In 1899 at the Leavesden Mental Asylum in Leavesden, England 19-year-old Caroline Ansell would be staying. It's not stated why Caroline was there, but her family had a history of mental illness.
Caroline's sister (18 or 22 years old ages vary in sources) Mary Anne was engaged to a young man. Neither were wealthy and Mary Ann worked as a maid to a wealthy family on Coram St. in the Bloomsbury area of London. Because they could not afford a marriage license (7 shillings and sixpence) let alone a wedding they had to postpone it.
Mary Ann would devise devious a plan to get married. She would insure her sister's life for a premium of 3 old pence a week. She would get £22 when she dies. She was not going to wait for her sister to die either.
Mary Ann would buy phosphorous-based rat poison at a local shot near her work. She would then make a cake adding the poison into the cake. On March 9th the cake would be sent to Caroline. Caroline was happy to share with friends shared the cake with them. All of them would become sick, but Caroline was worse off than the others. She had eaten more cake than the others and had more severe symptoms.
At the time there was a typhoid outbreak among the residents of the Asylum. So it took some time for her to be able to be seen by a doctor. Even though she was immediately admitted into the infirmary it was too late for her. On March 13th she would pass away.
An autopsy would be performed and found to be phosphorous poisoning. What was left of the cake was found to have the poison. The postmark on the wrapping paper it came in came back to her sister. This may not have been the first time she had attempted to kill Caroline either. Mary Ann had previously sent tea and sugar to her sister. Both of which seemed to have something wrong with it. The tea was weirdly bitter and had to be thrown away and the sugar had a strange dampness to it.
Caroline had also previously gotten a letter she believed was from a cousin. The letter had told her that her parents were dead. Turns out that was not true as her parents were still alive. The cousin had also claimed to have not written the letter.
Mary Ann would be arrested and denied making and sending the poisoned cake. At one point she stated, “I know nothing whatever about it. I am as innocent a girl as ever was born”. It was pointed out that she was witnessed buying the same poison used in the cake. She would say that she bought and used the rat poison at her employer's home. However, her mistress Mrs. Maloney denied a vermin infestation and that she never asked her to buy rat poison.
The handwriting on the parcel and a Christmas card Mary Ann wrote were found to be written by the same person.
On June 30, 1899, Mary Ann would be taken to trial. The trial would take place at Hertford Assizes in St. Albans Mr. Justice Mathew. The trial would last for two days. The prosecution would bring forth the motive of her crime which was the insurance money. Various witnesses would come forward.
Mary Ann would plead innocence but had no defense. The jury only took two hours to find her guilty and did not make a recommendation of mercy. She was sentenced to death. There was public speculation that Mary Ann was possibly insane like her sister and deserved clemency. There was a petition, but the pleas for her life were ignored. However, it was found that she was not insane and was unable to get clemency.
The prison she was sent to did have facilities for female prisoners. However, there had not been an execution since Thomas Wheeler's execution in 1880. Since there were no gallows there her execution would happen at St. Albans prison.
At 8 am on July 19th, a crowd of around 2,000 gathered at the main gate. Some of the people would silently pray for Mary Ann. She would be hanged, and at 10 am she would be pronounced dead. Her death had been instant as her neck had been broken. She would be buried in an unmarked grave within the prison. In 1931 her remains would be re-interred at the St. Albans City cemetary.
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