Reading romance magazines, especially the lonely hearts columns, took up much of the young ladys spare time. In 1963, Nannie Doss died in prison. CENSUS RECORDS: 1930 Lynchburg, Virginia. Two children died under mysterious circumstances that same year. For a while at least, Nannie seemed to care for her like a good daughter. Both unhappy partners correctly suspected each other of infidelity, and Braggs often disappeared for days on end. But behind the happy facade was a trail of death and murder that lasted from the 1920s to 1954. He also suddenly died of mysterious causes. Nannie Doss seemed like a sweet lady. Within months after the death of her fourth husband, Nannie had her eyes set on a new one. Nannie continued to act crazy even as she was handed down a sentence of life in prison. Within months after the death of her fourth husband, Nannie had her eyes set on a new one. Nannie Doss was given many nicknames by the media, such as Giggling Granny, the Lonely Hearts Killer, the Black Widow, and the Lady Blue Beard. Instead, Nannie was given a check from their insurance company to cover the damages. She entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to life in prison. The doctor, who treated Samuel, was alerted by his sudden death. Melvina had grown up by then and got married herself. Despite this, the marriage lasted 16 years. When one husband became too much, Doss simply killed him off and move to the next love or victim, that is. Aileen Wuornos was a serial killer who was sentenced to death for killing seven men in Florida. They got married that year. Samuel was extremely frugal and boring, however, and after convincong him to take out two life-insurance policies, he was in the hospital with stomach problems. Two years after Lanning's death, Doss met and married Richard Morton. Contrary to what you believed, neither was prepared with love, and your multiple apologies were not truly accepted. Driven by greed, she killed Samuel on the very day he had come back home so she could collect the two insurance policies she had taken in his name. Nannie would later admit that it was this unfortunate chance event that was the root of all of her evil and strange behavior. He was neither a drunk nor abusive. But when she was home, she played the doting housewife, and when he died of what was said to be heart failure, the townspeople supported her at his funeral. As a result, Nannies education suffered. He drank without inhibition and one night, after returning home completely intoxicated, raped Doss. This seclusion led her to leaving leave school after only finishing the 6th grade. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, life, crimes and other facts about him. Nannie killed him that evening in her rush to collect the two life insurance policies she had taken out on him. Worldhistory.us - For those who want to understand the History, not just to read it. Once a newspaper called her a "self-made . They married three days later. She was also known as the Giggling Granny, the Lonely Hearts Killer, the Black Widow, and Lady Blue Beard. Life became stressful for the couple, and both were quite over their marriage byif not before1927. She would not let my own mother stay all night Braggs' mother took up a lot of his attention and limited Nannie's activities. The doctors, however, could not give a positive explanation. As police began to investigate the case, they learned that it wasn't. The good news is that although she may have killed as many as a dozen people, some still got lucky and survived coming into contact with her. In the case of the toddler, she collected a large $500 life insurance policy she just so happened to have taken out on him before he died. Doss left, and Braggs was able to escape the fate that awaited all of Doss future husbands. Total she killed 11 people and they are as follows: Her 2 middle daughters Frank Harrelson Arlie Lanning Arlie Lanning's mother Her sister Dovie Her grandaughter Her grandson Her mother, Lou Hazle Her son-in-law, Richard Morton Sam Doss Suspect The only real suspect in all of the murders was Nannie Doss herself. Unfortunately, instead of being grateful for a place to stay, Nannie then killed her own sister. She was just getting started. It turns out there was an underlying reason for these crimes that made them happen one right after the other: Nannie discovered that while she had been tending to her sick mother, Richard had been unfaithful to her. And be a bit careful about money. The grieving parents drifted apart and Melvina started dating a soldier. In all, it was revealed that she had killed four husbands, two children, two of her sisters, her mother, two grandsons, and a mother-in-law. Born In: Blue Mountain, Anniston, Alabama, Nick Name: Giggling Granny, the Lonely Hearts Killer, the Black Widow, Spouse/Ex-: Arlie Lanning (m. ?1950), Richard L. Morton (m. 19521953), Robert Franklin Harrelson (m. 19291945), See the events in life of Nannie Doss in Chronological Order, http://www.tulsaworld.com/uploaded_photos/nannie-doss-in-prison/image_b9e0530b-17a9-59b5-9a49-25f15784d522.html, http://allthatsinteresting.com/nannie-doss-giggling-granny, https://hellhorror.com/serial-killer-93/Nannie-Doss.html. After a successful treatment regime, the hospital let him go. During the journey, the train suddenly ceased moving and she hit her head on a metal bar on the seat opposite of her. Playing the doting wife, Doss added poison to one of Lannings meals and he died shortly thereafter. Nannie married Samuel Doss of Tulsa, Oklahoma, in June 1953. Just eight weeks after Lanning died, the house he and Doss lived in burned to the ground. Her first attempt to kill him with arsenic-laced prune cake failed, and he spent a month recovering in the hospital. However, the doctor who had cared for him in the hospital didnt believe he had just succumbed to illness. Required fields are marked *. When she was 7, Nannie hit her head on a metal bar on the seat in front of her while travelling to see family on a train. Before she poisoned him, she poisoned her mother, Louisa, in January 1953 when she came to live with them. Then, her two year old grandson died by asphyxiation while in her care. Arguments happen, right? The happy couple lived with Braggs' mother, but she had the same abusive type of behavior as Doss' father. Before long, she confessed to killing not only her four husbands, but confessed to seven other murders as well. Nannie Doss was prosecuted by J. Howard Edmondson, who later became governor of Oklahoma. You sigh contentedly and wash it down with a large thermos of coffee. His mother died soon after he left. She married five times. Lanning died in 1950 from what was thought to be heart failure and townspeople came out in support of his widow. After she remarried to her third husband, her mother fell ill and then died suddenly while under her daughters care. Im so excited for this post because I have not yet researched a female serial killer. It was just over some trashy magazines and how you should both read better, more educational material, as well as be smarter with your finances. This time, it was Doss who would often vanish for prolonged periods. The head injury changed her life forever. She and Braggs worked together at the Linen Thread Company in nearby Anniston. The doctors ordered . He would not let his children attend school but forced them to serve as farm-hands. During her marriage to Morton, Doss already had began to correspond with new men. She topped it off with rat poison, and Frank died on Sept. 15, 1945 just hours after Doss filled his liquor bottle. He drank without inhibition and one night, after returning home completely intoxicated, raped Doss. In September, he was hospitalised after eating an arsenic-laced prune cake. However, she was spared the electric chair due to her obvious insanity. She put rat poison in the whiskey. Doss earned her nickname, Giggling Granny, because of her smiling and giggling as she discussed her crimes with the authorities. This biography of Aileen Wuornos provides detailed information about her childhood, life, crimes & timeline. She laced a prune cake with poison. You're not sure where she went, but she wouldn't do something so outrageous as taking out two life insurance policies on you and list herself as the sole beneficiary, would she? In Samuels system was much more than lethal amounts of poison. These two kids belonged to Melvina, Doss older child with Braggs. She also killed Lannings mother, her mother-in-law; Lou Hazel, her own mother; Dovie Frances Hazel Weaver, her sister; and Robert Lee Haynes, her grandson. She would later blame her mental instability on the accident. Nannie Doss is escorted for a court appearance in 1955 after confessing to poisoning four of her five husbands, including Samuel Doss of Tulsa. Dovie was bedridden and soon after Nannie's arrival she died. Doss returned home to help care for her sick sister, Dovie. He was an abusive alcoholic from Jacksonville, Fla. named Frank Harrelson. In the summer of 1928, Braggs came back with Melvina, a new love interest and her own child. Check out this biography to know more about her family, personal life, including her age, birthday, etc. Killing Spree of Nannie Doss You might like: Nannie Doss had murdered him by giving him poisoned coffee due to the greed of collecting two life insurance aids. . Whenever she came back, she played the role of a doting wife perfectly. Perhaps it was her mother-in-law that kickstarted Doss murdering spree. Two years later, she and her husband had another child, this time a daughter. Nannie moved in with her parents and took her two still living daughters with her. Within days of arriving, Doss mother died of stomach pains. Doss moved in with her sister, Dovie, who had cancer. She was one of five children, including one brother and three sisters. The very last thing Richard did was drink coffee filled with arsenic. Alarmed at his sudden passing, Samuel's doctors ordered an autops to be performed. Both were unhappy and suspected the other, correctly so, of infidelity. Doss then met Arlie Lanning through an advertisement in the local lonely hearts column. He showed flu-like symptoms and the diagnosis was a severe digestive tract infection. That flu hit you hard, but a month later youre back on your feet again. They married in 1952 in Emporia, Kansas. Nannie Doss final victim was Samuel Doss of Tulsa, Okla. After all, Samuel was far from her only husband and Nannie considered family in general quite expendable. When it came to her final victim, the doctor who looked into the death realized there may be some foul play involved on Nannies part. Nannie Doss is credited with killing at least 11 people. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, family, life, and little known facts about him. On September 15, 1945, Harrelson became ill and died. While this one was not an alcoholic, he was still a womaniser. The physician said it was a good idea because the autopsy would save lives. She had apparently found a possible husband number six in North Carolina based dairy farmer John H. Keel before her arrest and even sent him a cake. One newspaper went as far as calling her a self-made widow. Three months later Morton died of similar symptoms. Doss was looking to get married for the fourth time. Only three days after that, Morton perished after drinking from a thermos full of coffee that had been spiked by Doss with arsenic. He was her only son and she was unmarried at the time so Doss had to accept it. Furthermore, her favorite part was the lonely hearts column. Doss story begins with her birth to a family of farmers in 1905 in Blue Mountain, Alabama. While this one was not an alcoholic, he was still a womaniser. On December 15, three weeks after Nannie was arrested, the judge at her preliminary hearing decided to turn her over to the state asylum for a ninety-day stay. Her decades-long killing spree ended with the death of her fifth husband, Samuel Doss. During this time, many critical events took place, including the murder of 11 people. In all, authorities suspect she killed as many as 12 people, most of whom were blood-related. The marriage fell apart at that point. However, the relationship had several issues right from the beginning, mostly due to Harrelsons alcoholism and violent temper. As reported by Alabama Heritage, Doss eventually admitted poisoning four of her husbands. Both Nannie and her mother despised James because of his controlling behaviour towards every member of the family. It is quite possible that she had poisoned those girls. Nannie Doss was only charged for the death of Samuel Doss. This biography profiles her childhood, life, career, works, achievements and timeline. [1] Doss was also referred to as the Giggling Granny, the Lonely Hearts Killer, the Black Widow, and Lady Blue Beard. She later had a conversation with her husband and Florine, who told her that Doss had informed them earlier that the baby was dead and that they had noticed she had a hairpin in her hand. McCarthy and Stalin Political Brothers? Your email address will not be published. Continue reading about the prolific serial killer and her previous murders. Soon after she found out that Morton was having an affair with his ex, he died. She pled guilty on May 17, 1955, and was sentenced to life imprisonment; the state did not pursue the death penalty due to her sex. On July 7, 1945, Doss was taking care of Melvina's son, Robert, because Doss and Melvina had an argument over Doss's disapproval of Melvina's boyfriend. While in these unpleasant circumstances, Nannie allegedly turned on her own grandchildren. Candi Fisher is best known as the ex-wife of American college football coach and former player Jimbo Fisher. Jul 7, 1945, Melvina's son, Robert. After the tragic incident, the grief-stricken couple slowly drifted apart and eventually separated. She married, had four children, and spent time with her grandchildren. During the time Doss was married to Harrelson, her oldest daughter began having children and Doss became a grandmother in 1943 and again in 1945. A Drunk Man In Mexico Just Injured Himself On The Sword Of A St. Michael Statue While Trying To Steal It, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. In January 1953, Doss mother, Lou, moved in with them after her husbands death. When she asked her husband and sister for clarification, they said Nannie had told them the baby was deadand they noticed that she was holding a pin. The second child, however, died shortly after of unknown causes. From this time on, she suffered from excruciating headaches. Nannie Doss was arrested in 1954. The woman died in her sleep. At the age of 16, Nannie Doss wed a man she had only known for four months. He had other suspicions. Doss mother needed a caretaker after she fell and broke a hip in 1953 after her father passed away. It would be an understatement to say that he messed with the wrong person. Though she was acquitted, many people believe Lizzie Borden killed her father and stepmother back in 1892. Harrelson was no different. You miss your spouse and are looking around the room. Doss is thought to have committed her first murders in 1927, when her two young daughters died of suspected food poisoning. The death was diagnosed as asphyxia from unknown causes, and two months later Nannie collected the $500 life insurance she had taken out on Robert. Other than throw up and convulse until you die while your significant other happily laughed in the background. Possibly in hopes of escaping an overly strict home life, Doss married her first husband when she was just 16 years old. Then, read about Elisabeth Fritzl, who spent 24 years held captive by her father. She was only charged with the murder of her final husband, and pleaded guilty on May 17, 1955 almost 25 years after she began her killing spree. Doss was never charged with the other deaths. Under interrogation, and after she was told that she could keep a romance magazine, Nannie confessed to killing eight people: Robert, Harrelson, Lanning, Lannings mother, Dovie, Lou, Morton, and Samuel but denied any involvement with the deaths of her two daughters and granddaughter. He died under mysterious circumstances. Exhausted from labor and groggy from ether, Melvina thought she saw her visiting mother stick a hatpin into the baby's head. He had the dubious and fortunate distinction of being the only husband that Doss did not murder. Doss grew up reading her mothers romance magazines and wished for a fairytale future. In 1945, after the end of the World War II, The United States of America was in a full celebratory mood. He had the dubious and fortunate distinction of being the only husband that Doss did not murder. Her husband went away with their oldest living child and didnt return until the following year. A huge fan of newspaper classifieds, Nannie Doss began looking for a third husband shortly after the murder of her second. She was also suspected of killing her granddaughter, and two of her four children with Braggs. It was just 10 years after she had first been jailed that she passed away from leukemia. confessed to killing four of her five ex-husbands. She had four siblings, including a brother named William Roscoe Hazel and a sister named Dovie Frances Hazel Weaver. It turns out that a common household ingredient at the time was a potent way to kill people and without anyone suspecting a thing. During this period, Doss likely killed her own newborn granddaughter a few days after the birth by using a hairpin to stab her in the brain. After he performed an autopsy on the body, he found the lethal doses of arsenic in his system. She died in prison in 1964. You really needed that caffeine. Nannie Doss was also known by her nickname, "The Giggling Granny.". Timeline of Mays"s life: "April 4, 1928- Maya Angelou is born in St. Louis, Missouri. Nannie Doss was born in 1905 into a family of farmers in Alabama. She was a strong advocate for racial pride. During her second marriage, Doss is suspected of having killed her newborn granddaughter by stabbing her brain with her hairpin. 1. Despite James forbidding Doss and her sisters from wearing make-up and attractive clothes in fear of molestation, it still happened on several occasions. The final murder ended up revealing her for what she was. Braggs and Nannie soon divorced, with Nannie taking her two girls back to her mother's home. He courted her with poetry; she wrote passionate letters and sent him a cake and a photograph of herself. Braggs brought Melvina back in the summer of 1928, accompanied by a divorce with her own child. In 1965, Doss died of leukaemia in the hospital ward of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. Doss was born Nancy Hazel on November 4, 1905, in Blue Mountain, Alabama, the United States. Despite the abuse, the marriage lasted 16 years until 1945. Arlie was poisoned to death by 1950. Her sister also suddenly died after being around her sister with no explanation. With her father's approval they married after four months of dating. Biography Timeline. After two and a half years of marriage, Doss's third husband, Arlie Lanning died of what doctors proclaimed to be a heart attack caused by a flu that was going around. Nannie denied poisoning any of her blood relatives . Nannie killed him that very evening with her tried and tested method of arsenic in coffee. Sources cite either a singles club or additional romantic advertising as netting Nannie another husband by 1952. After Lanning died, the house mysteriously burned to the ground and Lanning's mother died. Instead of going to school, all five of Jim and Louisa Hazles children stayed at home to work on household chores and tend to the family farm. Your head is pounding and you cant think except to run to the bathroom where you have nonstop and explosive diarrhea. [2] He and Doss divorced soon after and she and her two daughters moved in with her mother. The next day, Doss discovered onez of Harrelsons liquor bottles in the flower bed. They met and married in 1929. Nannies father died and so her mother came to live with the couple, which brought its own series of problems. She soon realised, however, that Lanning was an alcoholic womaniser like Harrelson. Well, after youd eaten about three large slices and downed a few glasses of milk, you lay down completely stuffed and unusually tired. Despite having grown up on reading romances and dreaming of falling in love, she was married at the . While Braggs was an attentive father, his relationship with his wife did not improve at all. Reverend Samuel Luther Doss's Timeline. Nannie Doss was responsible for murdering four of her five husbands and some of her family members, all of whom she killed through arsenic poisoning, as reported by Murderpedia. She was never prosecuted for the other murders, but many believe she was responsible for at least 11 deaths. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. But it does make you wonder if all of it could have been prevented if not for that childhood train injury. During her first marriage, two of her children died suddenly with no explanation. Dont worry, were alone, he tells you. One moment the kids were perfectly healthy, and then suddenly they died without an apparent cause. After the death of Richard Morton, Doss set her sights on Samuel Doss. To make matters worse, as she talked to the police about each of the people she had killed, she smiled and giggled. Or do, period. Doss died from leukemia in the hospital ward of . The couple divorced in 1928. Under his orders, an autopsy was performed and they found a large amount of arsenic in his system. A few days later, she started to have severe stomach pains and died. She was subsequently tried and given a life sentence. Before she left with her spoils, Nannie is suspected of doing one more terrible deed. pillsbury company net worth, has notifications silenced imessage,