"The Poison Queen"

Less than 10 days after marrying his 2nd wife, Laura, William Christy died on January 13, 1926. A man in his late 50s or early 60s (sources vary as to William's age) dying suddenly wasn't necessarily unusual, considering the average life expectancy in 1926 was only 55.5 years. However, the cause of his death was much less typical: William had ingested arsenic (or died of unrelated causes, depending on who you believe).

> **Background info on Christy (not relevant to the story)**
> Charles William 'William' Christy was born on Christmas Day of 1865 or 1866 (most likely one of those years according to census records, possibly a later year) aboard a ship traveling from Ireland to New York. He was first married to May Alice Stubblefield in Butler County, Missouri. William and May moved to Alton, Illinois where their 5 children (William, Washington 'Carl,' Goldia, Leroy 'Lee' and Sylvesta) were born and raised. Sometime in the early 1910's, the couple moved to Akron, Ohio. May died there in 1924, just over 1 month before the couple's 37th wedding anniversary. By this time, all 5 of their children had reached adulthood and were independent, some with children of their own.
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[jan 16 1926 the Akron beacon journal pgs 1 and 13]

Laura elsie whippler

b 1877-89

2 brothers harry and Charles whippler, 1 sister Annie (married Joseph mountford and died 1912-3)

grandfather Moses Bennett died 1910-2

marriages/divorces:

* may 20 1898: marries Jessie sears in columbiana co oh
* mar 20 1902: marries Jacob Barnhart in pleasants co wv
* aug 21 1909: marries Charles O'Neill in new Cumberland wv, he died in Cincinnati
* apr 8 1912: marries Jacob Barnhart(possibly same one she married in 1902) in new Cumberland
* jul 1 1916: marries George Holt in columbiana co oh (he died 1 year after marriage, lived in bellaire oh), claimed to have never been married before
* apr 3 1919: marries Charles graham in columbiana county oh, claimed to have only been married once before
* aug 18 1919: marries chancey gillispie in avoca ny, claimed to have only been married once before
* sep 4 1920: marries frederick harmon in Athens ny (afterwards discovers they are cousins, still alive at her arrest, never divorced)
* jun 20 1922: marries John Ebert in hancock co wv (died nov 7 1925 in newell wv, lived in new Cumberland wv at marriage)
* dec 29 1925 or jan 4-5 1926: marries William Christy (died jan 13 1926 of arsenic)
* dec 22 1927: divorced from Isaac Randles

married (4) unidentified man from Steubenville oh

married (8) unidentified man from california hollow oh

potentially 3 other marriages: 2 brothers (1 died suddenly, maybe Jacob and Charles Barnhart, maybe married Charles jun 9 1901 in eden township ia), unidentified man from newton falls oh

### about Charles whippler:

* after Charles's initial conversation with police, on jan 17 1926, he asked them not to reveal his name to save his family the embarrassment of being associated with her [info from the evening review jan 18 1926 pg 1 and 7]
* "My sister is just the same as dead to me - I will engage no attorney to defend her." -brother Charles to police chief mcdermott [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* Charles told police he had little contact with her since she was 16, but advised them of additional marriages [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* Charles told police she was arrested for bigamy in Steubenville oh 1920-4; she "had told Jefferson county authorities that she had believed her husband dead." However, "after her marriage to the Steubenville man, the legal spouse put in his appearance and caused her arrest for bigamy." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* Charles told police "'As a child my sister was incorrigible.'" "'She went from bad to worse. She frequented the lowest dives in town. Several times when I met her I remonstrated with her but all in vain. Afterwards I learned that she was sent to a reformatory where she spent a year a more. I never knew the charge which caused her arrest and confinement in the state institution.'" "'she and I were never very friendly. She came to my house once after her marriage but I told her that she was not welcome so long as she led an immoral life."' '"Several times after that I heard of other marriages and in each instance her husband died suddenly. I heard of the Steubenville trouble through newspaper accounts but made no effort to help her and consequently never heard what had been done with her."' Charles "expressed the belief that his sister was mentally unbalanced" to police. [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* charles told police "'We could never understand her. Even in looks she resembled neither me nor her sister.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* "The brother is said to have told the authorities that he was without money to engage an attorney, and inasmuch as he had practically disowned this sister for the last 25 years or more he did not believe that he should interest himself in the case." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* Charles told police "If she has done wrong, she should be punished." "Of course, I feel sorry for her, but I washed my hands of her years ago." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* brother Charles whippler "was unable to give police any clue as to the possible cause of the deaths of his six brother-in-laws. Neither he nor his father, Jacob Whippler, who resides in Hammond, Ind., will retain an attorney to defend Mrs. Christy, Whippler said." [news-journal jan 18 1926]

### about Moses and mrs. bennett

* "Her grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Moses Bennett, who provided her with a home after our mother's death, tried to teach her to live right, but without results. She would not go to school, would lie and when she reached the age of 16 she left their home." - Charles whippler [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* "'I was raised in East Liverpool,'" Mrs. Christy said, '"and when I was three years old I was taken in charge of by 'Coal Oil' Bennett who lived near the flint mill. I guess 'Coal Oil' died 14 or 15 years ago. I was always a blacksheep - that's what they called me.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* "She admitted she was 48 years old and that she was born in Steubenville and reared by '"Coal Oil'" Bennett at East Liverpool." [the Salem news jan 20 1926]
* '"and when I was two years old I was taken in charge of by '"Coal Oil'" Bennett who lived near the flint mill."' [the Salem news jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 3]

### about Anna whippler

* charles told police "Anna was just the opposite of Laura." "We could never understand her. Even in looks she resembled neither me nor her sister." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* "Mrs. Christy had a sister, who was about two years her junior. She was Mrs. Anna Mountford, wife of Joseph Mountford, of Minerva, who died about 13 years ago, the brother said." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* "Mrs. Clyde Barrick" "is a niece of Mrs. Christy. Mrs. Barrick's mother was a sister of Mrs. Christy. The local woman stated, Thursday forenoon, however, that Mrs. Christy has never been here, and that she had never seen her aunt." [the tribune jan 21 1926] (barrick is irene mountford, dau of Annie whippler)
* "Mrs. Clyde Barrick, this city, is a niece of Mrs. Randles, the latter having been a sister of Mrs. Barrick's mother. At the time of Mrs. Randles' arrest, Mrs. Barrick stated that her aunt had never been here and that she had never seen her." [the coshoction tribune nov 2 1927] (barrick is irene mountford)

### about George and mrs Crawford:

* "'I was at the George Crawford home when I met Christy, for the first time. We went to Beaver and were married the next day.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pgs 1 and 7]
* "Chief McDermott yesterday received a second letter from Rev. Carl W. Christy, Akron, son of the murder victim and general-in-chief of the missionary organization, in which he blames Mr. and Mrs. George Crawford, of Erie street, for the marriage of his father of Mrs. Christy. Mrs. Crawford is Mrs. Christy's cousin, and, according to Crawford, arranged the match upon Christy's promise to pay her $25. Crawford is a patient in the City hospital suffering from poison contracted, he says, while working in an East End steel plant." [the evening review jan 21 1926 pgs 1 and 8]
* Laura said "'I had never seen Christy before I met him at the George Crawford home.'" [the Salem news jan 18 1926 pgs 1 and 3]

### about Frederick Harmon:

* "Thus far the authorities have been able to definitely list seven legal husbands and a common law husband. All but one of the men are dead. The survivor, Frederick Harmon, a resident of Athens, N. Y., is her cousin, the prisoner claims." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pgs 1 and 7]
* '"When I married Frederick Harmon of Athens, N. Y., I did not know he was my cousin. They told me afterwards. I did not get a divorce from him, and I don't know whether he ever got a divorce from me. So far as I know he is still living.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pgs 1 and 7]
* "The fact that Mrs. Christy gave Athens, N. Y., as the home of Harmon, one of her husbands, also lends strength to the supposition that she and the woman who married Randles are one and the same woman." [the tribune feb 27 1926 pgs 1 and 6]
* "She gave her age as 46, her father's name as Gus Harmon and her mother's maiden name as Amelia Bennett." [the tribune feb 27 1926 pgs 1 and 6]

### about Jacob whippler(dad):

* brother Charles whippler "was unable to give police any clue as to the possible cause of the deaths of his six brother-in-laws. Neither he nor his father, Jacob Whippler, who resides in Hammond, Ind., will retain an attorney to defend Mrs. Christy, Whippler said." [news-journal jan 18 1926]
* "She gave her age as 46, her father's name as Gus Harmon and her mother's maiden name as Amelia Bennett." [the tribune feb 27 1926 pgs 1 and 6]
* '"I don't know where my father is, but the last time I heard from him he was at Hammond, Ind. He is a plasterer by trade. He doesn't know that I'm here. I haven't seen him for years.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pgs 1 and 7]
* "'I suppose he is still alive. He don't know I am here. I haven't seen him for years."' [the Salem news jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 3]
* "When applying for a marriage license at the local bureau last summer Randles' bride represented herself to be a widow and gave her name as Elsie May Harmon. She gave her age as 46, her father's name as Gus Harmon and her mother's maiden name as Amelia Bennett." [the tribune feb 27 1926 pages 1 and 6]

### about Jesse Sears:

* '"Her first marriage was with Jesse Sears, which I believe occurred when she was about 18 years of age. They lived in a houseboat along the river, but she and I were never very friendly. She came to my house once after her marriage but I told her that she was not welcome so long as she led an immoral life."' '"Sears died very suddenly but I can't tell the cause of his death.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* '"Jesse Sears was the first man I married. He dropped dead many years ago. He was employed as a night watchman in a pottery. I was not living with him he died.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pgs 1 and 7]
* Laura lived with Jesse Sears for "a few years at East Liverpool" before his death [news-journal jan 19 1926]
* Jesse Sears '"was employed as a night watchman in some pottery - I don't know which one. I was not living with him when he died.'" [the Salem news jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 3]

### about William Christy:

>
> #### about his death:
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> * "Mrs. Christy, who was believed on the verge of a nervous collapse yesterday, when she spent most of the day sobbing and declaring, '"I don't know why I did it,'" denied to Sheriff George Wright, who questioned her in the county jail, that she had given poison to any of her spouses other than the religious worker. She held her hands to her face and wept as she told her story. During her conversation she never opened her eyes, one of which is blind. According to her statement, she endeavored in vain to call a physician when her pastor-husband's condition became alarming last Tuesday morning." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
> * '"The first time that I gave him the arsenic was at 10 o'clock in the morning, I think. Then I gave him another dose at 12 o'clock and another at 6 o'clock. I put the arsenic on the end of a table knife and after he took it I gave him a glass of water. I did not know what was the matter with him. I tried to get Dr. W. A. Hobbs but could not - then I tried to get other doctors and failed. O, God! this is awful.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
> * '"I bought the arsenic a week before this happened to kill rats. It cost me 25 cents and I paid 25 cents for other tablets at the same time.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
> * '"When Mr. Christy told me he was sick, I gave him the arsenic on the end of a table knife. I must not have been in my right mind.'" '"No, indeed, I did not force Mr. Christy to take the arsenic,'" she sobbed. '"He told me that he had taken it before. It was on Tuesday that I gave it to him.'" [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
> * Laura told William Christy the arsenic "was baking soda which he had requested to relieve his indigestion" [Springfield news-sun jan 19 1926]
> * "Throughout yesterday she wept and cried, '"I don't know why I did it,'" evidently referring to the poisoning of Christy" [the Urbana daily citizen jan 19 1926]
> * "Reverend Christy died suddenly Wednesday night." [the Dayton herald jan 15 1926] wed is jan 13
> * "Christy was a victim of chronic indigestion, according to Mrs. Christy, who said he asked for the death potion when a renewed attack seized him." [the Dayton herald jan 15 1926]
> * "'The charges are false,'" she declared. '"It is absurd to say that I murdered William.'" '"I didn't mean to cause him any suffering,'" she told authorities." [the Dayton herald jan 15 1926]
> * "Declares Minister Did Not Ask For Deadly Draught, But She Gave It To Him" [the Akron beacon journal jan 19 1926]
> * "She changed her first statements, to the effect that Christy did not ask for the poison but that she had given it to him in place of soda for indigestion troubles." [the Akron beacon journal jan 19 1926]
> * "Christy died in City Hospital Wednesday night 14 hours after he was taken there." [telegraph-forum jan 15 1926]
> * "'They were mean to me,'" was Mrs. Christy's only explanation." for the murders. [the Dayton herald jan 21 1926]
> * "According to Brookes, Rev. Christy carried $310 insurance and a $300 fund he had deposited in a bank here, was withdrawn immediately after the minister was stricken. Christy was a victim of chronic indigestion, according to Mrs. Christy, who said he asked for the death potion when a renewed attack seized him." [the daily sentinel-tribune jan 16 1926]
> * William Christy "became ill" "after breakfast" [the daily news-tribune jan 14 1926]
> * "Christy, who became ill after eating breakfast Tuesday morning, was not moved to the hospital until yesterday. In the meantime, he received no medical treatment, police claim." [the tribune jan 15 1926] tues is jan 12
> * Laura "says she did not know he was dead when she was arrested." he=William Christy [the tribune jan 15 1926]
> * "'I poisoned two of my husbands but the others died naturally,'" Mrs. Christy asserted belligerently when questioned further today. '"They were mean to me,'" she snapped. '"They had it coming to them.'" [the daily sentinel-tribune jan 19 1926]
> * "A calm settled over Mrs. Christy as she explained the Rev. Christy's death, Brooks said. '"William was ill, too,'" Mrs. Christy said, speaking quietly. '"He had treated me mean too, and I suppose I shouldn't have poisoned him.'" [the daily sentinel-tribune jan 19 1926]
> * dan Gallagher said: '"For I discovered that examination of the contents of the stomach of Christy, conducted by state chemists at Columbus, revealed no trace of poison whatsoever.'" [the evening review oct 21 1926 pages 1 and 8]
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* "Chief McDermott yesterday received a second letter from Rev. Carl W. Christy, Akron, son of the murder victim and general-in-chief of the missionary organization, in which he blames Mr. and Mrs. George Crawford, of Erie street, for the marriage of his father of Mrs. Christy. Mrs. Crawford is Mrs. Christy's cousin, and, according to Crawford, arranged the match upon Christy's promise to pay her $25. Crawford is a patient in the City hospital suffering from poison contracted, he says, while working in an East End steel plant." [the evening review jan 21 1926 pgs 1 and 8]
* Laura said "'I had never seen Christy before I met him at the George Crawford home.'" [the Salem news jan 18 1926 pgs 1 and 3]
* mr. Christy's daughter held a funeral for her father and she and her husband sold the home whippler and Christy shared, which, "according to a receipt found in the dead man's trunk, he paid $50 for the home, which occupies ground leased from the Laughlin pottery, last Dec. 4." [the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7]
* William Christy was a reverend, worked for united christian missionary association [telegraph-forum jan 18 1926]
* "Mrs. Christy was under a charge of first degree murder" for William Christy's death [Marysville journal-tribune jan 21 1926]
* William Christy was an "itinerant minister" [Marysville journal-tribune jan 21 1926]
* Laura "married Christy on January 5" [the Urbana daily citizen jan 19 1926]
* "According to Brookes, Reverend Christy carried $300 insurance, and a $300 fund he had deposited in a bank here was withdrawn immediately after the minister was stricken." "'The bank money was withdrawn the day Rev. Christy became ill,'" Brookes declared." [the Dayton herald jan 15 1926]
* "Mrs. Christy seemed unconcerned and apparently was not visibly affected by the death of her husband" [the Dayton herald jan 15 1926]
* "Reverend Christy was an elder of the Missionary association." [the Dayton herald jan 15 1926]
* refers to William Christy as an itinerant pastor [the Akron beacon journal jan 19 1926]
* "Vital organs of Mr. Christy, who was a representative of the Christian Missionary Association of the United States, were sent to the state chemist at Columbus to be analyzed for traces of poison." [the journal news jan 15 1926]
* "Police today were a report from the state chemist at Ohio State University on an analysis of Christy's stomach, heart and blood which were shipped there by Coroner Van Fossman" [telegraph-forum jan 15 1926]
* "Upon orders of the sheriff the $15 trunk and its contents, which Mrs. Christy purchased with her eighth husband's money which she withdrew from an East End bank on the day that her husband was taken to the City hospital in a dying condition, was shipped to Lima by express today by Chief of Police Hugh McDermott. Police took charge of the trunk, which was moved by Mrs. Christy to a sixth street rooming house after she was arrested on the murder charge. It was filled with new dresses, underclothing, stockings and other wearing apparel, which she had purchased from a $200 fund. Before Mrs. Christy is turned over to the officials of the Lima institution today she will be given approximately $37 in cash which was found on her possession at the time of her arrest. This will be kept by the superintendent of the institution and be used in the purchase of articles which the widow may request and which ordinarily are not furnished inmates." [the evening review jan 21 1926 pages 1 and 8]
* William Christy referred to as "itinerant preacher and peddler." [the daily news-tribune jan 14 1926]
* refers to William Christy as "brigadier-general of the United Christian Missionary Association" [the tribune jan 21 1926]
* William Christy is referred to as "United Christian missionary evangelist" [Springfield news-sun jan 17 1926]
* refers to William Christy as "attache of the Christian Missionary Alliance" [the daily sentinel-tribune jan 19 1926]
* dan Gallagher said: '"Dr. Clark informed me that when she was searched on her arrival at the hospital, $120 was found upon her. Since she had no money of her own when she married Christy, this must have been Christy's money, drawn from the bank by her just prior to her arrest.'" [the evening review oct 21 1926 pages 1 and 8]

the evening review jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 7

* "Police this morning were searching for a man, who is said to be a resident of California Hollow, and whom Mrs. Christy is said to have married several years ago. This husband, who, would prove No. 8, according to the police, is said to have left his wife two or three days after their marriage when he became suspicious after a sudden illness. They are also attempting to check up a report that two other marriages took place when the woman lived '"down the river.'" At this time she is said to have married brothers, one of whom died suddenly. Another report was that the woman married a man in Newton Falls several years ago. They were unable to ascertain details in connection with this purported marriage, but Mrs. Christy is to be questioned about all of her romances of the last 30 years."
* chief mcdermott said "Her actions during the last few days indicates that she is mentally unbalanced."
* '"John Eberts was also a husband of mine, that was when he lived at New Cumberland, W. Va. He worked as a sagger washer, and he died when we lived in Newell, W. Va. He died from the flu or mumps, I don't know which.'"
* '"Then there was George Holt, but he's dead. We lived at Bellaire for a time and several other places, but he died a year after we were married. They said it was typhoid fever that George died of. He was sick for four weeks.'"
* '"I never was married to - (she mentioned the name of an East Liverpool man, now deceased) but we lived together for a few years. He died in the West Virginia Hospital for the Insane at Elizabeth, W. Va. He first lived at Hannibal, O., and then at Sistersville, W. Va. We lived in East End just one week, and several years in Newell.'"
* '"Did you ever give any of your other husbands arsenic or other poison?'" she was asked by Sheriff Wright. '"No, I did not,'" she replied.
* she was searched for weapons/poison at the jail and the matron found a $10 bill
* "Mrs. Christy, despite her nervous condition, ate breakfast, lunch and dinner yesterday with apparent relish. She awakened early today and awaited the arrival of the turnkey who brought her morning meal. So far no friends have visited her at the jail."

telegraph-forum jan 18 1926

* questioning was conducted by prosecuting attorney Robert brooks and aforementioned police chief mcdermott (both at same time/together/only 1 questioning)

the daily times dec 23 1927

* Isaac randles granted divorce by coshocton co probate court on dec 22 1927
* Laura is in lima state hospital for the criminal insane
* "She deserted him in June, 1925"
* refers to prosecuting attorney as "R. M. Brookes"

Springfield news-sun jan 19 1926

* "in her second confession since she was arrested last week, told the prosecutor she gave John E. Bert, 50, of Newell, W. Va., poison because he was mean to her"

news-journal jan 19 1926

* "she lived with Jake Barnhart for four years at Hannibal, O., and Sisterville, W. Va. He died in an asylum."

Marysville journal-tribune jan 21 1926

* "It was decided she is insane at a hearing in probate court here yesterday and application to admit her into the hospital was announced last night. Two physicians adjudged her mentally irresponsible."
* John Ebert died nov 7 1925 in newell wv

the Urbana daily citizen jan 19 1926

* Laura "married Christy on January 5, less than two months after the death of Ebert. She left Harmon, she told police, when she learned he was her cousin."
* Laura "appeared stronger today after a threatened collapse last night."

the Dayton herald jan 15 1926

* refers to aforementioned Brooks as "County Prosecutor"
* "Following her arrest, Mrs. Christy was arraigned late yesterday and charged with murder. She entered a plea of not guilty."

the Akron beacon journal jan 19 1926

* "Woman Poison Queen Adds To Her Confession"
* during interrogation on jan 18 1926 Laura was "sobbing hysterically as question after question was snapped at her"
* Laura, referred to as "alleged murderess of William Christy", "revealed late Monday that she had administered poison to another of her husbands. She now places the number of her spouses at eight and relates that two are living."
* "In the confession purported to have been made by the woman Monday night she told how she had administered poison to John Ebert, 50, a pottery worker who died mysteriously on Nov. 7." "He was convalescing from the mumps when he died suddenly, police were told. Mrs. Christy is reported to have admitted she gave him arsenic."
* "Mrs. Christy included Charles Graham, East Liverpool pottery worker in her list of husbands. He is still living."

the journal news jan 15 1926

* Laura "was held in the county jail at Lisbon today, charged with the first degree murder" of christy
* "When arraigned yesterday Mrs. Christy pleaded not guilty and was held to the grand jury."
* about John Ebert: "Local officials today said his body might be exhumed to determine the cause of his death. Officials said he was supposed to have been the victim of lung congestion and mumps but at the time of his death his physician had not seen him for two days, having pronounced him well on the road to recovery."

the Dayton herald jan 21 1926

* "Undeniably happy and conversing exuberantly with her guards, Mrs. Laura Christy, self-confessed slayer of two of her eight former husbands, was taken to the Lima State hospital today. Characterized as a modern woman 'bluebeard,' Mrs. Christy will be kept under observation in Lima, and if improvement in her mental condition is noted she will be returned here to stand trial on charges of murder. The order committing the woman to the asylum was issued after alienists had pronounced her insane."
* Laura confessed to killing "John Ebert, a pottery worker, in similar fashion" to Christy

the evening review jan 21 1926 pages 1 and 8

* "Sheriff George Wright in charge of Prisoner." during Laura's transportation to lima, also accompanied by "D. K. Leyda, Wellsville, Pennsylvania railroad detective. She left Lisbon at 7 o'clock this morning. Another member of the party was William Clutter, 10-year-old Wellsville boy, who was sentenced to the boys' industrial school at Lancaster for the robbery of a Wellsville grocery store. Mrs. Christy, who was declared mentally irresponsible yesterday by Dr. A. J. Michaels and Dr. C. H. Bailey, both of East Liverpool, who examined her in probate court, made no statement before she left the county jail. '"I don't believe she realized what was being done with her,'" Sheriff Wright said."
* "The husband-slayer will be placed under observation in the Lima hospital for the first month or six weeks. Should she be found to be mentally responsible for her action at the close of this probationary period, she will be returned to Columbiana county for grand jury action. The Christy murder charge will stand, but the grand jury will not be called to investigate the case unless the woman is released from Lima. Hancock, W. Va., officials will make no attempt to extradite her to answer for the murder of John Ebert, Newell pottery worker, who died as the result of arsenic which she gave him in a capsule on the pretext that it was medicine, according to her own confession."

the Salem news jan 20 1926

* Laura "was adjudged insane during a lunacy inquest held by Drs. C. Hodge Bailey and Albert J. Michaels of East Liverpool as examining physicians."
* "A considerable portion of the examination of Mrs. Christy was in private."
* "She said that she learned to read and write from children in whose home she had worked as a servant. Mrs. Christy admitted that she had had trouble with her head for the last five years" "She could not give the day or the month of the time she was in court, meaning today. She said that she had been blind in one eye for five years and that the glasses which she is now wearing cost her 65 cents in a 5 and 10 cent store. The examining physicians said the glasses Mrs. Christy was wearing were nothing but clear glass."

the daily news-tribune jan 14 1926

* "His widow denies any knowledge of what caused his death."

the tribune jan 21 1926

* "She was adjudged insane yesterday by the Columbiana-co probate court."

news-journal jan 18 1926

* "Another touch of mystery was added today to the 30-year matrimonial career of Mrs. Laura Christy"
* "Mrs. Christy seemed brighter today, jail attendants reported, following a threatened nervous collapse last night."

the Salem news jan 18 1926 pages 1 and 3

* Laura "sobbed" during sheriff wright's questioning
* "She held her hands to her face and wept bitterly as she told a part of the story of her life"
* "Her eyelids did not open during the time she was being questioned by Sheriff Wright. She is blind in one eye, and the nerve over her eyes has been pronounced dead. From one eye she can see but a short distance, and always wears glasses."
* Laura said she "'must not have been in my right mind'" when she gave Christy arsenic, "And then the woman sobbed bitterly."
* Laura said her mom died "'When I was two years old. She died of smallpox in East Liverpool.'"
* when Laura was searched for weapons/poison after the interview before going back to her cell, "a $10 bill was found concealed."

the daily sentinel-tribune jan 19 1926

* "Convinced that the woman has an insatiable mania for killing, authorities today impanneled a sanity commission to examine Mrs. Laura Christy"
* Laura was "stubbornly defiant" as she "faced another barrage of questionnaires today."
* Laura says John Ebert "'treated me brutally. He was ill at the time and I fed him arsenic instead of the medicine prescribed by his physician.'"

chillicothe gazette jan 30 1926

* photos of Laura and William

the tribune feb 28 1926 pages 1 and 12

* "Prosecutor Robert M. Brookes of Columbiana-co had possession of the alleged confession made by Mrs. Christy"
* Laura was committed to the mental hospital on jan 1 1926
* "Dr. Charles H. Clark of the Ohio institution pronounced Mrs. Christy sane."

the evening review feb 23 1926 pages 1 and 8

* Laura "has no active mental trouble, but is feeble minded, it was declared today by Dr. Charles H. Clark, superintendent of the State Hospital for the Criminal Insane at Lima, where the woman was committed on Jan. 21, by Probate Judge Lodge Riddle, of Lisbon. Dr. Clark's statement followed a mental examination of the woman, who was adjudged insane by two East Liverpool physicians at Lisbon on January 20, a week after her arrest"
* '"I made a thorough examination of the woman, traced her history, checked up the story of her marriages and gave her an intelligence test, and I found that she has no active mental disorder, but she is feeble minded,'" said Dr. Clark. '"She has the mentality of a child between 9 and 10 years of age. She is feeble minded now and probably will be until she dies.'"
* "Despite Dr. Clark's report, Mrs. Christy will not be sent back to Columbiana county for trial on a first degree murder charge in connection with the death of Christy, unless a writ of habeas corpus is issued the physician said. '"I will not deport her,'" the hospital superintendent declared. '"She will remain at Lima until a writ is issued by a common pleas judge.'"
* "The murder charge, which, was filed in municipal court here by Chief of Police Hugh J. McDermott after Mrs. Christy was arrested as a suspect in the death of her eighth husband, still hangs over her head. However, the case has not been considered by the grand jury which does not meet until April. Mrs. Christy has been under close observation since her arrival at the Lima institution, according to Dr. Clark. Because many of her teeth are loose, it is planned to extract them, the superintendent said. Upon completion of this dental work, she will be assigned work in the hospital laundry. Since her confinement, Mrs. Christy, according to Dr. Clark, has reiterated her confession of administering arsenic to her late pastor husband, but she repudiated her story of giving poison to Ebert."

the evening review feb 27 1926

* "West Virginia today abandoned its threatened attempt to extradite Mrs. Laura E. Christy'"
* "Declaring it was '"strictly an Ohio case,'" Prosecuting Attorney Thomas E. Hoffman, of Weirton, at noon, announced that the body of John Ebert" "will not be disinterred."
* "As a result of this decision, reached at a conference in which Coroner George A. Arner of Chester and Dr. J. B. Ahouse of New Cumberland, county physician, participated, Mrs. Christy" "will remain in the Ohio State Hospital for the Criminally Insane at Lima."
* '"We have no actual case against Mrs. Christy,'" said Prosecutor Hoffman. '"I understand she made a confession to the Ohio authorities. If there is evidence of any crime, it is in the hands of the Columbiana county officials. However, West Virginia believes the woman is mentally incompetent, and we decided it would be a useless expense to bring her to trial.'"

the tribune feb 27 1926 pages 1 and 6

* Laura "will be extradited and taken to West Virginia for trial on a first degree murder charge. This announcement was made Friday by Prosecuting Attorney Thomas Huffman, of Wierton, West Virginia."
* "Mrs. Christy, who is believed beyond a doubt to be the woman who married Isaac Randles, Layland farmer, in Coshocton last summer, then deserted him two months later"
* "It is believed she had nine husbands, including Randles, instead of eight as she told officials."
* "Prosecutor Huffman instructed Coroner G. A. Arner of Chester, W. Va., to exhume the body of John Ebert" "This was to have been done today."
* "Both Randles and his son-in-law Harlan Brown" "are convinced that Mrs. Christy is the woman whom Randles took for his wife here last summer. Brown's interest was first aroused on seeing her picture in a newspaper. After reading stories of her life history, Brown was more certain than ever that she was the woman who married his father-in-law. Mrs. Christy, however, if she is Randles' wife, has not divulged his name."
* "When applying for a marriage license at the local bureau last summer Randles' bride represented herself to be a widow and gave her name as Elsie May Harmon. She gave her age as 46, her father's name as Gus Harmon and her mother's maiden name as Amelia Bennett. Her birthplace was given as East Liverpool. The license was issued on March 30, 1925. Randles is said to have met his wife thru a matrimonial bureau. The given names of Mrs. Christy and those of the woman who applied, with Randles, for a marriage license, differ, but this may be accounted for by the fact that she may have been feeble minded."
* "The fact that Mrs. Christy gave Athens, N. Y., as the home of Harmon, one of her husbands, also lends strength to the supposition that she and the woman who married Randles are one and the same woman. After living with Randles on the farm at Layland for two months, the wife told Randles she had to go back to Athens, N. Y., to '"see about some furniture'" and take care of some money left her by a aunt who had died. Altho she never returned, Randles received a letter from her some time later in which she stated that she had work in East Liverpool and would stay there. Randles has talked of getting a divorce, but has not yet done so."
* "Prosecuting Attorney Thomas Hoffman" "today will essay the role of possible Nemesis to Mrs. Laura E. Christy" "when he will confer with Coroner George A. Arner" "on the first step to bring her to New Cumberland, W. Va., to face trial"

the evening review mar 9 1926

* "The Hancock county grand jury, meeting yesterday in New Cumberland, W. Va., refused to take any action against Mrs. Laura E. Christy"

the evening review oct 21 1926 pages 1 and 8

* Laura "hopes to acquire another husband if she is released from the state hospital for the criminal insane at Lima, according to Dan W. Gallagher, Cleveland newspaperman."
* refers to Laura as a "'woman bluebeard'"
* Laura "has had all her teeth extracted, but she has $120 of the late Christy's money to pay for a new set of molars. And she is keeping her hair bobbed with the view of attracting admirers if ultimately given her freedom."
* dan Gallagher said*:* '"Mrs. Christy is Ohio's most unique ward. And she made a most terrible mistake when she confessed she poisoned Christy. For I discovered that examination of the contents of the stomach of Christy, conducted by state chemists at Columbus, revealed no trace of poison whatsoever.'"
* acc to dan Gallagher, Laura referred to the home she shared with William Christy as a "'honeymoon shack'"
* dan Gallagher said: "She said that in the case of Christy she purchased 25 cents worth of arsenic at an East Liverpool drug store and made use of it encompassing his death. She then drew from the bank what money he had placed in their joint account - she supplying not even a dollar - then engaged a room in a house adjoining undertaking parlors so as to watch the body of her murdered mate being brought to the place next door. Now then: Since the druggist insists he never sold her poison and the state chemists found no traces of poison in Christy's viscera, the question arises: '"What caused Christy's death?'" He was buried as a murder victim. Her confession was accepted upon all sides. Had she been indicted and put upon trial for her life, the case would have fallen flat, due to the chemists' findings. On the other hand, due to her confession and the commitment papers, Laura Christ, sane, according to Dr. Clark, is mingling daily with insane women. The place for her, according to Dr. Clark, is in a home for the feeble minded and not in a hospital for the insane. I found Laura strolling along the corridor in the direction of pavilion twenty, where twenty or more out and out insane women are quartered. She is employed in the laundry by day is locked up with these poor unfortunates at night. Attendants are on duty in this pavilion at all hours. Laura now denies that she killed Eberts. Institution records reveal that she still insists that Christy met death at her hands. I asked her how she was getting along. '"If I can't go free I'd just as soon be here as in some other institution,'" she said.'" '"Would you wed again if given your liberty?'" I asked. '"Well, I might if I could find the right kind of a man. I might say that I still have hopes in that direction, that is, if they only let me out of here. My eyesight is bothering me. I busted my horn-rimmed glasses. But other than that I feel fine. And I'll look just as nice as ever when I get my new teeth. I haven't a tooth in my head right now. I've had 'em all pulled.'" Laura may have been attractive in her girlhood. But such isn't the case now. She is of tremendous girth. She looks better than when I interviewed her at Lisbon last January. But how she won husband after husband is quite beyond me. I informed her I have received a letter from a man residing in Killbuck, O., informing me he had married her in January, 1925, thus making him her sixth husband and that she left him in June of that year, telling him she was going to East Liverpool 'to get her furniture,' after which she wrote him she had no intention of returning. '"That isn't true,'" she said. 'If he says I married him, he is mistaken I was never in Killbuck in my life. I don't know any one having that name. He's away off when he says I am the woman he married.' So I let it go at that."

the coshocton tribune nov 2 1927

* "Summons in an action for divorce filed in probate court by Isaac Randles, Layland, have been served to Mrs. Elsie Randles, otherwise known as Laura Christy"
* "The woman says she does not know Randles and is not his wife, W. H. Vorban, superintendent of the hospital, said in a letter to Probate Judge L. N. Staats."
* "Randles was the woman's sixth husband, the couple having been married by Rev. C. J. McGee, pastor of the local United Brethren church, on March 30, 1925. She left Randles on June 16 and was not heard from again until her arrest"
* "Harlan Brown, this city, a son-in-law of Randles, read the newspaper stories of Mrs. Christy's killings at that time and recognized her picture which was shown as part of the account. Mrs. Christy's life history tallied perfectly with that of the woman who married Randles and left him two months later. Randles met his bride-to-be thru a matrimonial agency and they were married at Brown's home, making their home on the former's farm at Layland. Telling her husband that she must return to her former home in Athens, New York, to "'see about some furniture'" and to straighten out matters relating to some money left her by an aunt who had died. Mrs. Randles left two months later. She did not return and some time later Randles received a letter from her in which she stated that she had work in East Liverpool and would not come back."
* "In his divorce action started last week, Randles charges his wife obtained, by false pretenses, all the money she could get from him, then left home. She is charged with gross neglect of duty. Attorney R. B. McDermott is representing Randles in his action."

title idea from the Akron beacon journal jan 19 1926