California's Deadly Women: Murder and Mayhem in the Golden State 1850-1950

by Michael Thomas Barry

Overview

There's an old saying in the news business: if it bleeds, it leads. The nightly California news and other media outlets are filled with stories of crime, killing, and sorrow. Within these pages rediscover 46 of the most notorious murders and shocking crimes committed by women in the state of California between 1850 and 1950. Examine the accounts of such notorious murderesses as the “Black Widow,” Louise Peete; “Tiger Woman,” Clara Phillips; the “Duchess,” Juanita Spinelli; and many more. Written in chronological sequence and enhanced by 50 photographs, each entry provides a concise overview of the crime, background information, and final dispositions. At one point these California crimes horrified the collective imaginations of the state—and nation—but many have faded away from our historical consciousness. They’re back. This book is an indispensable reference tool for anyone interested in California history and crime.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780764355301
Publisher:	Schiffer Publishing, Ltd.
Publication date:	06/28/2018
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Michael Thomas Barry is the award-winning author of 7 nonfiction books that includes In the Company of Evil: Thirty Years of California Crime, 1950-1980. He is also a columnist for CrimeMagazine.com and resides in Orange, California.

Table of Contents

Prologue: The Female of the Species by Rudyard Kipling … 12

Introduction … 15

Chapter 1 Murder and Mayhem of the Victorian Age (1850-1899)

A Lynching in Downieville-Josefa Segovia (1851, Gold Country) 20

The Lady in Black-Laura Fair (1870, San Francisco) 23

A Virtuous Woman Turns to Murder-Lastenia Abarta (1881, Los Angeles) 27

The She-Devil-Hattie Woolsteen (1887, Los Angeles) 30

A Battered Woman-Isabella Andross (1887, San Pedro) 35

An Abusive Husband Gets His Just Rewards-Bridget Waters (1888, Los Angeles) 38

Tragedy in Tustin-Effie Scholl (1889, Orange County) 41

Never Take Candy from a Stranger-Cordelia. Botkin (1898, San Francisco) 44

Brutal Bride-Katie Cook (1899, Orange County) 48

Chapter 2 Dastardly Deeds in the Early Decades of the Twentieth Century (1900-1919)

Old West Justice-Clara Wellman (1901, Riverside County) 53

The Trunk Murderess-Emma LeDoux (1906, Stockton) 54

Murder, He Wrote-Aurelia Scheck (1906, Los Angeles) 58

The Red Murderess-Dora Chipp (1906, Humboldt County) 60

Killing on Principle-Angela De Vita (1910, Los Angeles) 62

A Woman's Desperation-Lea Delmon (1913, Los Angeles) 63

The Money Maniac-Anna Hammond (1917, Fresno County) 65

Murder or Suicide?-Gertrude Gibbons (1918, Los Angeles) 67

Chapter 3 Notorious Crimes of the Roaring Twenties (1920-1929)

A Contemptuous Paramour's Ultimate Demise-Marie Leonard Bailey (1920 Pasadena) 71

The Black Widow-Louise Peete (1920-1947, Los Angeles) 73

A Matter of Life and Death-Nettie Platz (1921, Los Angeles County) 79

Love, Betrayal, and Tragedy-Madalynne Obenchain (1921, Los Angeles) 80

A Ghost in the Attic-Walburga "Dolly" Oesterreich (1922, Los Angeles) 86

The Tiger Woman-Clara Phillips (1923, Los Angeles) 90

Baby Borgia - Alsa Thompson (1925, Los Angeles) 94

A Mother's Pain-Edna May Fuller (1926, San Francisco) 96

Arsenic and Old Lace-Mary Hartman (1927-1930, Long Beach) 98

The Borgia of the Sierras-Eva Brandon Rablen (1929, Tuolumne County) 100

The Baby Blues-Josephine Valenti (1929, Los Angeles) 102

The Jimmy Valentine Burglary-Mary Kavanaugh (1929, Los Angeles) 104

Chapter 4 Infamous Criminalities of the Great Depression (1930-1939)

Beware of the Black Hand-Rosa Tarlazzi (1930 East Los Angeles) 107

A Clear Case of Child Abuse-Custodia Vasquez Murillo (1930 East Los Angeles) 109

Poisoned for Profit-Anna Erickson and Esther Carlson (1931, Los Angeles County) 110

Spurned Affection-Nellie Burdick (1933, Berkeley) 114

The Enigma Woman-Nellie May Madison (1934, Los Angeles) 116

A Great Miscarriage of Justice-Bertha Talkington (1934, Marced County) 119

A Plea for Help-Edna Beatrice Mallette (1939, Los Angeles) 122

Chapter 5 Sensational Murders of the War Years and Beond (1940-1950)

An Unjust Sentence-Beatrice May Cox (1940, San Diego County) 126

Too Good to Live and Too Young to Die-Betty Hardaker (1940, Montebello) 128

A Bad Seed?-Chloe Davis (1940, Los Angeles) 131

The Duchess-Juanita Spinelli (1940, San Francisco & Sacramento) 134

Mary Anna Took an Axe and Gave Her Daughter Forty Whacks-Mary Anna Cox (1944, Placerville) 138

A Shakespearean Tragedy-Annie Irene Mansfeldt (1945, San Francisco) 139

Murder on the Yacht-Beulah Overell (1947, Newport Beach) 144

A Desire to Kill-Louise Gomes (1947, Sacramento County) 148

Pushing up Daisies-Ada Roberts Peters (1948, Tuolumne County) 151

Sex, Money, and Murder in Hancock Park-Betty Ferreri (1948, Los Angeles) 153

Conclusion 157

Afterword: by Jill Leslie Rosenbaum, Ph.D., Professor of Criminal Justice & … 159

Bibliography … 166

Index … 169