You really didnt see that one coming. Nannie W. Doss (Austin) (1872 - 1945) - Genealogy Samuel disapproved of the romance novels and stories that his wife adored. Both Nannie and her mother hated James, who was a controlling and abusive father and husband. Nannie Doss (born Nancy Hazel; November 4, 1905 - June 2, 1965) was an American serial killer responsible for the deaths of 11 people between some time in the 1920s and 1954. All you wanted was for her to read a good book and to get rid of those trashy magazines. Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of serial killers in the United States, List of serial killers by number of victims, "Only in Oklahoma: Black widow enjoyed the limelight", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Nannie_Doss&oldid=1151423541, American people who died in prison custody, American prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment, Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by Oklahoma, Serial killers who died in prison custody, Articles needing additional references from November 2017, All articles needing additional references, Pages using infobox criminal with motive parameter, Articles needing additional references from June 2020, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 23 April 2023, at 23:50. The couple married when Doss was 16, just five months after meeting. Under his orders, an autopsy was performed and they found a large amount of arsenic in his system. At the age of seven, Nannie Doss fell forward while on a train and her head collided with the floor. Black Widow: The True Story of Giggling Granny Nannie Doss In the summer of 1928, Braggs came back with Melvina, a new love interest and her own child. While Braggs was an attentive father, his relationship with his wife did not improve at all. Exhausted from the labour and still groggy from the ether, Melvina thought that she saw her mother kill her daughter by sticking a hairpin into the newborns head. He thanks you for reading his content. He drank without inhibition and one night, after returning home completely intoxicated, raped Doss. In 1945, Harrelson raped Nannie. Harrelson was next on the murderers list. He would not let his children attend school but forced them to serve as farm-hands. Her parents were Louisa "Lou" (ne Holder) and James F. Hazel. Nannie's eldest, Melvina, gave birth to Robert Lee Haynes in 1943. She was just getting started. In time, a bitter mother-in-law and a horde of screaming offspring were more than they could handle. One such pen pal was Sam Doss, who would become her fifth husband. 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? She was also known as the Giggling Granny, the Lonely Hearts Killer, the Black Widow, and Lady Blue Beard. Often referred to as The Giggling Granny or The Jolly Widow, Nannie Doss did not instill fear in her victims. 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. 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. Despite this, she maintained her cheerful disposition throughout her life, often making jokes about her case. They married in 1952 in Emporia, Kansas. Nannie Helen Burroughs: Advocate and Businesswoman - ThoughtCo This biography provides detailed information about her childhood, life, achievements, works & timeline. Most were none the wiser, even when the home they shared burned down seemingly randomly. Often referred to as "The Giggling Granny" or "The Jolly Widow", Nannie Doss did not instill fear in her victims. Samuel was neither an alcoholic nor abusive nor a womaniser. Despite this, the marriage lasted 16 years. Meanwhile, Doss took out insurance worth $500 on Robert. Melvina vaguely remembered watching her mother stick a hatpin in the head of the infant as Melvina faded in and out of conciousness. Doss believed in true love and romance, and she wasnt willing to wait to find it. Nannie Doss was an American serial killer who killed 11 people. He was treated and released on October 5. Meet Nannie Doss; The Giggling Granny who Killed people in search of Nannie Doss: Lonely Hearts Lady Loved Her Man To Death Geringer, Joseph. She and Braggs worked together at the Linen Thread Company in nearby Anniston. 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. She then lived with her sister, Dovie Frances Hazel Weaver, who was bedridden at the time. Your Honor, the Plea is Guilty - Tulsa World Whenever she came back, she played the role of a doting wife perfectly. Unfortunately, she was able to kill multiple innocent victims before she was finally snatched by the police. He showed flu-like symptoms and the diagnosis was a severe digestive tract infection. Doss was 16 years old when she married her first husband, Charley Braggs, after knowing him only for four months. It was here that she met Frank Harrelson, whom she married in 1929. Nannie Doss, under arrest in Tulsa, Oklahoma, November 1954. Nannie Doss is escorted for a court appearance in 1955 after confessing to poisoning four of her five husbands, including Samuel Doss of Tulsa. To Doss, Mrs. Braggs was not all that different from her terrifying father. Throwback Tulsa: Charming, friendly Nannie Doss poisoned four husbands However, at first, no one was the least bit suspicious. Two years after Lanning's death, Doss met and married Richard Morton. Check out this biography to know about his childhood, life, crimes and other facts about him. During her marriage to Morton, Doss already had began to correspond with new men. While in these unpleasant circumstances, Nannie allegedly turned on her own grandchildren. Bodies of her victims were exhumed and found to contain alarming amounts of poison. After being in jail for two years, she stated that she would have preferred the death sentence. Doss then met Arlie Lanning through an advertisement in the local lonely hearts column. 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. She smiled and laughed all the time. Doss was born Nancy Hazel on November 4, 1905, in Blue Mountain, Alabama, the United States. trutv.com. Biography Timeline. No one else was ever charged. Check out this biography to know about her birthday, childhood, family life, achievements and fun facts about her. Charley Braggs and Doss had four children together from 1921 to 1927. She was also suspected of killing her granddaughter, and two of her four children with Braggs. Braggs often would not be home for days on end. Within months, Sam Doss was in the hospital with a digestive tract infection. Joyce Meyer is a Christian author and speaker. Check out this biography to know more about her family, personal life, including her age, birthday, etc. She soon realised, however, that Lanning was an alcoholic womaniser like Harrelson. [1] Doss was also referred to as the Giggling Granny, the Lonely Hearts Killer, the Black Widow, and Lady Blue Beard.[2]. But it does make you wonder if all of it could have been prevented if not for that childhood train injury. Im so excited for this post because I have not yet researched a female serial killer. To make matters worse, as she talked to the police about each of the people she had killed, she smiled and giggled. Sep 15, 1945, Frank Harrelson dies. Nannie Doss was born in 1905 into a family of farmers in Alabama. You take a nap, not expecting to wake up anytime soon. Irma Grese was a notorious German Nazi concentration camp guard during the Second World War. Once in your nice, comfortable house, everything is peaceful. The happy couple lived with Braggs' mother, but she had the same abusive type of behavior as Doss' father. Then, her two year old grandson died by asphyxiation while in her care. A huge fan of newspaper classifieds, Nannie Doss began looking for a third husband shortly after the murder of her second. A native of Alabama, Nannie grew up with four siblings in a town near Jacksonville. Your stomach is absolutely killing you, and what is really weird is that you are also drooling everywhere. Nannie Doss is credited with killing at least 11 people. Doss grew up reading her mothers romance magazines and wished for a fairytale future. They got married that year. Just a year after her divorce, Doss married her second husband. Reverend Samuel Luther Doss's Timeline. However, despite these events, her marriage to Frank lasted. She was one of five children, including one brother and three sisters. But Doss wasnt finished killing there. After a few months of courtship, they married and moved in with his unhappy and unpleasant mother. Nannie Doss life of murder did not start with Arlie Lanning. Candi Fisher is best known as the ex-wife of American college football coach and former player Jimbo Fisher. Turns out what your spouse wanted was for you to be dead and to collect on those two insurance policies. You wake up wearing a hospital gown in a bed at the hospital with a doctor looming over you. Doss, Nannie - Encyclopedia of Alabama The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers to this website may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Meanwhile, Doss took out insurance worth $500 on Robert. Perhaps it was her mother-in-law that kickstarted Doss murdering spree. The Nannie Doss case in the mid 1950s is being featured on Japanese television as one of the five most unusual murder cases in the world. Nannie's story begins in Blue Mountain, Alabama. She soon realised, however, that Lanning was an alcoholic womaniser like Harrelson. Nancy Doss (Hazel) (1905 - 1965) - Genealogy Braggs always maintained he left her because he was frightened of her. She soon confessed to killing four of her five ex-husbands, but not her family members. For years to follow, she suffered with depression, headaches, and blackouts. Nannie killed him that evening in her rush to collect the two life insurance policies she had taken out on him. This sudden death alerted his doctor, who ordered an autopsy. Check out this biography to know about her childhood, family, personal life, crimes, etc. Before they had time to figure out what happened, they were dead. Her father didnt treat her or her siblings well and made them stay home to work around the house instead of going to school like the other kids in town. According to Braggs later statement, when he left for work the girls seemed healthy but they were crying while he was leaving and reportedly died in convulsions soon after having breakfast. Nannie was sentenced to life in prison. 2023 The Arena Media Brands, LLC and respective content providers on this website. I was searching for the perfect mate, the real romance in life.. The state of Oklahoma centered its case only on Samuel Doss. https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/nannie-doss-41380.php. Lanning died in 1950 from what was thought to be heart failure and townspeople came out in support of his widow. That night, Robert died in his sleep of asphyxia. Within hours of his return, Doss had served him a port roast dinner with a cup of coffee laced with arsenic. Thats one of your absolute favorite treats. Doss mother needed a caretaker after she fell and broke a hip in 1953 after her father passed away. He courted her with poetry; she wrote passionate letters and sent him a cake and a photograph of herself. Skai Jackson is an American child actress with huge fan following. Doss collected $500 dollars on an insurance policy she had placed on the boy. A True Crime Story: Nannie Doss - Her Campus Under his orders, an autopsy was performed and they found a large amount of arsenic in his system. 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. See, there was a secret ingredient in both that cake and that coffee that you werent aware of: generous doses of arsenic. Rather, she killed quietly with poison, letting victims believe they were getting sick. She was never prosecuted for the other murders, but many believe she was responsible for at least 11 deaths. Arlie was poisoned to death by 1950. She died in prison in 1964. In January 1953, Doss mother, Lou, moved in with them after her husbands death. Since most of her husbands had other underlying health issues such as alcoholism or heart conditions, doctors and authorities never suspected a thing. He did not allow non-educational, non-enlightening TV shows and magazines in the house and disliked the romance novels and stories that his wife adored. The next day, she put rat poison in Harrelson's corn whiskey jar, and he died that evening. He was dead before midnight. Authorities question Nannie Doss about her crimes. For a while at least, Nannie seemed to care for her like a good daughter. Nannie Doss was arrested in 1954. In 1945, after the end of the World War II, The United States of America was in a full celebratory mood. It wasnt until 1945 when he came home drunk and became particularly violent that Nannie decided Franks time was up. Nannies final victim was Samuel Doss, who has already been mentioned in detail. Killing Spree of Nannie Doss You might like: Doss could not provide any reasonable explanation. Doss earned her nickname, Giggling Granny, because of her smiling and giggling as she discussed her crimes with the authorities. She was anxious all the time and soon enough, started drinking. The woman died in her sleep. This was also the time two of their children died not long after eating, though at the time it was thought to be due to food poisoning. Your head is pounding and you cant think except to run to the bathroom where you have nonstop and explosive diarrhea. Doss even had a surprising motive for killing her male companions. She found a replacement of her own rather quickly. On July 7, 1945, he died from asphyxiation and within two months after his death, Doss cashed in on Roberts insurance. She would later develop a special love for the lonely hearts column. The Story Of Nannie Doss, The Giggling Granny Who Spent Decades Murdering Relatives And Husbands. Before she left with her spoils, Nannie is suspected of doing one more terrible deed. Doss was born Nancy Hazel on November 4, 1905, in Blue Mountain, Alabama, the United States. Despite having grown up on reading romances and dreaming of falling in love, she was married at the . She still found faults in him. HubPages is a registered trademark of The Arena Platform, Inc. Other product and company names shown may be trademarks of their respective owners. However, the arrangement soon proved to be troublesome as most of Braggs time was taken up by his mother. Nannie Doss was born in 1905, and she was arrested 50 years later. You sigh contentedly and wash it down with a large thermos of coffee. Doss would later tell police he had come home drunk and raped her and she reacted by putting rat poison in his corn whiskey jar the next day. However, she was spared the electric chair due to her obvious insanity. Nannie Doss was born in 1905 into a family of farmers in Alabama. The next day, Doss discovered onez of Harrelsons liquor bottles in the flower bed. The Giggling Granny - ALABAMA HERITAGE Officers found Doss's demeanor surprising; rather than act with the harsh stoicism of a murderer, she flirted and giggled with the policemen, possibly demonstrating some of the skills that won her five husbands, four of whom she killed. CENSUS RECORDS: 1930 Lynchburg, Virginia. Despite having grown up on reading romances and dreaming of falling in love, she was married at the age of sixteen to a man she had only known for four months. Nannie then moved in with her sister Dovie. In the ensuing years, Doss gave birth to four daughters. She married her newest groom, the doomed Richard Morton, in Kansas. He and Doss divorced soon after and she and her two daughters moved in with her mother. Nannie Doss - The Serial Box - Pennsylvania State University In the ensuing years, Doss gave birth to four daughters. Doss was sentenced to life in prison, where she died of leukemia in 1965. Background and First Two Husbands of Nannie Doss And be a bit careful about money. Nannie disapproved of him, and while Melvina was visiting her father after a particularly nasty fight with her mother, her son Robert died mysteriously under Nannie's care on July 7, 1945. Braggs must have known something was wrong with their deaths, because he left, taking the oldest daughter with him. During the journey, the train suddenly ceased moving and she hit her head on a metal bar on the seat opposite of her. According to Braggs later statement, when he left for work the girls seemed healthy but they were crying while he was leaving and reportedly died in convulsions soon after having breakfast. Samuel died on October 12, 1954. Alarmed at his sudden passing, Samuel's doctors ordered an autops to be performed. This time, it was Doss who would often vanish for prolonged periods. TruTv Crime Library. In contrast to her later years, she was rarely laughing as a child. She was a year older than he was. Soon, Dovies condition began to worsen, and it wasnt long before she, too, died in her sleep. He was her only son and she was unmarried at the time so Doss had to accept it. However, I am going to be outlining one of those exceptions, Nannie Doss. By the time Samuel and Nannie met, she had years of poisoning experience, so its a surprise that her prune cake missed its mark. Her husband went away with their oldest living child and didnt return until the following year. TruTv Crime Library. 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. Because after a simple marital spat, that would be weird, right? Her casual smoking habit turned into a heavy addiction. He was the lucky one. However, the relationship had several issues right from the beginning, mostly due to Harrelsons alcoholism and violent temper. People assumed he died of food poisoning. In 1927, the couple lost their two middle girls to suspected food poisoning. Doss was a Nazarene minister who had lost his family to a tornado in Carroll County, Arkansas. Doss confessed to killing four of her husbands, her mother, her sister, her grandson, and her mother-in-law. While Braggs was an attentive father, his relationship with his wife did not improve at all. Fortunately, his murder was her last one, and upon her arrest, they uncovered large amounts of damaging evidence. Once a newspaper called her a "self-made . For example, she claimed to be sick and tired of doing laundry at the prison. Doss's oldest daughter, Melvina, had a child in 1943 and another in 1945. Braggs took his older daughter, Melvina, with him and left a newborn, Florine, with his ex-wife and mother. Harrelson was no different. He spent 23 days in the hospital before returning home. In January 1953, Doss mother, Lou, moved in with them after her husbands death. Nannie Doss was born in 1905, and she was arrested 50 years later. But she made a grave mistake. Exhausted from labor and groggy from ether, Melvina thought she saw her visiting mother stick a hatpin into the baby's head. Nannies father died and so her mother came to live with the couple, which brought its own series of problems. Doss, 24, and Harrelson, 23, got married soon after meeting and after sixteen years, Harrelson died. Doss is thought to have committed her first murders in 1927, when her two young daughters died of suspected food poisoning. She would later blame her mental instability on the accident. Until you do, approximately half an hour later. Her decades-long killing spree ended with the death of her fifth husband, Samuel Doss. Nannie Doss died in prison in 1964 while serving a life sentence for the murder of her last husband. Instead, after she pleaded guilty on May 17, 1955, she was sentenced to life imprisonment. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Nannie Doss was an American serial killer who was convicted and sentenced to life in prison after murdering 11 people between the 1920s and 1954. Both Nannie and her mother despised James because of his controlling behaviour towards every member of the family. But behind the happy facade was a trail of death and murder that lasted from the 1920s to 1954.

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