Suspicious Death of Birdie Hoffman and Murder of Gertrude Botts

At 7 pm on May 3, 1900, 18-year-old Birdie Hoffman and 16-year-old Charles "Otis" Botts went on a buggy ride in Peoria, Illinois. The two had been dating for the last two years and planned to get married. Birdie's parents tried to convince them that they were too young, but the two didn't care they wanted to marry.

On the ride, he would end up either sexually assaulting her or they had sex. Afterwards, this would upset Birdie greatly and he claimed that she was full of remorse over them doing that. He claimed that she refused to go home and they argued until 4 am. During the argument, she would grab his revolver and shoot herself in the head. 

Police however did not believe that she had killed herself. However, he could not be prosecuted for the crime as no evidence contradicted his statement. 

Five years later on January 6, 1905, a few days before his 21st birthday Otis argued with his wife, 19-year-old Gertrude at the border house they were staying at in Peoria. The two had been constantly arguing ever since they got married the year before. During the argument, He would strike her in the face and then begin to strangle her with a slender hair ribbon killing her.

He would leave the home and go to a saloon in Knoxville and Glendale. When he entered he seemed heavily intoxicated already and caused a disturbance. He was quickly kicked out. So he would catch a car on the way to the courthouse where again he made a disturbance. He was kicked out after traveling two blocks. 

He would then make it to Wall's Saloon on Fayette St. He would hang out there until late that evening. Towards the end of the night, he became more sober. He seemed greatly worried and even told the bartender that he wanted to drown himself in the river. 

 He would spend the night with his friend William Trautman on Nebraska Ave. At 10 am Patrolman Brannon and McEnvoy would go to William's to arrest him. He was still asleep when he arrived, and surprised him when they arrested him. It was found that he had a razor under his pillow. It was suspected he was planning on using it on himself. 

 He would then be arrested the next day for the murder. He would seem indifferent to his wife's death. He stated that it was an Eastern traveler named Albert Baer. His wife was infatuated with the man and the two had spent that night together, so he had to of been the one to kill her. Police did not believe him, especially since he was the last one seen in their room. It also didn't help that he was a suspect in the murder of another woman.

There was no solid evidence, but there was circumstantial so he would be brought to trial in just a couple months. At the trial, he would deny that he knew anything about his wife's murder. The jury would find him guilty and set him to be executed. This angered him and he yelled at the jury in the courtroom.


SOURCES:
Legal Executions in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, and Missouri page 20

The Altamont News May 10, 1900

Mount Carmel Register May 10, 1900

Herald and Review January 8, 1905

Herald and Review January 13, 1905

Marshall County Democrat March 30, 1905

Woodford County Journal April 6, 1905

UNIDENTIFIED: May 17, 1900 Acton, England Jane Doe

In 1899, Alfred Johnson, a laborer, began living in his home on  9 Junction Rd, Acton, England. On May 17, 1900, the Brentford Gas Company came to lay some pipes in the home. They sent Thomas Sheild to do the job and he had to take up the floor to do it. About a foot from the Heartstone Thomas spotted what he thought was a rat's nest. He then realized that it was a skull and he called to the other worker. The two would then contact the police. 

Under the floorboards was the body of a young girl around 2 to 3 years old. She had been covered in lime and wrapped in a child chemise. Her cause of death could not be found and her hands were missing, but it wasn't stated whether or not the hands were destroyed due to the lime or removed either by a person or animal activity. The way her body was found it was believed that she was put there with care, but that does not mean she wasn't murdered. Due to the lime it was unknown when she died 2 to 3 years. 

There were several tenants who came in and out of the home, but the children were traced. One family who lived there between 1896 and August 1898 stated that all their children were fine and there was no noticeable smell. The next family moved in October 1898 and stated that there was a woody smell and it was stronger when the floor was washed and moved out around a year later. 

SOURCES:

Unsolved Murders UK

Middlesex County Times May 26, 1900

Acton and Chiswick Gazzette June 1, 1900

UNIDENTIFIED: August 27, 1900 Conway, Florida

  On August 27, 1900, a white man killed a black man in Conway, Florida. The Victim resided and worked at the Turpentine Camp in Conway. He remained unidentified and buried in an unmarked grave at the Potter's Field of Greenwood Cemetary in Orlando, Florida. There is little information in this case. 

SOURCES:

Find a Grave

Unidentified Wiki

Murder Ballads: Murder of Delia Green

The murder of young African American Delia Young may have been the inspiration for the folk songs "Delia" and "Delia's Gone"

By Christmas Eve 1900 14-year-old Delia Green and14-year-old Cooney Houston (sometimes referred to Mose or Moses) had been dating for months by then. The two were at the home of Willie and Emma West on 113 Ann St. which was one block from Delia's home in Savannah, Georgia.

The West's were having a Christmas Eve party at their home. There were quite a few people who joined the party. At 3 A.M. on Christmas day Delia and Cooney were still at the party. It was said that Cooney was loaded. There are contradictions on whether he was the only one drunk or not at the party.

Witnesses claimed that Delia was mad at Cooney. He was teasing her, calling her his wife. He was joking around that they'd had a sexual relationship and wasn't talking to him at the party. Sometime during the argument, she called him a "Son of a Bitch." This angered the boy.

A shot was fired into Delia's groin area. She was dead and Cooney had the gun. He decided to run. Willie West then caught the 14-year-old and handed him over to patrolman J.T. Williams. J.T. Williams said that Cooney confessed to shooting her. That they had gotten in a fight and she called him a son of a bitch. This angered him and he shot her and said he would do it again.

At his trial, he wore shorts to make people realize he was young. He also backtracked on his confession and claimed that the gun had gone off accidentally. He said the Willie West asked the boy to retrieve his pistol from the gunshop. He still had the gun on him when he came back from a second errand of getting more alcohol. Willie Mills told the court that he witness Eddie Cohn and Conney fighting over a gurn and it accidentally went off.

Other witnesses called out the lies. They stated that Willie Mills wasn't at the party at the time. He had left earlier. Eddie had also left the party earlier and didn't even struggle with the boy over a pistol. No one believed this story.

He was found guilty, but because of his age, the judge gave him life in prison instead of the death penalty. He was then paroled by Governor John M. Slaton 12 years later 1913. His life is unknown, but he had died in New York City in 1927.

The ballads never state or ignore the fact that the two were in their early teens. The Delia's gone version (found above) makes it seem as if  Cooney or the killer was intentionally seeking out to kill Delia that night. Which wasn't true it was a bad and childish decision. It's doesn't excuse Cooney's crime, but it wasn't intentional. But now you know the tragic background to this murder ballad.

SOURCES:
Wikipedia
Country Daily 
Murder By Gaslight 
Find a Grave
Haunted Savannah Tours