who was belle gunness first documented victim

But in reality, she was a serial killer who murdered at least 14 people. Before long, news of the gruesome discovery spread throughout the nation. Belle Gunness was born Brynild Paulsdatter Strseth on November 11, 1859 near Selbu, Norway. It was claimed that her head was decapitated and her home set on fire. When he was just 18, Robinson went on a violent killing spree, during which he killed three young women and seriously injured two. Wikimedia CommonsBelle Gunness with her children: Lucy Sorenson, Myrtle Sorenson, and Philip Gunness. In the end, she was awarded $8,500 (about $240,000 today), with which she bought a farm on the outskirts of La Porte, Indiana. But she never showed up; instead, she cut across open fields and disappeared into the woods. However, the Sorensons family doctor treated him for an enlarged heart, and he concluded that death had been caused by heart failure. In the early 20th century, Belle Gunness killed scores of men for their money. Belle Gunness, born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth (November 11, 1859[3] possibly April 28, 1908), nicknamed Hell's Belle,[1] was a Norwegian-American serial killer who was active in Illinois and Indiana between 1884 and 1908. Either way, the twice-widowed Gunness began posting personal ads in Norwegian-language newspapers to find a new companion. Some of these were most undoubtedly additional victims, though they were never proven. "[12], Ray Lamphere was Gunness' hired hand and on-and-off lover. Only one person seemed to be catching on to Gunness habits: her foster daughter Jennie Olsen. After travelling to La Porte, Gurholt wrote his family, saying that he liked the farm, was in good health, and requesting that they send him seed potatoes. Not long afterward, their home and the store mysteriously burned down. The idea that the decapitated body belonged to Gunness was called into question, and a farmhand/accomplice claimed that the alleged murderer had taken the money she'd fleeced from her victims and vanished. Feeling terrified and uncomfortable, Anderson believed that Gunness intended to murder him. Eerily, in 1931, a woman named Esther Carlson was arrested in Los Angeles for poisoning a Norwegian-American man and attempting to steal his money. The woman in the fire was approximately 5 3 tall and weighed about 125 pounds, significantly smaller than Belle Gunness. Belle had lured this woman from Chicago on the pretense of hiring her as a housekeeper only days before she decided to make her permanent escape from La Porte. But the men who came to her farm would not have a life to enjoy for very long. Standing six feet tall (183cm) and weighing over 200 pounds (91kg), she was a physically strong woman. Soon enough, the shop burned down, and the couple collected a nice insurance payment. In 1884 Belle Gunness married Mads Albert Sorenson. Who Was Belle Gunness? Soon after, Sorenson died of heart failure on the one day his two life insurance policies overlapped. The daughter of a stonemason, Gunness immigrated to the United States in 1881 in search of wealth. In the pantheon of serial killers, Belle Gunness stands alone. Belle also began posting notices in lovelorn columns to entice wealthy men to her farm, after which they were never seen again. Before long, Gunness and Helgelien began exchanging romantic letters. 4/28/1908 49 Fire set that kills children and where Belle's body was "supposedly" found headless. In fact, the farmhand did. Then, learn about Leonarda Cianciulli, the serial killer who turned her victims into soap and teacakes. He died there of tuberculosis on December 30, 1909. A few weeks later, a reverend came forward with Lampheres confession before he died. He had romantic feelings for Gunness and resented all the men that showed up at her property. Come prepared to stay forever.. But, for one reason or another, Gunness decided to emigrate from Selbu to Chicago in 1881. Belle Gunness, also known as Brynhild Paulsdatter Strset, was a Norwegian-American serial killer who operated in Illinois and Indiana from 1884 until 1908. Pennsylvania's most well-known serial killer is Harvey Miguel Robinson, who is known for being one of the youngest serial killers reported in the U.S. Where did Belle Gunness meet her first husband, Max "Mads" Sorenson? Then, the farm became something of a tourist attraction, with thousands of gawkers turning up and in some cases, taking souvenirs, according to The New York Post. [9] The district coroner convened a coroner's jury, suspecting murder, but nothing came of the case. [15][16] Described as worried as to the peace of the families of the victims, Schell offered the confession to Bechly, which was later published. The couple claimed the insurance money for both. My heart beats in wild rapture for you, My Andrew, I love you. Though the coroner ruled that the kids had died of colitis, their symptoms were also consistent with poisoning. 35: Belle Gunness. [6] When Lamphere was arrested, he was wearing John Moe's overcoat and Henry Gurholt's watch.[7]. It is believed the couple produced two children whom Gunness poisoned in infancy for the insurance money. [7], John Moe of Minnesota answered Gunness's ad in 1906. No replies by letter considered unless sender is willing to follow answer with personal visit. Belle Gunness. The investigators began to sift through the debris, and a piece of bridgework was found; the dentist identified it as work done for Gunness. John H. McJunkin of Coraopolis (near Pittsburgh) left his wife in December 1906 after corresponding with a La Porte woman. But once the tide turns away from Belle Sorensen of Gunness. . Investigators search for more bodies on Belle Gunnesss farm after the initial discoveries in 1908. [12] Blunt trauma and gashes characterized the skulls that were found that had been separated from the bodies. Belle did indeed become wealthy, but not because she earned the money honestly. Where was Belle Gunness born? Gunness deflected. Who wrote Hunting Humans: The Rise of Modern Multiple Murder. The night he visited Belle's farm was the last he would have. Reading Gunness' plodding letters to Andrew, it is plain that "soaring" and "rapture" were not her style. Within a week, he had disappeared. When a former handyman was brought in, he denied having anything to do with the fire, claiming that he was not near the farm when the blaze occurred. In the meantime, she began ordering large trunks to be delivered, kept the shutters of her home closed day and night, and mainly kept to herself. In the belief that the headless corpse was, in fact, Belle Gunness, the remains were buried next to Belles first husband, Mads Sorenson, at Forest Home Cemetery in Forest Park, Illinois. Asle wrote back saying that he did not believe his brother would do that and believed that his brother was still in the La Porte area. [7], Her criminal activities came to light in April 1908, when the Gunness farmhouse in La Porte, Indiana burned to Some documented serial killers from history, we know very little about. Lamphere was later linked to the fire at Gunness farm. Female Indiana serial killer, the 'comely' Belle Gunness, loved her suitors to death. A series of suspicious fires and deaths (mostly resulting in insurance awards) followed. Of the remains found at the murder site, the bodies of Belles three children and several of her suitors were identified. [12] Lucas Reilly, quoting The Chicago Inter Ocean in Mental Floss, noted that, The bones had been crushed on the ends, as though they had been struck with hammers after they were dismembered [and that] Quicklime had been scattered over the faces and stuffed in the ears. He was found guilty of arson, but cleared of murder. Lamphere also cleared up the mysterious question of the headless female corpse found in the smoking ruins of Gunness home. As she was preparing to move from Chicago to LaPorte, she became re-acquainted with a recent widower named Peter Gunness, also from Norway. Peters infant daughter from a previous relationship died. Reporters described her home as a horror farm and a death garden. Curious onlookers flocked to La Porte, as it became a local and national attraction, to the point that vendors reportedly sold ice cream, popcorn, cake, and something called Gunness Stew to visitors. Helgelien became even more convinced of foul play when he went out to the ruins of Belles home and watched as the men digging for her head turned up eight mens watches, assorted bones, and human teeth instead. Answer: Selbu, Norway Belle was born on November 22, 1859. [30] It was published in the UK with the title Triflers need not apply [31]. We will be all alone with each other. The powerful 48-year-old woman would then carry the body to the basement, where she most often dissected it, bundled the remains, and then buried them in the hog pen. After the fire, her victims were unearthed from their shallow graves around the farm. socioeconomic status. Belle Gunness with her children: Lucy Sorenson, Myrtle Sorenson, and Philip Gunness. Edward Bechly, a journalist, was given a secret assignment to acquire access to a confession and publish it, thus bringing a second, inconsistent Lamphere account to light. Over 40 victims had been found, including lovers, her husbands, and even her own children. [12], Immediate inspection of the site revealed that there were dozens of such "slumped depressions" in the Gunness yard, and further digging and investigation at the site yielded multiple burlap sacks containing "torsos and hands, arms hacked from the shoulders down, masses of human bone wrapped in loose flesh that dripped like jelly", from trash-covered depressions that proved to be graves. Her parents had eight children; she was the youngest. [9] The couple owned a candy store which later burned to the ground. . According to The New York Post, eight months after their marriage, Peter was dead. Gunness wrote back, telling Asle Helgelien that his brother was not at her farm and probably went to Norway to visit relatives. Belle Gunness was born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth in the small fishing village of Selbu in Norway on November 11 1859. Billed as "based on a true story," Tom Logan is directing the film, which stars Traci Lords cast as the murderous Belle Gunness. Even DNA tests that were done decades later from envelopes that Gunness licked were unable to definitively answer if she had died in the fire. Benjamin Carling of Chicago, Illinois, was last seen by his wife in 1907 after telling her that he was going to La Porte to secure an investment with a wealthy widow. What followed were a series of insurance frauds and crimes, escalating in size and danger. But she also became somewhat of a legend, shrouded in mystery, revenge and money. Gunness married her first husband shortly after moving to America, but he died under suspicious circumstances, leaving behind a sizable life insurance policy. She was a giant of a woman, with a bloodthirst so strong it led her to kill upwards of 25 people. Gunness dried her tears and collected her husbands life insurance policy. All of them told of lonesome brothers, uncles, and cousins answering Belles matrimonial ads and traveling hopefully to La Porte with their life savings stuffed in their pockets. She changed her name to Belle Petersen and moved in with her sister Nellie and her husband, who had immigrated a few years before Belle did. 4) What were the first documented crimes connected to Belle Gunness? A few days after Helgelien arrived, he and Gunness appeared at the Savings Bank in La Porte and deposited the check. On May 22, 1908, Ray Lamphere was tried for murder and arson. She is responsible for so many deaths that detectives have ceased counting the number of bodies discovered on her premises. Helgelien, like other victims before him, decided to take a chance on love. She was nicknamed "Hell's Belle" after it was discovered that she was a prolific serial killer. Belle Gunness: How Many Victims Did The Serial Killer Actually Have. Her adopted daughter Jennie's body would also be found on Belle's property. We strive for accuracy and fairness.If you see something that doesn't look right,.css-47aoac{-webkit-text-decoration:underline;text-decoration:underline;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#A00000;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;}.css-47aoac:hover{color:#595959;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;}contact us! He told the Sheriff that Gunness had ordered him to bring loads of dirt by wheelbarrow to a large area surrounded by a high wire fence where the hogs were fed. Ray Lamphere, Gunness's hired hand, was arrested for murder and arson on May 22, 1908. But, for Helgeliens brother, Asle, the matter was far from over. Norwegian born Belle Gunness immigrated to the U.S. in 1881. Adopted daughter Jennie Olsen. She was the only child to have survived to live with Belle. Strangely, tragedy seemed to return to Belle Gunness doorstep yet again. T.J. Tiefland of Minneapolis is alleged to have come to see Gunness in 1907. An older sister, likely named Nellie, emigrated to the United States in the early 1880s. They collected on life insurance policies for both children. She may have killed both of her husbands and all of her children (on different occasions), but she is known to have killed . He had brought more than $1,000 with him to pay off her mortgage, or so he told neighbors, to whom Gunness introduced him as her cousin. In June 1908, his widow was able to identify his remains from La Portes Paupers cemetery by the contour of his skull and three missing teeth. The local dentist then stepped in, stating that he could make an identification if any dental work could be found. The number murdered was estimated to be as many as 40. Belle Gunness, born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth (November 11, 1859 [3] - possibly April 28, 1908), nicknamed Hell's Belle, [1] was a Norwegian-American serial killer who was active in Illinois and Indiana between 1884 and 1908. She wanted something more and soon began to look for new suitors by inserting the following advertisement in the lovelorn column of newspapers in large midwestern cities: Personal Comely widow who owns a large farm in one of the finest districts in La Porte County, Indiana, desires to make the acquaintance of a gentleman equally well provided, with view of joining fortunes. April 29, 2008 / 8:03 AM / AP. However, there was a rather glaring problem with their conclusion: the body of the adult was headless not something that generally happens in a fire. Think how we will enjoy each others company. . Gunness had insured both of the children and collected a large insurance check after each death. In 1877, Gunness attended a country dance while pregnant. One man, George Anderson, managed to escape with his life when he realized Gunness had murder on her mind. Her birth name was Brynhild Paulsdatter Storset. General Information Sex Female Race White Number of victims 16 further plus 12 possible equals 28 The family of one of Belle's victims gave Nawrocki and his team an envelope sent from the LaPorte . Without saying goodbye, he fled the house and ran away, getting on the first train headed to Missouri. He then sent two of his deputies to dig into the debris digging for the corpses missing head and sent two others to arrest Lamphere. Three were identified as her foster children. He had with him $1,000 from an insurance company and had borrowed money from several investors. At the time, forensics was in its infancy, and the bodies had been so mutilated that there was little hope of identifying them. Her foster mother initially claimed that shed been sent to school in California. Simmons is a forensic anthropologist who investigated the Belle Gunness case. In the smoldering ruins workmen discovered four skeletons. Henry Gurholdt of Scandinavia, Wisconsin, had gone to wed her a year earlier, taking $1,500. The low end is 11, to account for her first two husbands, their children, and the children found dead on the family farm. They then found the small bodies of two unidentified children. By the time her crimes were discovered at her burnt-out pig farm in 1908, her tally of victims had risen to at least 12, and possibly as high as 40. With so much going well for the Sorenson family, Mads even convinced Belle to foster a fifth child named Jennie Olsen. And, worse, according to Lamphere, if she was overly tired, she would chop up the remains and feed them to the hogs. Olaf Jensen, a Norwegian immigrant from Carroll. She killed seven men between the years 1989-1990 on Florida's highways. She wanted the ground made level, so he filled in the depressions. [citation needed] In 2008, DNA tests were performed on the headless corpse in an attempt to compare the DNA in the corpse against a sample from a letter Gunness had sent to one of her victims, but due to its age the sample was not able to be properly tested. Fellow Norwegian-Americans flocked to her property hoping for a taste of home along with a solid business opportunity. Belle Gunness BrynhildPaulsdatterStrseth, later known as Belle Gunness, was born on November 11, 1859, in Selbu, Norway and died April 28, 1908 in La Porte, Indiana. Mrs. However, a neighborhood boy said he had seen Lamphere running down the road from the Gunness house just before the structure erupted in flames. And some estimate that she may have killed as many as 40 victims. One of the bodies belonged to Andrew Hegelian. Though estimates vary widely, Belle Gunness is believed to have killed at least a dozen people (and possibly upwards of 40) between 1884 and . He confided to a neighboring farmer on one occasion: Helgelien wont bother me no more. Ray Lamphere, she said, had threatened to kill her and burn her house down, and she wanted to make out a will in case he went through with his threats. Answer: Chicago, Illinois Belle and Mads were married in 1884. My mama killed my papa, Olsen allegedly told her schoolmates. Belle Gunness left Chicago with her daughters Myrtle and Lucy, along with a foster daughter named Jennie Olsen. Once dead, she decapitated the body, tied weights to the head, and disposed of it in a swamp. Little is known about her early life. The farmhouse had belonged to Belle Gunness, at the time simply believed to be a widowed Norwegian immigrant but now infamous for being one of the most prolific female serial killers in the United States. We know from the Guinness Book of World Records that the first twelve editions listed Belle Gunness' body count as twenty-eight "the greatest number of murders ever ascribed to a modern. Prairie Ghosts In 1907, she employed a farmhand, Ray Lamphere, to help with chores. Lamphere ended up in prison because of his connection to Gunness and the fire on her farm. Between 1902 and 1908, she lured a succession of unsuspecting victims to her Indiana "murder farm." Some were hired hands. Jennie Olsen's death certificate. He raced to town to get help, but by the time it arrived, the house was already in smoking ruins. To their horror, they ended up finding Andrew Helgeliens head, hands, and feet, stuffed into an oozing gunny sack. [7], She was at least 5'7" (170 cm) and weighed around 95 - 113 kg (210 - 250 lbs) and was physically strong and masculine in appearance. How many are known? [23], Gunness has also been the subject of at least two American musical ballads. Belle Gunness may or may not be one of America's most prolific serial killers. And she was different in another way as well. The pair had four children: Caroline, Axel, Myrtle, and Lucy. Lamphere later confessed that Gunness had placed advertisements seeking male companionship, only to murder and rob the men who responded and subsequently visited her on the farm. Belle Gunness was one of the first "Black Widows" and became a prolific serial killer. At the time of her supposed death in 1908, Gunness lived on a farm in LaPorte, IN. Those that could be identified included: The unidentified bodies and unsolved mysteries that would emerge from these ruins would make headlines across the Midwest. Belle also began. Usually accompanied by a handsome man, she was unrecognizable from the rough farm woman the locals were used to seeing. She killed most of her suitors and boyfrie Alchetron Sign in Sneha Girap(Editor) She then torched the small brick farmhouse and fled. (Eerily, the symptoms of this disease were quite similar to poisoning.). Several other middle-aged men appeared and disappeared in brief visits to the Gunness farm throughout 1907. In 1906, Belle Gunness connected with her final victim. She made her home in Chicago and started working as a maid. [2] She killed most of her suitors and boyfriends, and her two daughters, Myrtle and Lucy. Just one week after the ceremony, Peters infant daughter died of uncertain causes while alone in the house with Belle. She was raised on a small farm in Innbygda, Norway, and grew up to be a physically very strong woman, standing 5 9 tall and weighing over 200 pounds. A series of suspicious fires and deaths (mostly resulting in insurance awards) followed. Gunness is a rare female serial killer-for-profit, although she seems to have had other motives as well. This photo dates to about 1904. Belle Gunness. 40. Idaho Murders: What Led Police to Bryan Kohberger, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads, Name: Belle Gunness, Birth Year: 1859, Birth date: November 22, 1859, Birth City: Selbu, Birth Country: Norway. She kept his trunk and fur overcoat. She hit him with a meat cleaver and he died. Story by Thomas Duke, 1910 . Belle had anywhere from 13 to 42 victims. This letter was later found at the Helgelien farm. Gunness and Sorenson opened a candy store, but it soon burned down. Belle with three of her children, likely Myrtle, Lucy, and Philip. She dumped the corpse into a hog-scalding vat at other times and then covered the remains with quicklime. Afterward, the locals said that Brynhilds personality drastically changed. [9] In November 1908, Lamphere was convicted of arson in connection with the fire at Gunness' house. However, The New York Post suggests that she may have killed as many as 28 people, while Mental Floss claims that she killed "at least 20." Gunness emigrated to the United States in February 1901 together with her two children, Myrtle and Lucy. Female Serial Killer Belle Gunness . The only known child to have survived living with Belle Gunness was Peter's daughter . Abraham Phillips, a railwayman of Burlington. Neighbors described the 200-pound Gunness as a rugged woman who was also incredibly strong. On the morning of April 27, 1908, the farmhand on a lonely property outside La Porte, Indiana, woke to the smell of smoke. Apparently, he had fallen victim to a sausage grinder that fell on his head from a wobbly shelf. Director Duncan Roy Writers Katie L. Fetting (screenplay) Duncan Roy (story) Stars Elizabeth Hurley Jeremy Sisto Oliver Tobias She died of tuberculosis while awaiting trial. This Norwegian-American had insured her first husband and two of her children before. 695A07, 1860-1877, s. 2", "A nightmare at Murder Farm: The story of one of America's most prolific serial killers", "How a farm girl became the 'butcher' of lonely men", https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q2MQ-QFQ8, "The Story of Belle Gunness, One of America's Most Prolific Serial Killers", "Corpses in the Pig Pen: The Tale of Indiana's Most Notorious Serial Killer", "The Belle Gunness Episode: Who was the Mistress of Murder Hill?
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