Belle with three of her children, likely Myrtle, Lucy, and Philip. Sure, I worked for Mrs. Gunness for a time, but I didnt see her kill anybody, and I didnt know she had killed anybody., But on his deathbed, Lamphere changed his tune. Little is known about her early life. It was claimed that her head was decapitated and her home set on fire. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. Belle Gunness was one of the first "Black Widows" and became a prolific serial killer. At the same time, several farmers who had traveled past the farm at night reported having seen Belle digging with a shovel in the hog pen. On May 22, 1908, Ray Lamphere was tried for murder and arson. Triflers need not apply. When first interrogated as to his whereabouts on the night of the fire, Lamphere claimed that he was in the company of an [African-American woman] named Mrs. Elizabeth Smith until 4 a.m., or one-half hour after the fire started, but he subsequently confessed that he burned the . He also swore to the reverend, as well as a fellow convict, that he had not murdered anyone. Meanwhile, neighbors noted that Gunness had begun to spend an unusual amount of time at her hog pen at night. However, when he was introduced to Andrew Hegelian Belles new husband-to-be, he made a scene, and Belle promptly fired him on February 3, 1908. She told them Gurholt had gone off with horse traders to Chicago. Her adopted daughter Jennie's body would also be found on Belle's property. The woman in the fire was approximately 5 3 tall and weighed about 125 pounds, significantly smaller than Belle Gunness. She kept his trunk and fur overcoat. The two once apparently had a relationship, but Lamphere had left in a jealous rage after Helgelien arrived. She wanted the ground made level, so he filled in the depressions. On the morning of April 27, 1908, the farmhand on a lonely property outside La Porte, Indiana, woke to the smell of smoke. What's even more terrifying is that Gunness was never properly caught or discovered. So far, Belle Gunness had been able to largely escape detection or suspicion. At the time of her supposed death in 1908, Gunness lived on a farm in LaPorte, IN. Curiously, the corpse itself seemed to be much too small to be hers. However, word soon spread that her relationship with Lamphere was more than strictly professional. Even DNA tests that were done decades later from envelopes that Gunness licked were unable to definitively answer if she had died in the fire. Sorenson died suddenly of a cerebral hemorrhage. Her actual fate is unconfirmed. Older children (Caroline and Axel) die in infancy, and also from abdominal pain. You, the sweetest man in the whole world. However, by the time anyone suspected Gunness in their deaths, they'd been dead for decades and their suspected murderer had vanished. Belle Sorenson Gunness (born as Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth; November 11, 1859 - April 28, 1908) was a Norwegian-American serial killer. [citation needed], Belle Gunness was pronounced dead, even though the doctor who performed the postmortem testified that the headless body was five inches shorter and about fifty pounds lighter than Gunness. 4/27/1908 49 Belle writes last will and testament. [12] With these discoveries, the perceptions of Belle Gunness, as reported in newspaper descriptions of a praiseworthy womandying in the fire that consumed her house, "in a desperate attempt to save her children"were reassessed. They then found the small bodies of two unidentified children. Little is known about her early life. Belle Gunness was born Brynhild Paulsdatter Storset on November 11, 1859, in Selbu, Norway. Although he almost left, Helgelien became convinced that he couldnt do so without looking harder for Andrew. This is a story that will shock you more than most, because of t .more Get A Copy Kindle Unlimited $0.00 Amazon Stores Biography claims that the remains of at least 40 men and children were found on Gunness' farm. He had romantic feelings for Gunness and resented all the men that showed up at her property. We shall be so happy when you once get here, Gunness purred in one letter. By 1886, she was married to a man named Mads Sorensen, had somehow wound up with an unknown number of children (although whether they were the couple's natural children or foster children remains unclear), and the family was running a failing candy shop. Born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth in Norway, Belle Gunness moved to the United States in 1881 at the age of 22. Within a week, he had disappeared. The Line-UP No replies by letter considered unless sender is willing to follow answer with a personal visit. To lure her last victim, Gunness wrote: My heart beats in wild rapture for you, My Andrew, I love you. Gunness, according to Lamphere, had drugged the woman, then bashed in her head. Gunness deflected. An autopsy was considered unnecessary because the death was not thought suspicious. The man, who came from a wealthy family, was never prosecuted by the Norwegian authorities. I think of you constantly. Authorities found the bodies of Gunness three children in the charred rubble of the farmhouse basement. Together, they owned and operated a confectionary store and before long, had four children: Caroline, Axel, Myrtle, and Lucy. 35: Belle Gunness. Storset then married Peter Gunness, in 1901; a week later, his infant son from a previous marriage was dead under suspicious circumstances. Belle Gunness, born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth (November 11, 1859[3] possibly April 28, 1908), nicknamed Hell's Belle,[1] was a Norwegian-American serial killer who was active in Illinois and Indiana between 1884 and 1908. Who Was Belle Gunness? Gunness had a system. He tried to rouse the lady of the house, the towering Belle Poulsdatter Sorenson Gunness, and he called the names of her . Serial killer Belle Gunness is reported to have murdered more than 40 people between 1884 and 1908 before disappearing without a trace. [1] According to Lamphere, this impending visit motivated Gunness to destroy her house, fake her own death, and flee. The investigators had previously checked her bank accounts, and though a small amount was remaining in one of her savings accounts, the money in all other accounts had been completely withdrawn shortly before the fire, suggesting that the evil woman had created a great hoax and evaded the law. While there, she was attacked by a man who kicked her in the abdomen, causing her to miscarry. Reading Gunness' plodding letters to Andrew, it is plain that "soaring" and "rapture" were not her style. The former handyman also stated that Belle had become a very rich woman. Stephanie Brooks. status aspirations. These are famous words by the convicted serial killer Aileen Wuornos who was put to death by lethal injection on October 9, 2002. Gunness had insured both of the children and collected a large insurance check after each death. Her birth name was Brynhild Paulsdatter Storset. She may have killed both of her husbands and all of her children (on different occasions), but she is known to have killed . At 5'8" ft tall and over 200 lb (91 kg), she was a physically strong woman. [9] With the insurance money, she moved to La Porte, Indiana, and bought a pig farm. When I hear your name mentioned, and this is when one of the dear children speaks of you, or I hear myself humming it with the words of an old love song, it is beautiful music to my ears. [citation needed][14] However, a separate newspaper published a story with speculation regarding the second Lamphere confession. On-site was County Sheriff Albert Smutzer, who had heard about Lampheres alleged threats. The next thing she knew, her husband was dead. Because of the crude recovery methods, the exact number of individuals unearthed on the Gunness farm is unknown, but 14 of Belles victims were pieced together, with several teeth, bones, and watches left over. There, Gunness met her first known victim her husband, Mads Ditlev Anton Sorenson, whom she married in 1884. Lamphere was later linked to the fire at Gunness farm. Belle Gunness. He was found guilty of arson, but cleared of murder. Then, learn about Leonarda Cianciulli, the serial killer who turned her victims into soap and teacakes. She told him that she had fired her jealous farmhand, Lamphere, which caused him to go mad. He had with him $1,000 from an insurance company and had borrowed money from several investors. As the investigation was ongoing, Asle Helgelien arrived in La Porte from South Dakota and told Sheriff Smutzer that he believed his brother, Andrew, had met with foul play at Gunnesss hands. [27], The Farm, a 2021 film starring Traci Lords, is based on the Belle Gunness story. Belle Gunness was born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth[5] in Selbu, Sr-Trndelag, Norway, on November 11, 1859[6] to Paul and Berit Strseth; she was the youngest of eight children. Though her husbands family demanded an inquiry, claiming Belle had poisoned her husband to collect on the insurance, no charges were filed. Lamphere later confessed that Gunness had placed advertisements seeking male companionship, only to murder and rob the men who responded and subsequently visited her on the farm. The April 28, 1908, fire at Gunness' farm seems to have shut the book on the Norwegian immigrant's murder spree, inasmuch as she was never heard from again and was, initially at least, presumed dead. In her letters, Gunness had asked her mark to bring all of his money and not tell anyone what he was up to. For these reasons and others, it's impossible to say how many people Gunness murdered. Standing six feet tall and weighing over 200 pounds, she was a physically strong woman. By the time her crimes were discovered at her burnt-out pig farm in 1908, her tally of victims had risen to at least 12, and possibly as high as 40. Only one person seemed to be catching on to Gunness habits: her foster daughter Jennie Olsen. Soon enough, the shop burned down, and the couple collected a nice insurance payment. That man is out to get me, Gunness told the attorney. Brynhild P. Strseth was born in Norway in 1859 to a stone-mason and his wife. [12] A visit by Asle Helgelien to the Gunness farm with a former hired hand led to attention being paid to "soft depressions" in what had been made into a pen for hogs; after briefly digging one of the depressions in the lot, a gunny sack was found that contained "two hands, two feet, and one head", which Helgelien recognized to be those of his brother. [7], John Moe of Minnesota answered Gunness's ad in 1906. She then bought toys for her children and two gallons of kerosene. Thomas Lindboe had left Chicago and had gone to work as a hired man for Gunness three years earlier. Ray Lamphere, Gunness's hired hand, was arrested for murder and arson on May 22, 1908. T.J. Tiefland of Minneapolis is alleged to have come to see Gunness in 1907. Whether Gunness died in that fire remains unclear. Three were identified as her foster children. Sorenson died of cerebral hemorrhage that day. All told, the remains of more than forty men and children were exhumed. Soon afterward, Olsen vanished. At first, investigators believed the bodies to be Belle Gunness and her three children: Myrtle, age eleven, Lucy, age nine; and Phillip, age five. She introduced them as cousins from Kansas, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and from Chicago She was always careful to make the children stay away from her cousins.'. Belle Gunness (also known as Lady Bluebeard, The LaPorte Black Widow, The Mistress . Chares Neiburg, a 28-year-old Scandinavian immigrant living in Philadelphia, told friends that he would visit Gunness in June 1906 and never returned he had been working for a saloon keeper and took $500 with him. She wanted something more and soon began to look for new suitors by inserting the following advertisement in the lovelorn column of newspapers in large midwestern cities: Personal Comely widow who owns a large farm in one of the finest districts in La Porte County, Indiana, desires to make the acquaintance of a gentleman equally well provided, with view of joining fortunes. [1] Gunness is thought to have killed at least fourteen people, most of whom were men she enticed to visit her rural Indiana property through personal advertisements, while some sources speculate her involvement in as many as forty murders. And, worse, according to Lamphere, if she was overly tired, she would chop up the remains and feed them to the hogs. Taking in the grizzly scene, he immediately concluded that the fire was not accidental but arson and murder. We will be all alone with each other. To outsiders, Belle Gunness might have looked like a lonely widow who lived in the American Midwest during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Norwegian born Belle Gunness immigrated to the U.S. in 1881. Budsbergs sons had no idea their father had gone off to visit Gunness. Second husband, Peter (Peder) Gunness. This photo dates to about 1904. Also unclear is how many victims Gunness had killed. Belle Gunness. She was also known as Hell's Belle, the . [citation needed][17][18] The Bechly narrative, entitled "Lanphere's Confession" [sic], contains this summary from Bechly: In the confession, Lanphere [sic] said that he had killed Mrs. Gunness and children with an ax, sprinkled the bodies with kerosene and set fire to them and the house. Belle Gunness stood six foot tall and had a hard look to her strong face. What followed were a series of insurance frauds and crimes, escalating in size and danger. He quickly jumped out of bed and threw on his clothes. In 1881, at the age of 21, she moved to the United States in search of wealth and gave herself the Americanized name of Bella (Belle) Petersen. However, there was a rather glaring problem with their conclusion: the body of the adult was headless not something that generally happens in a fire. It read: To the Dearest Friend in the World: No woman in the world is happier than I am. And before long, the widowed Gunness was a widow no longer. Gunness caught Bruce's attention as a young girl who grew up just north of Selbu. Benjamin Carling of Chicago, Illinois, was last seen by his wife in 1907 after telling her that he was going to La Porte to secure an investment with a wealthy widow. [1] Lamphere stated that Gunness asked him to burn down the farmhouse with her children inside. Over 40 victims had been found, including lovers, her husbands, and even her own children. They also found the body of a headless woman who, at first, they assumed was Belle Gunness. In what may be a rather cruel bit of irony, some of her letters invited the men to "come prepared to stay forever," according to SyFy. [11] Further investigation unearthed the partial remains of at least 11 additional people on the Gunness property. One of these men was John Moe, who arrived from Elbow Lake, Minnesota. Belle Gunness, born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth (November 11, 1859 [3] - possibly April 28, 1908), nicknamed Hell's Belle, [1] was a Norwegian-American serial killer who was active in Illinois and Indiana between 1884 and 1908. Concurrently, Gunness had begun to develop problems with a farmhand named Ray Lamphere. On November 5, 2007, with the permission of descendants of Belles sister, the headless body was exhumed from the grave by a team of forensic anthropologists and graduate students from the University of Indianapolis to learn her true identity. Belle Gunness. Then, on July 30, 1900, tragedy struck again. My heart beats in wild rapture for you, My Andrew, I love you. But as was the case with the candy store, Gunness and Sorenson were able to pocket the insurance money. Either way, the twice-widowed Gunness began posting personal ads in Norwegian-language newspapers to find a new companion. [7], Belle married Peter Gunness on April 1, 1902. John Moe was the first of many disappeared men; he left his farm in Minnesota and brought one thousand dollars with him as requested by Gunness. . She immigrated to the United States, where she lured her victims to her remote farm in Indiana. Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of fugitives from justice who disappeared, List of serial killers in the United States, List of serial killers by number of victims, "Kirkebker: SAT, Ministerialprotokoller, klokkerbker og fdselsregistre - Sr-Trndelag, 695/L1147: Ministerialbok nr. One lucky man named George Anderson survived the encounter. When drinking, Lamphere often boasted of sleeping with his employer, which came as a surprise to those who only saw Belle as the burly woman who liked to dress in mens overalls and do her own hog butchering. Then, in 1881, following her sisters example, who had emigrated to America earlier, Brynhild moved to the United States, where she assumed a more American-style name. On November 26, 1908, he was sentenced to two to 21 years in the State Prison in Michigan City, Indiana. An unnamed man from Montana told people at a resort he was going to sell Gunness his horse and buggy, which were found with several other horses and buggies at the farm. [6] When she was processed by immigration at Castle Garden, she changed her first name to Belle, then travelled to Chicago to join her sister, Nellie, who had immigrated several years earlier. Two people who had known Gunness claimed to recognize her from photographs in her possession, but the identification was never proved. Lamphere was later linked to the fire at Gunness farm. Adopted daughter Jennie Olsen. But he awoke one night to a terrifying sight Gunness leaning over his bed as he slept. He never returned for his belongings, nor did he ever speak to Gunness again. [20] The inconsistencies between the two confessions, including the matter of the survival of Belle Gunness, remain historical issues that are not fully resolved. Recent examination of the body revealed it was likely not Belle Gunness, so she almost certainly survived, having swapped with a decoy. [1] On April 27, 1908, Belle Gunness went to see an attorney in La Porte. But, for one reason or another, Gunness decided to emigrate from Selbu to Chicago in 1881. She died of tuberculosis while awaiting trial. Though her husband's family demanded an inquiry, no charges were filed. John H. McJunkin of Coraopolis (near Pittsburgh) left his wife in December 1906 after corresponding with a La Porte woman. Belle began putting the following ad in out-of-state newspapers: "Comely widow who owns a large farm in one of the finest districts in La . Belle also began posting notices in lovelorn columns to entice wealthy men to her farm, after which they were never seen again. Ted Bundy's reason for killing. On April 28, 1908, a fire destroyed a family farm near La Porte, Indiana. She also seemed to spend a lot of money on wooden trunks which witnesses said she could lift like a box of marshmallows. Meanwhile, men showed up one by one at her door and then kept vanishing without a trace. [12], Immediate inspection of the site revealed that there were dozens of such "slumped depressions" in the Gunness yard, and further digging and investigation at the site yielded multiple burlap sacks containing "torsos and hands, arms hacked from the shoulders down, masses of human bone wrapped in loose flesh that dripped like jelly", from trash-covered depressions that proved to be graves. [4] Gunness seemingly died in a fire in 1908, but it is popularly believed that she faked her death. Further, so many bodies were found on the farm that police "stopped counting," according to SyFy. Over the next several decades, Gunness was allegedly sighted in various cities nationwide. The April 28, 1908, fire at Gunness' farm seems to have shut the book on the Norwegian immigrant's murder spree, inasmuch as she was never heard from again and was, initially at least, presumed dead. The suitors kept coming, but none, except for the lucky Anderson, ever left the Gunness farm. Lamphere also cleared up the mysterious question of the headless female corpse found in the smoking ruins of Gunness home. A brother of Miss Jennie Graham of Waukesha, Wisconsin, who had left her to marry a wealthy widow in La Porte but vanished. The district coroner reviewed the case, unequivocally announced that he had been murdered, and convened a coroners jury to look into the matter. They arrived with thousands of dollars and then disappeared. Belle wore the finest clothing on those occasions, and her hair was adorned in the latest style. One of her ads was answered by a Wisconsin farmhand, Henry Gurholt. Dont tell a soul.. Belle Gunness left Chicago with her daughters Myrtle and Lucy, along with a foster daughter named Jennie Olsen. Kathy Alexander/Legends of America, updated November 2022. But they could identify Jennie Olsen Gunness foster daughter who had left for California. And it soon became clear that Gunness was behind some horrific crimes. (Serial Killer) Belle Sorenson Gunness, birth name Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth, was a Norwegian-American serial killer. 40. When he was just 18, Robinson went on a violent killing spree, during which he killed three young women and seriously injured two. She was called a serial killer because she killed men . Belle Gunness was born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth in the small fishing village of Selbu in Norway on November 11 1859. Belle Gunness, the twice-widowed Norwegian American who placed the ad, was a murderer for profit. 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