs: She lies in her bed With eyes wide open. The delay was caused by a problem in the selection of the public prosecutor. . William died of an intestinal disorder in January 1865. Their next child, George, was one of the rare few of Cotton's children who would survive her. 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.[4]. The move must have been Mary Ann's idea . Though many killers are male, it turns out that women have turned to serial murder as well. Mary Ann Robson was born on 31 October 1832 at Low Moorsley,[1] County Durham to Margaret, ne Londsdale and Michael Robson, a colliery sinker; and baptised at St Mary's, West Rainton on 11 November. contact the editor here. WIKITREE PROTECTS MOST SENSITIVE INFORMATION BUT ONLY TO THE EXTENT STATED IN THE TERMS OF SERVICE AND PRIVACY POLICY. Moreover, she was also forcing her stepchildren to pawn household items. After Frederick's death, Nattrass soon became Mary Ann's lodger. Mary Ann claimed to have used arrowroot to relieve his illness and said Riley had made accusations against her because she had rejected his advances. Five days later, Mary Ann told Riley that the boy had died. Perhaps, to Mary Ann Cotton's mind, if she tried to settle down without killing for insurance money, she would be putting herself in a situation where she lacked control and could easily find herself out on the street, as she likely did after James Robinson forced her out of their home. By the time they got married in August 1867, three of Robinsons children and his mother had died. Low Moorsley (now part of Houghton-le-Spring in the City of Sunderland), Margaret Edith Quick-Manning (Cotton) Kell, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Ann_Cotton, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NXHY-K2R, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:264G-ZP5, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NFJ3-241, https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:NXGL-55T, Mary Elizabeth (Ward) Dawson (abt.1829-abt.1904). Mary Ann's daughter Isabella Mowbray was brought back to the Robinson household and soon developed severe stomach pains and died, as did two of Robinson's children, Elizabeth and James. Enter a grandparent's name. The Robson family moved to the village of Murton in Durham when Mary Ann was eight, but tragedy struck in February 1842. This week, I'll delve into her psychology. Cotton had been remanded in custody since her arrest in July 1872, first in Bishop Auckland before being taken to Durham county gaol as preparations got underway to exhume bodies of her alleged. She was regarded as Britain's Greatest Female Mass Murderer. Mary Ann Cotton had finally been caught. As she was sentenced to hang, the second hearing fizzled out. Mother of Margaret Jane Mowbray; Isabella Mowbray; Margaret Jane Mowbray; John Robert Mowbray; Robert Robson Cotton and 3 others; Mary Isabella Robinson; George Robinson and Margaret Edith Quick-Manning Fletcher Kell less According to the British Library, that's because it was alarmingly easy to access. That's likely why Cotton's mother quickly remarried, in order to keep her family away from the horrifying poverty and harsh conditions of Victorian workhouses. As The Northern Echo reports, most believe that this child was probably the eighth of her biological children and one of only a few who would survive an encounter with their mother. Mary was born in October 1832 at Low Moorsley (now part of Houghton-le-Spring in the City of Sunderland) and baptised at St Mary's, West Rainton on 11 November. Facts concerning Mary Ann are difficult to pin down, but. We meet Mary Ann as a loving wife and mother, newly returned to her native North East of England. Mary Ann grew up in Durham county, northeastern England. Mary's mother remarried a few years later, but Mary hated her stepfather. She only fell two feet, so the executioner had to push down on her shoulders. It appears that, sometime around the birth, he fled town, with some reports indicating that he went so far as to leave the country, while others claim that he reconciled with his wife and lived a relatively quiet existence thereafter. Baptised at St Mary's, West Rainton on 11 November 1832. Daily Mirror. She was believed to have murdered up to 21 people, mainly by arsenic poisoning. Frederick Jr. died in March 1872 and the infant Robert soon after. And her killing spree started right here in. Lying in bed with her bones all rotten. Richard Quick Mann was a custom and excise man specialising in breweries and has been found in the records and this may indeed be the real name of Mary Ann Cotton's alleged lover. Her preferred method of killing was poisoning with arsenic. Soon, he found out that she owed 60 and had also stolen 50 she was supposed to put in the bank. She rekindled the romance and persuaded her new family to move near him. She allegedly poisoned up to 21 people before being executed in 1873. HP10 9TY. William's life was insured by the British and Prudential Insurance office and Mary Ann collected a payout of 35 on his death, equivalent to about half a year's wages for a manual labourer at the time. She was found guilty and sentenced to die. A brief investigation into the trial and execution of Mary Ann Cotton. Their child, Mary Isabella, was born that November, but she became ill with stomach pains and died in March 1868. Mary Ann Cotton. Mary Ann Cotton ( ne Robson; 31 October 1832 - 24 March 1873) was an English convicted murderer who was executed for poisoning her stepson. Was still legally married to James Robinson, Mary Ann & Mowbray's children: (3 rumored but unsubstantiated children), Mary Jane (-1860), Margaret Jane (-1865), John Robert (-1864), Isabella (-1867), George Ward (-1866), husband (briefly) - already ill and in the hospital when they met and married, 5 children of James Robinson & his late wife, Hannah, Margaret Lonsdale Robson Stott, mother (-1867), Child of Mary Ann & James Robinson: Margaret Isabella (-1868), 4 Children of Frederick & Unknown Cotton: 2 (before 1869) plus Frederick Jr and Charles Edward Cotton (-1872) - for whose murder she was arrested, tried and hung, Child of Mary Ann & Frederick Cotton: Robert Robson Cotton (-1870), Frederick Cotton, Sr, bigamous (she was the bigamist, not him) husband (-1871), Lady Killers, BBC Radio 4, Episode 7: Mary Ann Cotton (more info on. Facts concerning Mary Ann are difficult to pin down, but this was definitely her eighth child she had several miscarriages and there may have been other children. [10], Death of Charles Edward Cotton and inquest, Learn how and when to remove this template message, "Mary Ann Cotton | Biography, Murders, Trial, & Execution", "Dark Angel: How were Mary Ann Cotton's terrible crimes uncovered? THE baby was the daughter born to Mary Ann Cotton, of West Auckland, in Durham jail on January 7, 1873. After all of the children had been sent to boarding school in Darlington over the next three years, she returned to her stepfather's home and trained as a dressmaker. English serial killer Mary Ann Cotton, born October 31, 1832, and was hanged to death on March 24, 1873, for murdering her stepson Charles Edward Cotton by poisoning him. The attending doctor later gave evidence that Ward had been very ill, yet he had been surprised that the man's death was so sudden. Their second child George was born on 18 June 1869. They were married in August 1865, but the marriage didnt last long. Soon after the move her father fell 150 feet (46 m) to his death down a mine shaft at Murton Colliery. However, in 1870 Mary Ann met another widower, Frederick Cotton, who was the brother of a friend. An inquest was held and the jury returned a verdict of natural causes. When that failed, within days she told parish officials that Charles Edward Cotton had died. In September 1870 Mary Ann and Cotton were marriedthough she was still wed to Robinsonand she later gave birth to a son. There was also a stage show, The Life and Death of Mary Ann Cotton, that premiered in West Hartlepool not too soon after the real Cotton's execution. At the end of her life, as she spoke with officials, Cotton did not offer an explanation for any of her murders. Her sister Margaret was born in 1834 but lived only a few months. Despite her sole conviction for murder, she is believed to have been a serial killer who killed many others including 11 of her 13 children and three of her four husbands for their insurance policies. For women of the working class, the sudden death of a husband could easily throw them into devastating poverty with little way out. Mary Ann first Cotton left home at only 16 years old to work as a nurse, according to Britannica. In 1852 she married William Mowbray, and over the next decade or so, the couple had eight or nine children. [2] Another daughter, also named Margaret Jane, was born in 1861, and a son, John Robert William, was born in 1863, but died the next year from gastric fever. The "great moral drama," as it was described, likely used the bloody true crime tropes so beloved by Victorians to impart a decidedly un-subtle lesson about how to live one's life the right way. Depiction of Mary Ann Cotton. Mary Ann Robson Cotton, was a serial killer convicted of murdering her mother, 11 of her 13 children, her stepson and 3 of her 4 husbands by arsenic poisoning. Authorities also exhumed the bodies of Nattrass and two other Cotton children, and all were determined to have been poisoned with arsenic. Mary Ann nursed the baby in her cell one visitor told The Northern Echo how he had encountered Mrs Cotton sitting on a stool close by a good fire, giving the breast to her baby until all avenues of appeal were exhausted. Her daughter, Clara, 19, was living with Sarah in St Lukes Terrace, Ferryhill. He threw her out. Some substances, like cyanide and strychnine, were also readily available but produced obvious results. She had two children with Robinson but the first one, Margaret Isabella, died within a few months of her birth. She also began a relationship with Joseph Nattrass, History Collection reports, though the affair never resolved into marriage. She lies in bed with her eyes. Hell go like all the rest of the Cottons.". - Mary Ann Cotton, a widow, is in custody at West Auckland, charged with having poisoned her stepson, aged eight years. Mary Ann would also eventually give birth to his child. Mary Ann belonged to Our Lady of Czestochowa Parish (St. Stanislaus Church) and was a member of the Rosary Altar Sodality. An English woman convicted of murdering her children. Rumour gave rise to suspicion and scientific investigation. She then found work as a housekeeper for James Robinson, a widower. Frederick and Mary Ann were bigamously married on 17 September 1870 at St Andrew's, Newcastle Upon Tyne and their son Robert was born early in 1871. Her father, a miner, was killed in an accident when she was just nine. Margaret had acted as substitute mother for the remaining children, Frederick Jr. and Charles. She and her only surviving child, Isabella, had moved back to County Durham. Soon after Mowbray's death, Mary Ann moved to Seaham Harbour, County Durham, where she struck up a relationship with Joseph Nattrass. Serial killer Mary Ann Cotton is a female serial killer. James Robinson was a shipwright at Pallion in Sunderland, whose wife Hannah had recently died. In 1867, Mary Ann's stepfather George Stott married his widowed neighbour, Hannah Paley. Born in October 1832 in County Durham, England, Cotton was the daughter of Michael and Margaret Robson. login . Stuff You Missed in History Class, from where I took most of the information, has a great podcast on her. After three years there, she returned to her mother's home and trained as a dressmaker. We told the story in Memories 96, with, as ever, a few inaccuracies. The place is Durham Gaol. Leave a message for others who see this profile. [8], The Mary Ann Cotton case was partly dramatized on an episode of the 2022 BBC Radio podcast series Lucy Worsley's Lady Killers. An army of readers many anonymous, others marshalled by Tim Brown of Ferryhill Local History Society and some relatives have helped put us right. Soon her eleventh pregnancy was underway. Her attorney tried to argue that the boys death came as a result of accidental inhalation of arsenic from the wallpaper. Riley grew suspicious and alerted the police. Wife of George Ward; William Mowbray; Frederick Cotton and James Robinson According to Mary Ann Cotton, Cotton wed Robinson in 1867. However, Mary Ann was widely regarded as the countrys deadlist killer until Harold Shipman, who was thought to have murdered as many as 260 people in the late 20th century. However, she added, I wont be troubled long. After the boy died, the official notified the police. Partner of John Quick-Manning Mary Ann was destitute and barely surviving on the streets, but she was bailed out by her friend, Margaret, who introduced the black widow to her brother, Frederick Cotton. She is believed to have murdered up to 21 people in total. Cotton asked the man to circulate a petition in yet another attempt to save her, which did happen, yet it had no real effect on her ultimate fate. In a close-knit community like the Durham coalfield, it would have been impossible for Margaret to escape the notoriety of her birth. At least 15 of those were family members. A nearby exhibition purported to have a model of Cotton at a coal mine in county Durham, and it's very possible that other cheap "penny shows" would have drawn upon her tale to lure in visitors and their money. discoveries. The relationship of Mary Ann and Nattrass didnt last very long. William and Mary Ann moved back to North East England where they had, and lost, three more children. The delay was caused by a problem in the selection of prosecution counsel. The mother who murdered her own children was, though, a sensational story, and the media of the day led by The Northern Echos famous editor, WT Stead whipped up feelings against her. Mary Ann Robson was born on Halloween 1832 in Low Moorsley in County Durham. Mary Ann had cashed in William's life insurance, equivalent to about 1,700 in today's money. Why arsenic, though? Mary Ann backed off but not before ominously predicting that Charles would "go like all the rest of the Cotton family." Soon after the move, Mary Ann's father fell 150 feet (46m) to his death down a mine shaft at Murton colliery in February 1842. However, the couple did not divorce. The . She was employed in various jobs, including Sunday school. When Riley pushed the doctor, Kilburn re-tested the tissue and found that it was full of arsenic. Mary Ann Cotton - Dark Angel: Britain s First Female Serial Kille, Pen & Sword Publishing, 2012. He fled and changed his surname: some say he went abroad; others that he returned to his hometown of Darlington where, reconciled with his wife, he ran a small beerhouse. In 1869 Robinson discovered that Mary Ann was stealing from him, and he grew suspicious of her repeated requests that he take out a life insurance policy. Daughter of Michael Robson and Margaret Lonsdale Female Serial Killers in Social Context reports that Mary Ann's first move was to approach Thomas Riley, a grocer who also happened to be the local assistant manager for the poor relief. Mary Ann Cotton did not confess to a single murder, and while the number of victims is unknown, most sources believed she killed up to 21 people. Cotton was convicted of his murder and sentenced to death. He was seriously injured in 1918 on the Somme, but refused to be sent home, probably because he believed he would recover and rejoin the frontline. She told Riley that the boy was sickly and added: I wont be troubled long. Several petitions were presented to the Home Secretary, but to no avail. Around this time she took up with a former lover, Joseph Nattrass, but later became . She gained employment as nurse to an excise officer recovering from smallpox. She asked him to take the young boy to a workhouse, but Riley refused unless Mary Ann agreed to enter the workhouse too. Yet, according to Female Serial Killers, his cause of death was listed as cholera and typhoid. Margaret had acted as substitute mother for the remaining children, Frederick Jr. and Charles, but in late March 1870 she died from an undetermined stomach ailment, leaving Mary Ann to console the grieving Frederick Sr. A short time later, she married William Mowbray in an 1852 ceremony. It includes lines like "Mary Ann Cotton is tied up with string./Where, where?/Up in the air.". We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The couple met when Robinson hired Mary Ann as his housekeeper in November 1866. The first focused on Charles' death and took place in August of 1872. Mary Ann was charged with the murder of Charles Edward Cotton, and while she was in jail, a daughter was born in January 1873; that infantwho was reportedly her 13th childand another offspring were the only ones to outlive their mother. Thank you for visiting mary ann cotton family tree page. Cotton was born on October 31, 1832, in a village near Sunderland. Although she began a relationship with a man named Joseph Nattrass, she moved once again, this time to Sunderland, after another one of her children died from gastric fever. At that stage, only one of the nine kids she had with Mowbray was alive. In 1852, 20-year-old Mary Ann married colliery labourer William Mowbray at Newcastle Upon Tyne register office; they soon moved to South West England. Another daughter, Isabella, was born in 1858, and Margaret Jane died in 1860. Baby Margaret seems to have been their only child and, according to the 1881 census when they were living in Leasingthorne, she was using the Edwards surname. It is quite clear that much of south Durham knew her life story, but it is also clear that she was accepted, and even admired, by that community. 29 July 2015. Soon, Mary became pregnant by him with her thirteenth child. Meanwhile, Mary Ann had rekindled her old romance with Joseph Nattrass, who had moved nearby. Registered in England & Wales | 01676637 |. Mary (Robson) Cotton is Notable. Riley went to the village police and convinced the doctor to delay writing a death certificate until the circumstances could be investigated. After George Ward's death and the subsequent insurance payment, Britannica reports, Mary Ann Cotton became a housekeeper for widower James Robinson in 1866. Hell go like all the rest of the Cottons.. It is believed that she ki**ed three of her husbands so that she could collect their life insurance policies and may . A Mr Aspinwall was first considered but the Attorney General, Sir John Duke Coleridge, whose decision it was, chose his friend and protg Charles Russell. A 19th Century Children's Ryhme was born out of her famed crimes. Up in the air Sellin' black puddens a penny a pair. The 1911 census lists Margaret, Robinson and her three sons living in Watt Street, Dean Bank. By . According to The Northern Echo, Mary Ann soon took up with a manager of the West Auckland Brewery, a man by the name of John Quick-Manning. Margaret, her husband, and their baby daughter Clara moved to the United States in 1893, but she then returned to Durham in 1894 as a young widow. Sing, sing, what can I sing? Her brother Robert was born in 1835. She apparently complained to a parish official named Thomas Riley that her stepson, Charles Edward Cotton, was preventing her from marrying Quick Mann. What should have been a relatively quick end turned into a bungle. The life insurance policies were clearly a motive. IMPORTANT PRIVACY NOTICE & DISCLAIMER: YOU HAVE A RESPONSIBILITY TO USE CAUTION WHEN DISTRIBUTING PRIVATE INFORMATION. According to some sources, she left home at age 16 to work as a nurse but returned three years later and became a dressmaker. Daily Mirror. Of Mary Ann's 13 children, only two survived her: Margaret Edith (18731954) and her son George from her marriage to James Robinson. He went to the police, who arrested Mary Ann and ordered the exhumation of Charles' body. Margaret died at her home - 66, Church Lane, Ferryhill and left an Estate valued at 740, divided between her daughter CLARA and only surviving son - ROBINSON KELL. She persuaded him to move his family closer, and in December 1871, Cotton died of gastric fever. Mary Ann Cotton was charged with the murder of Charles Edward Cotton, and as she awaited trial in Durham Prison, she gave birth to her 13th and last child, Margaret Edith Quick-Manning Cotton, in January 1873. James Robinson was a shipwright at Pallion, Sunderland, whose wife, Hannah, had recently died. Mary Ann Cotton, also known as the Dark Angel, was a Victorian monster who murdered up to 21 people. The defence at Mary Ann's trial claimed that Charles died from inhaling arsenic used as a dye in the green wallpaper of the Cotton home. The defense in the case was handled by Mr. Thomas Campbell . After it became clear that young Charles Cotton had died of arsenic poisoning, authorities gave permission for the exhumation of three more of Mary Ann Cotton's alleged victims, the RadioTimes reports. After the death of her first husband and the utter decimation of her young family, Mary Ann Cotton took the life insurance money and found work as a nurse. By the time Nattrass was dead, Mary Ann had poisoned Robert, her infant son with Cotton, and Frederick Jr., her stepson. Cotton had rather more luck at work, where she came across a patient named George Ward. The Raveness, an English performance poet from Warwickshire, composed a spoken word piece entitled "Of Rope and Arsenic" about Cotton and featured the nursery rhyme on her album. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. However, the judge allowed the prosecutor to use evidence from the deaths of Nattrass and two of the Cotton children and ultimately, the overwhelming evidence sealed Mary Anns fate. One of her patients at the infirmary was an engineer, George Ward. She sent her surviving child, Isabella, to live with her mother. If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA. Mary Ann found employment as a nurse, and it was here that she met her next husband, George Ward. George Robinson was the other. Soon after, Mary Ann learnt that her former lover, Joseph Nattrass, was living 48 kilometres (30mi) away in the County Durham village of West Auckland, and was no longer married. Robinson married Mary Ann at St Michael's, Bishopwearmouth on 11 August 1867. She enjoyed crafting, hosting ceramics classes for many years, creating scrapbooks of family memories, and making special cards for every occasion. Despite all the deaths, there was still no evidence against Mary Ann, and she was completely free from suspicion. Many seem to act out their crimes in stealthier ways, often using poison and frequently for attention, sympathy, financial security, or some combination of the above. Things seemed to grow worse for the family after Mowbray took out life insurance policies on himself and their three remaining children. Mary Ann was destitute and barely surviving on the streets, but she was bailed out by her friend, Margaret, who introduced the black widow to her brother, Frederick Cotton. Mary Ann received the insurance money, and she then left her daughter in the care of her mother. Mary Ann Cotton was hanged at Durham County Gaol on 24 March 1873 by William Calcraft. However, in April 1867 the girl and two of Robinsons children died. Plus, it really was everywhere, from the green dye in clothes, to wallpaper, to rat poison. Their first child Margaret Isabella (Mary Isabella on her baptismal record) was born that November, but she became ill and died in February 1868. The executioner reportedly had to push down on her shoulders to speed up the process, which took three minutes to finally kill her. Last week, we covered the life and crimes of Mary Ann Cotton, also known as the West Auckland Poisoner. The couple would go on to have at least eight children, though, by the time they had settled into a home in Hendon, England, in 1856, some had already died of what was termed "gastric fever." She was only ever convicted for the murder of one, though it led to her execution by hanging in 1873. The jury retired for 90 minutes before finding Mary Ann guilty. Mary Ann Robson Cotton, was a serial killer convicted of murdering her mother, 11 of her 13 children, her stepson and 3 of her 4 husbands by arsenic poisoning. According to PBS, there's even been a modern two-part television drama, Dark Angel, which premiered on PBS' Masterpiece Theater in 2017. Please report any comments that break our rules. However, the levels of arsenic discovered in Charles' remains were too high to pin it on the wallpaper. IN October 1894, Margaret, by now a 21-year-old widow, sailed from Boston, Massachusetts, on RMS Cephalonia, with her two toddlers, Clara and William, back to Liverpool. The last straw was when he found she had been forcing his children to pawn household valuables for her. Born into a mining family in 1832, Mary Ann grew up in a time when life moved quickly and death was all around. In late 1890, 17-year-old Margaret married Joseph Fletcher, a south Durham miner, and in 1892, they had a daughter, Clara, who was born at Windlestone. In Low Moorsley, Tyne & Wear. Mary Ann and her daughter with Mowbray then went to live at the Robinson home. Margaret was born in Durham Gaol on 10 January 1873 while her mother, Mary Ann Cotton, was awaiting trial for the murder (by arsenic) of Charles Edward Cotton. Connolly, Martin. Margaret died from a mysterious stomach problem which allowed Mary Ann to dig her claws into the Cotton family. Rather quickly, she sent the daughter to live with her own mother, Margaret, and set out on her own once again. A Gannett Company. By May 1872, Mary Ann Cotton had moved to West Auckland with her last remaining child, stepson Charles Cotton. Riley, who also served as West Auckland's assistant coroner, said she needed to accompany him. Soon enough, Margaret died of a mysterious gastrointestinal ailment, allowing Mary Ann to get closer to Frederick. This left their widowed mother in a difficult situation. Despite her sole conviction for murder, she is believed to have been a serial killer who killed many others including 11 of her 13 children and three of her four husbands for their insurance policies. She supposedly did it using arsenic, a terrible poison that causes intense gastric pain and results in a rapid decline of health. The Times correspondent reported on 20 March: "After conviction the wretched woman exhibited strong emotion but this 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." 2008 - 2022 INTERESTING.COM, INC. He hired Mary Ann as a housekeeper in November 1866. Soon enough, he and two of the children also died of "gastric fever." The lives of William and of their children were insured by the British and Prudential Insurance office and Mary Ann collected a payout of 35 on William's death (equivalent to 3,560 in 2021, about half a year's wages for a manual labourer at the time) and 2 5s for John Robert William. Robinson married Mary Ann at St Michael's, Bishopwearmouth on 11 August 1867. Campbell Foster argued that it was possible that the chemist had mistakenly used arsenic powder instead of bismuth powder (used to treat diarrhoea), when preparing a bottle for Cotton, because he had been distracted by talking to other people. A nursery rhyme concerning Cotton was composed after her hanging on 24 March 1873. I must tell you: you are the cause of all my trouble." Comments have been closed on this article. Perhaps that's why Ward fell sick again not too long after the wedding and before they could conceive a child together. Then her friend Margaret Cotton introduced her to her brother, Frederick, a pitman and recent widower living in Walbottle, Northumberland, who had lost two of his four children. The only birth recorded was that of their daughter Margaret Jane, born at St Germans in 1856. [1] Baptised at St Mary's, West Rainton on 11 November 1832. Her mother, Margaret, died after Cotton visited the woman in March 1867. Though he appears to have worked as a skilled laborer who opened new mining shafts, the Robsons were working class. When Mary Ann christened the baby with its distinctive surname, it identified the father. At the age of 16, she moved out to become a nurse at Edward Potter's home in the nearby village of South Hetton. Mary Ann claimed to have used arrowroot to relieve his illness and said Riley had made accusations against her because she had rejected his advances. That description fits Mary Ann Cotton very well indeed. contact IPSO here, 2001-2023. There, she discovered that no money would be paid out until a death certificate was issued. The attending doctor later gave evidence that Ward had been very ill, yet he had been surprised that his death was so sudden. William and John went off to fight. Soon after, Mary Ann learnt that her former lover, Joseph Nattrass, was living in the nearby village of West Auckland, and no longer married. [9], Mary Ann Cotton, she's dead and she's rotten However, she stayed in Durham and lived in a place called Seaham Harbour. Cotton's undoing came after she tried to have the son of her deceased husband sent to a workhouse. The doctor testified that there was no other powder on the same shelf in the chemist's shop as the arsenic, only liquid; the chemist himself claimed that there were other powders. On March 24, 1873, Mary Ann was hanged in a bungled execution. An examination ultimately revealed the presence of arsenic in his stomach. For many people in Victorian Britain, being born into a working-class family meant that one's life was often touched by tragedy. Her mother, Margaret, died after Cotton visited the woman in March 1867. An examination of the body revealed arsenic in his stomach, and further exhumations on the bodies of two other Cotton children and Nattrass found traces of the poison. Mary Ann Cotton's trial, for allegedly murdering her stepson Charles, was delayed for several months so that she could give birth. As Mary Ann Cotton, Dark Angelreported, Mary Ann blamed lax pharmacists for her young stepson's death. Russell's appointment over Aspinwall led to a question in the House of Commons. Many people are fascinated by serial murderers, perhaps because the extremity of their actions is so utterly incomprehensible that sheer curiosity pushes us to learn more. Mary Anns last remaining daughter, Isabella, also succumbed to gastric fever and Mary Ann received 5 10s 6d in insurance money. Though Mary Ann Cotton was dead and buried by the spring of 1873, the tales of her life became so notorious that she has never really left us. He was also a widower who had lost two of his four children and lived in Northumberland. Her father died eight years later in a mining accident. After the death of Mowbray, Mary Ann moved once again. Login to find your connection. All three children were buried in the last two weeks of April 1867. That is until she grew overconfident and made a remarkable blunder. Whether or not he suspected his wife of something worse than fraud isn't clear, but we do know that Robinson refused, saving their lives. In 1869, Robinson discovered that she was stealing from him and reportedly kicked her out. Perhaps Robinson didnt link Mary Ann with the numerous deaths in the family, but he certainly became suspicious when she became overly insistent that he insure his life. There are further versions, slightly more crude, still passed on in school playgrounds in the region, such as: She lies in her coffin with her finger up her bottom. With this baby still in nappies, Joseph disappeared. When Mary Ann was eight, her parents moved the family to the County Durham village of Murton. Editors' Code of Practice. John joined the Green Howards, rose to be a lance corporal, and was killed, on June 11, 1917, at the Battle of Messines, near Ypres. Gastric fever also claimed Williams life in 1864 and the lives of two other children soon afterward. He continued to suffer ill health; he died in October 1866 after a long illness characterised by paralysis and intestinal problems. Once again, she profited from the insurance policy, but her spree was about to come to an end. He died in 1872 from gastric fever soon after amending his will in Mary Anns favor. Mary Ann Cotton Shes dead and forgotten, She lies in a grave with her bones all-rotten; Sing, sing, oh, what can we sing, Mary Ann Cotton is tied up with string. The inquiry into Charles Cotton's death showed that Mary Ann's weapon of choice was arsenic. The census records, birth, death and marriage records also show no trace of him. Although his doctor acknowledged Wards poor health, he was surprised that the man died so suddenly. Robinson, meanwhile, had become suspicious of his wife's insistence that he insure his life; he discovered that she had run up debts of 60 behind his back and had stolen more than 50 that she was supposed to have put in the bank. [citation needed] The jury retired for 90 minutes before returning a guilty verdict. After her sentencing, Mary Ann Cotton attempted to save herself through various means, from hoping for a pardon to appear to arguing that everyone else in her life had failed her. Newsquest Media Group Ltd, Loudwater Mill, Station Road, High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Mary Ann would go on to kill many of her own children, her husbands, lovers and other family. The couple was married in September 1870, but since Mary Ann had not divorced Robinson, it was a bigamous marriage. However, it was accepted, and Russell conducted the prosecution. Soon she became pregnant by him with her twelfth child. The defence in the case was handled by Thomas Campbell Foster, who argued during the trial that Charles had died from inhaling arsenic used as a dye in the green wallpaper of the Cotton home. The body of the stepson was examined and found to contain arsenic. There is some speculation that she may have been pregnant before their marriage and that is why it was held at the registry office. Mary Ann's daughter Isabella, from the marriage to William Mowbray, was brought back to the Robinson household and soon developed bad stomach pains and died; so did another two of Robinson's children. Death surrounded her from an early age. As History Collection reports, his wife was paid via yet another life insurance policy and was left with two stepsons. He died of an intestinal disorder in January 1865. That is not to say she was entirely innocent, although it does seem very unlikely that she murdered her own mother, who died of hepatitis. A Mr. Aspinwall was supposed to get the job, but the Attorney General, Sir John Duke Coleridge, chose his friend and protg Charles Russell. William joined the Durham Light Infantry and ended up in the London Rifles. As one witness quoted in Mary Ann Cotton put it, Nattrass "died in a fit" and was "in great agony." During the Victorian era, arsenic was seemingly everywhere, to the point where it became the murderer's poison du jour. Perhaps this is what caused the young family, in May 1893, to sail from Liverpool on RMS Umbria to New York for a new life. Cotton's trial began on 5 March 1873. Mary Ann Cotton's now-inevitable trial was delayed, as it soon became clear to officials that she was pregnant. People just can't seem to tear themselves away from the bloody drama of a serial killer, no matter how much many of us try to pretend otherwise. Mary Cotton was born in North England during the Victorian Period. Richard Quick Mann was a custom and excise man specialising in breweries and has been found in the records and this may be the real name of Mary Ann Cotton's lover. Robinson, meanwhile, had become suspicious of his wife's insistence that he insure his life; he discovered that she had run up debts of 60 behind his back and had stolen more than 50 that she had been expected to bank. Depiction of Mary Ann Cotton. Cotton and Mary Ann were bigamously married on 17 September 1870 at St Andrew's, Newcastle-Upon-Tyne and their son Robert was born early in 1871. She named her Margaret Edith Quick-Manning Cotton, partially to target her latest lover as the father of the child. Lest you think that works about Cotton fizzled out after the 19th century, look to the myriad of true crime books and drama that still focus on her. After moving frequently, the family settled in Hendon, Durham county, in about 1856. The so-called fever mimicked the symptoms of arsenic poisoning, a fact which would later prove interesting to investigators. But in late March 1870 Margaret died from an undetermined stomach ailment, leaving Mary Ann to console the grieving Frederick Sr. Then came the First World War. One month later, when James' baby died of gastric fever, he turned to his housekeeper for comfort and she became pregnant. Mary Ann Cotton was born in a small village in North England on 31st October 1832, to a miner father who died while Mary was just 8. She did not die on the gallows from breaking of her neck but died by strangulation because the rope was set too short, possibly deliberately. Soon her twelfth pregnancy was underway. Lying in bed with her eyes wide open. Ward continued to suffer ill health and died on 20 October 1866 after a long illness characterised by paralysis and intestinal problems. The Cotton case would be the first of several famous poisoning cases he would be involved in during his career, including those of Adelaide Bartlett and Florence Maybrick. Just one grandparent can lead you to many Riley countered that the boy was a "little healthy fellow," but Charles died on July 12, 1872. In August, Mary Ann married Robinson, and the couple had two children, though only one survived. As Discover Magazine reports, the great majority of female serial killer appear to murder for money. BLOOMINGTON Kimberly Ann (Cotton) Smith, 65, of Bloomington went to her heavenly home at 2:53 p.m., on Thursday, January 5, 2023 surrounded by her family. She was charged with his murder, although the trial was delayed until after the delivery in Durham Gaol on 7 January 1873 of her thirteenth and final child, whom she named Margaret Edith Quick-Manning Cotton. By now, she had become pregnant with a child by an excise officer named Richard Quick Mann. There appears to be no trace of John Quick-Manning in the records of The West Auckland Brewery or The National Archives at Kew. The insurance policy Mary Ann had taken out on Charles' life still awaited collection. Newspaper report of Cottons arrest. Both of Mary Ann Cottons grandsons have their names engraved on Ferryhill War Memorial. Memories is aware that there are quite a lot of direct descendants of Mary Ann Cotton living in our area, and weve been asked to let their sleeping dogs lie. As per History Collection, her younger sister Margaret died in 1834, when Cotton would have been only 8 years old. She lies in her bed, With her eyes wide open Sing, sing, oh, what can I sing, Mary Ann Cotton is tied up with string Where, where? Although her father fell down a THE baby was the daughter born to Mary Ann Cotton, of West Auckland, in Durham jail on January 7, 1873. She was regarded as Britain's Greatest Female Mass Murderer. Where, where? One could simply walk down to the corner shop and buy enough arsenic to kill a man a few times over. After her marriage to Robinson crumbled, Cotton was introduced to Frederick Cotton by his sister, Margaret. After Frederick's death, Nattrass soon became Mary Anns lodger. Mary Ann Cotton, ne Mary Ann Robson, also known as Mary Ann Mowbray, Mary Ann Ward, and Mary Ann Robinson, (born October 31?, 1832, Low Moorsley, Durham county, Englanddied March 24, 1873, Durham county), British nurse and housekeeper who was believed to be Britain's most prolific female serial killer. William became a foreman at South Hetton Colliery and then a fireman aboard a steam vessel. In 1852, at the age of 20, Mary Ann married colliery labourer William Mowbray in Newcastle Upon Tyne register office; they soon moved to Plymouth, Devon. Mary Ann's first visit after Charles' death was not to the doctor but the insurance office. It went like this: Mary Ann Cotton, she's dead and she's rotten. An English woman convicted of murdering her children. It went like this: Mary Ann Cotton, she's dead and she's rotten. This site is part of Newsquest's audited local newspaper network. She officially died of hepatitis, though she died just over a week after her daughter came to tend to her. Her father Michael, a miner, was ardently religious and a fierce disciplinarian. The following year Mary Ann went to visit her ailing mother, who died about a week after her return. The second, which took place in February 1873, was to center on the deaths of Nattrass, along with those of Robert and Frederick. He decided to throw her out of their home and retained custody of their surviving child, George. Soon after she entered the home, Robinson's infant son died of yes, you guessed it "gastric fever.". When she was eight, her parents moved the family to the County Durham village of Murton, where she went to a new school and found it difficult to make friends. Mary Ann Cotton, tied up with string. By the end of the following year Cotton and two more children had died; again Mary Ann reportedly received an insurance payout. Mary Ann Cotton (ne Robson; 31 October 1832 24 March 1873) was an English convicted murderer who was executed for poisoning her stepson. He threw her out, retaining custody of their son George. Mary Ann Cotton was an English serial killer convicted of poisoning her stepson Charles Edward Cotton in 1872. It was performed by a notoriously clumsy hangman, and the trap door was not positioned high enough to break her neck, forcing the executioner to press down on her shoulders. In March 1870, Margaret died from a mysterious stomach problem which allowed Mary Ann to dig her claws into the Cotton family. If you are dissatisfied with the response provided you can They married at St Peter's Church, Monkwearmouth, on 28 August 1865. Stuff You Missed in History Class (Podcast). She soon leftor was thrown outand was for a time homeless. Later in 1901, Margaret married Robinson Kell, a miner at the Dean and Chapter Colliery in Ferryhill, and had his son. I could be remembering it wrong, though. She is believed to have murdered up to 21 people in total. There, she discovered that no money would be paid out until a death certificate was issued. The sheer number of children who met their deaths after coming into contact with the murderess exceeded even the juvenile mortality rate of a dangerous time before pediatricians and obstetricians were available to most people in Britain. At 16, Mary Ann left home to become a nurse at the nearby village of South Hetton, in the home of Edward Potter, a manager at Murton colliery. Up in the air. Though she's been gone for nearly a century and a half, Cotton remains one of the most shocking female killers in modern history. She was entertained by many sporting events, polka music hours and cooking . At the time of her trial, there were reports of four or five of their children dying young while they were living away from County Durham. It may well be that the name of the excise man was in fact Richard Quick Mann. , got your result about mary ann cotton family tree please comment if we missed anything here, please let us know. But faced with abject poverty and an ailing husband, we see how ruthlessly determined . [7] The drama was inspired by the book Mary Ann Cotton: Britain's First Female Serial Killer by David Wilson, a criminologist. For weeks they have been Her death was registered by her son ROBINSON the day after she died. Baby Margaret spent some time with her biological mother in the jail cell, before she was eventually given to her adoptive parents, William and Sarah Edwards, aged about 10 weeks old. William and Mary Ann moved back to North East England, where William worked as a fireman aboard a steam vessel sailing out of Sunderland, then as a colliery foreman. After she was finally apprehended in 1872, some estimated that she may have killed as many as 21 people, according to Britannica. As with all nursery rhymes passed on primarily by word of mouth, there are variations. The Times correspondent reported on 20 March: "After conviction the wretched woman exhibited strong emotion but this 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." Though Britain passed the Arsenic Act of 1851 in an attempt to control the distribution of this deadly substance, it's clear that it wasn't all that difficult for Cotton to keep acquiring arsenic in her drive to kill the people around her. Someone had either inadvertently or, as some suspect, intentionally miscalculated the drop needed to break her neck and bring death instantaneously. It is said that she and William Mowbray had 4 children before returning to Murton. Though many of the people around her hadn't caught on to Mary Ann Cotton's murderous ways by the time her second husband had died, it's now rather obvious to people who have her whole story that she was using arsenic. Isabella lasted a few weeks until she died of "gastric fever," and she was soon followed by two more of Robinson's children, who succumbed to "continued fever" and yet another case of "gastric fever," according to death records. She sent her remaining child, Isabella, to live with her mother. That man was recorded as "John Quick-Manning," though it's possible that he gave Mary Ann a partially false name. Once again, Mary Ann collected insurance money from her husband's death. Then Nattrass became ill with gastric fever and died just after revising his will in Mary Ann's favour. One of her youngest relatives who lives today in London is Carla. It is important that we continue to promote these adverts as our local businesses need as much support as possible during these challenging times. According to the Journal of Social History, working class mothers were especially likely to see their own children sicken and die, even if they weren't intentionally causing the illnesses. "Mary Ann Cotton, a widow, is in custody at West Auckland, charged with having poisoned her stepson, aged eight years. Instead, Cotton dropped only two feet and proceeded to choke, still alive. Riley went to the village police and convinced the doctor to delay writing a death certificate until the circumstances could be investigated. As Nattrass had very few possessions, she was once again in financial difficulty. She asked Riley if he could commit Cotton to a workhouse and when that suggestion was rebuffed, she said this to Riley: I wont be troubled long. Cotton died in December of that year, from "gastric fever." Then Nattrass became ill with gastric fever, and died just after revising his will in Mary Anns favour. Missedinhistory.com. Yet, she wasn't alone. That year both Cottons sister and his youngest child died. Mary is 25 degrees from Margaret Atwood, 28 degrees from Jim Carrey, 27 degrees from Elsie Knott, 26 degrees from Gordon Lightfoot, 30 degrees from Alton Parker, 27 degrees from Beatrice Tillman, 25 degrees from Jenny Trout, 27 degrees from Justin Trudeau, 28 degrees from Edwin Boyd, 24 degrees from Barbara Hanley, 33 degrees from Fanny Rosenfeld and 27 degrees from Cathryn Hondros on our single family tree. mary ann cotton surviving descendants mary ann cotton surviving descendants. Insurance had been effected on his life and those of his sons. A month later, when James' baby John died of gastric fever, he turned to his housekeeper for comfort and she became pregnant. Her family describe her as being immensely private, intelligent, warm and kind-hearted, and a devoted wife, mother and grandmother. Margaret was born in 1873. A mortar shell exploded over his head and no trace was ever found of his body. She died at age 54 in the spring of 1867, nine days after Mary Ann's arrival. Those ads you do see are predominantly from local businesses promoting local services. She was hanged at Durham Gaol. She was believed to have murdered up to 21 people, mainly by arsenic poisoning. The last straw was when he found she had been forcing his children to pawn household valuables for her. "Black puddens" refers to black pudding, a type of sausage made with pig's blood. Explore genealogy for Mary (Cotton) Marshall born 1553 Abbotts Ann, Andover, Hampshire, England died 1625 London, England including ancestors + descendants + 1 photos + 2 genealogist comments + more in the free family tree community. Although her mother began to recover, she also began to complain of stomach pains. She told Riley that the boy was sickly and added: "I wont be troubled long. Selling black puddings, a penny a pair. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. By the middle of the nineteenth century, there was almost an epidemic of poisoning so who knows how many murders were committed. Mary Ann, pregnant again, was arrested and charged with Charles Cotton's death. Nattrass soon followed, though not before he put Mary Ann down as a beneficiary in his will. Where, where? Sing, sing, oh, what can I sing, Mary Ann Cotton is tied up with string. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. The doctor who attended Charles had kept samples, and they tested positive for arsenic. The trap door wasnt placed high enough to break her neck. She probably would have got away with it for longer had she not been so keen to murder Charles Edward or at least not been so open about her desire to see him die. However, he died the following year, and Mary Ann reportedly collected money from another insurance policy. A court-appointed lawyer put forth the idea that Charles had ingested arsenic through wallpaper, says the RadioTimes. The ships manifest shows they were bound for Pennsylvania a coalmining area where Joseph presumably planned to find work. In 1871, the new fivesome moved to West Auckland: Mary Ann, Frederick Cotton, his sons Frederick Junior and Charles Edward, and the new baby, Robert Robson. This 19th century English woman is one of the earliest confirmed female serial killers in recorded memory. The series also featured Alun Armstrong, Jonas Armstrong and Emma Fielding. Geni requires JavaScript! Mary Ann Cotton, she's tied up with string. The census records, birth, death and marriage records also show no trace of him. Cause of death: Hanging, Capital punishment - Mar 24 1873 - Durham, England, Oct 31 1832 - Low Moorsley (now part of Houghton-le-Spring in the City of Sunderland), Michael Robson, Margaret Robson (born Londsale), abella Mowbray, Mary Jane Mowbray, John Robert Mowbray, Margaret Isabella Robinson, George Robinson, Robert Robson Cotton, Mary Jane Mowbray, Circa 1832 - Low Moorsley, Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom, Mar 24 1873 - Durham Gaol, Durham, County Durham, England, United Kingdom, Frederick Cotton, Charles E Cotton, Robert Cotton, Low Moorsley, Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom, Deptford, County Durham, England, United Kingdom, Durham Gaol, Durham, County Durham, England, United Kingdom, Durham Gaol, Durham, Durham Unitary Authority, County Durham, England, United Kingdom, Margaret Edith Quick-Manning Fletcher Kell, Birth of Margaret Edith Quick-Manning Fletcher Kell, Durham, Durham Unitary Authority, County Durham , England.

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