Glossary of Poisonings The list is in chronological order usually of date of sentencing (set in bold) and typically includes: P Poisoner, year of birth, their country/nationality, occupation where applicable, sentence and date PA Poison used and how administered V Victim, their relationship to poisoner, year of their death, venue of murder M Motive R Reference for further reading N Notable other information 1800–1849 [1] P Mary Bateman (née Harker), born 1768, England, confidence trickster, hanged 1809 PA MB persuaded victim to take a ‘protective’ concoction (mercuric chloride in honey) for several days, if any ill effects to take an ‘antidote’ as supplied (arsenic) V Rebecca Perigo, a gullible acquaintance, died 1806 (Victim’s home) M Financial gain (victim paid for MB’s ‘protective’ services) and to avoid expo- sure of earlier fraud R Nash (1981), Davies (2004) [2] P Anna Zwanziger (néeSchönleben), born 1760, Bavaria, Germany, house- keeper, decapitated 1811 PA Arsenic administered in food and drink while employed as a housekeeper © Springer International Publishing AG 2017 173 M. Farrell, Criminology of Homicidal Poisoning, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-59117-9 174 Glossary of Poisonings V Frau Glaser (wife of Judge Glaser AZ’s employer) July 1808, Judge Grohmann (employer) May 1809, Frau Gebhardt (wife of judge Gebhardt AZ’s employer) May 1809 (their homes) M Possibly a sense of power over victims R Emsley (2005) [3] P Dr. Edme Castaing, born 1796, France, physician, guillotined 1823 PA Morphine acetate powder in wine and in a medicinal draught V Hippolyte Ballet, fellow conspirator in forging the Will of Ballet’s brother Auguste, 1823 (victim’s home) M Financial gain from victim’s Will R Parry (1927) [4] P Marie Lafarge, born 1816, France, sentenced to life imprisonment 1840, released with ill-health 1852 and died same year PA Arsenic in eggnog, possibly earlier in cake, venison, and truffles V Charles Pouch-Lafarge, her husband, 1840 (at the Lafarge home) M Disillusionment with her husband, the (false) expectation to inherit from his Will R Saunders, 1951 [5] P John Tawell, born 1784, Berkshire, England, chemist, hanged 1845 PA Prussic acid added to a bottle of ‘stout’ (beer) V Sarah Lawrence (later changed to Hart), his mistress, 1845 (at her house) M A married man and a Quaker, JT feared exposure of the clandestine relationship with his mistress R Farrell (1992) 1850–1899 [6] P Count Hippolyte de Bocarmé, born 1818, Mons, Belgium, aristocrat, guil- lotined 1851 PA Distilled nicotine administered forcibly by mouth Glossary of Poisonings 175 V His brother-in-law Gustave Fougnies, 1851 (Count’s chateau where he was a dinner guest) M Financial gain R Farrell (1992) [7] P Hélèna Jégado, born 1803, Brittany, France, domestic servant, guillotined 1852 PA Administered in food and drink V Perotte Mace, fellow worker at Bout-du-Monde Hotel, Rennes, 1850 (at the hotel); Rose Tessier, 1850; Rosalie Sarrazin, 1851, both fellow servants for Theophile Bidard a law professor in Rennes (at their workplace Bidard’s home) M Jealousy R Heppenstall (1970) N At trial HJ was accused of three murders, three attempted murders and various thefts, and was highly suspected of many other murders [8] P Dr. William Palmer, born 1824, Rugeley, England, physician, hanged 1856 PA Strychnine in pills given as supposed medication V Companion John Cook, 1856 (at the Talbot Arms Hotel, Rugeley where Cooke was staying) M Financial gain R Watson (1856/1952), St. Aubyn (1971) [9] P Dr. William King, born c1830, Canada, teacher and homoeopathic physician, hanged 1859 PA Arsenic probably in food and drink V His wife Sarah, 1859 (at their home in Brighton, Ontario) M To be with Melinda Vandervoort with whom he was infatuated R Dougal (2016) [10] P Wilson, born 1822, Lincolnshire, England, live-in nurse, hanged 1862 PA Colchicum probably in food V Maria Soames, killed in London 1856, (the victim’s home where CW was a lodger) 176 Glossary of Poisonings M Probably monetary gain R Farrell (1992) N Murder of 1856 undiscovered until 1862 when CW was tried and acquitted of attempting to poison a woman employer and police enquiries uncovered the earlier death. CW was also suspected of other poison murders. [11] P Dr. Edmund de la Pommerais, born 1846, France, homoeopathic physician, Guillotined 1864 PA Digitalis, unclear how administered. V His mistress a widow Seraphine de Pawr (1863) (at her home in Paris) M Financial gain from an insurance policy on de Pawr’s life R Thorwald (1966) N Death deemed natural causes until an anonymous letter soon after burial led authorities to exhume the body [12] P Dr. Edward Pritchard, born 1825, Hampshire, England, physician, hanged 1865 PA Antimony (and aconite) at their home in Glasgow, Scotland. For Jane Tailor (mother in law) in the opiate medicine Battley’s Solution. For Mary Jane Cowan (wife) in food V Jane Tailor aged 70 years who was nursing her ill daughter, February 1865; and Mary Jane Cowan, March, 1865, both revealed following anonymous letter to authorities M Possibly to allow continuation of an affair with a housemaid R Roughhead (1906) N Dr. James Patterson declined to sign the death certificates. Pritchard signed them himself (wife, gastric fever). Wife’s ‘illness’ abated when she stayed with her mother Christmas 1864, but resumed when she returned to husband [13] P Marie Jeanneret, born 1836, Switzerland, nurse, sentenced to 20 years imprisonment 1868, died 1884 PA Belladonna (and other poisons) administered as medicines V Charged with killing: Douise Junod, Jeanne Gray, Jenny Juvet, Louise Henriette, Mme. Bourcart, Jaques Gros, Julie Bonvier, Mme. Legeret, Demoiselle Fritzges. Convicted of killing seven patients M Probably sadistic Glossary of Poisonings 177 R New York Times, 11 May, 1884 [14] P Mary Ann Cotton née Robson, born 1832, Sunderland, England, housekeeper/nurse/dressmaker, hanged 1873 PA Arsenic possibly administered with arrowroot which MAC admitted using for son’s illness V Charles Edward Cotton, her son, 1873 M To be rid of her son to enable her to take a job as a nurse R Appleton (1973) N Highly suspected of poisoning previous husbands and lovers for financial gain and generally regarded as a serial killer [15] P Pierre Désiré Moreau, born 1842, Paris, herbalist, guillotined 1874 PA Copper sulphate (found in both exhumed bodies) unclear how administered V Wife Félicye-hortense Aubry, 1869; Second wife, Adelaide-Louise (Lagneau) 1874, both at home M Financial gain R Quotidien Le Gaulois, 11 September 1874 [16] P Eugène Chantrelle, born 1834, Nantes, France, school teacher, hanged 1878 PA Opium in fruit drinks V His wife Elizabeth Dyer, 1878, at their home, Edinburgh, Scotland M Financial gain from life insurance R Smith (1906) N Attempted to present death as accidental poisoning from a damaged gas main [17] P Dr. George Lamson, born 1850, England; physician; hanged 1882 PA Aconite in slice of shared Dundee cake V Percy John his 18-year-old brother-in-law, 1881; at PJ’s boarding school, Wimbledon, England M Financial gain 178 Glossary of Poisonings R Browne and Stewart ([1883]/2015), St. Aubyn (1971) [18] P Louisa Taylor, born about 1848, London, milliner and widow of HM Customs worker, Hanged 1883 PA ‘Sugar of lead’ administered in medicine V Her friend (aged in her eighties) Mary Ann Tregillis at whose house she had been staying for several weeks after being widowed, 1882 M Financial gain, Mr. Tregillis reported that LT had stolen and sold items from his home R Emsley (2005) [19] P Israel Lipski (previously Lobulsk), born 1865, London, Umbrella/walking stick maker, hanged 1887 PA Nitric acid administered forcibly by mouth V Miriam Angel a married woman, 1887 (in her bedroom at the lodging house, London where IL was also a tenant) M Prosecution claimed in relation to attempted rape, IL claimed robbery R Friedland (1984) N IL was discovered hiding under Miriam’s bed, acid burns around his mouth [20] P Dr. Philip Cross, born 1825, Ireland, physician, hanged 1888 PA Arsenic probably added to Laura’s sodium bromide medication V His wife Laura, 1887, (at their home Shandy Hall) M To marry his lover Effie Skinner, 43 years his junior, and previously his chil- dren’s governess R Duke (1934) N Dr. Cross ‘diagnosed’ his wife’s poisoning symptoms as typhoid, certifying her death accordingly [21] P Florence Maybrick née Chandler, born 1862, Alabama, wife of an English cotton broker, Imprisoned 1889, released 1904, died in US 1941 PA Arsenic (which James also took medicinally) possibly with other medicines V Her husband James, 1889 (at their home in Liverpool, England) M Unhappy marriage, both she and husband had lovers. He had threatened divorce Glossary of Poisonings 179 R Irving (1912) [22] P Dr. Neill Cream, born 1850, Glasgow (Lived Canada, US, and London), physician, hanged 1892 PA Strychnine including in drinks V Four prostitutes: Helen Donworth (Oct 1891), Matilda Clover (October 1891), Emma Showell, and Alice Marsh jointly murdered (April 1892) at various venues M Probably sadistic although he did not remain to witness the deaths of his vic- tims, possibly hoped for monetary gain from extortion. R Farrell (1993a, b) N In 1881 Cream imprisoned in Illinois for poisoning Daniel Scott with strychnine. Released 1891. London murders, attracted attention by sending accusatory let- ters fictitiously implicating others and demanding money [23] P Dr. Etienne Deschamps, born 1830, France, Dentist, hanged 1892 PA Chloroform which was also used on previous occasions to make the victim unconsciousness V 12-year-old Juliette Deitsh, 1892 (at his New Orleans practice offices) M ED convinced victim’s father that Juliette as an occult source helping ED to detect lost treasure and sexually abused her R Tallant (1953) [24] P Carlysle Harris, born 1868, New York, medical student, electrocuted 1893 PA Morphine overdose introduced into medication for insomnia which CH had (illegally) prescribed V Mary Helen Potts to whom he was secretly ‘married’ in 1890 under assumed names, murdered 1891, (At her boarding school, New York) M Possibly to avoid a legitimate church wedding demanded by Mary’s mother R Boswell and Thompson (1961) [25] P Dr.