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Episode 47: How Many People Did Mary McKnight Murder, and Why?
Accurately recognizing and treating many diseases, including mental illness, was not prevalent in the 19th or early 20th centuries. Rural farm communities were accustomed to injuries and illnesses that often resulted in death. Some deaths could not be explained that’s just the way it was.
On Monday, April 20, 1903, Gertrude Murphy left her three-month-old baby, Ruth, in the care of her sister-in-law, Mary McKnight. Gertrude left the baby with Mary to help with work at a new house she and her husband, John Murphy, were building on a nearby piece of land. When Gertrude and John came back at lunch time, Mary told them that baby Ruth had died. Baby Ruth’s death was only the beginning of a cascading series of deaths that resulted in the exposure of a mass murderer living in a little town in northern Michigan.
Sources:
Buhk, Tobin T. Michigan’s Strychnine Saint: The Curious Case of Mrs. Mary McKnight. The History Press. Charleston, SC 2014
(When Nurses Kill by Katherine Ramsland Ph.D. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/shadow-boxing/201204/when-nurses-kill)
Lucy Letby: Inside the mind of a serial killer – the psychology behind healthcare murders by Gemma Peplow, culture reporter.
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Meet Valerie Winans, Your Host for Episode 47:
How Many People Did Mary McKnight Murder, and Why?
Valerie Winans is a graduate of Northwestern Michigan College, a retired state government manager, and a former campground host in Denali National Park and Preserve, Alaska. Valerie is the author of four books: Alaska’s Savage River: Inside Denali National Park and Preserve, Road Trip with Remington Beagle: Michigan to Alaska and Back, and A Hero’s Journey: Life Lessons From A Dog And His Friends, and The Extraordinary Life of Edwin B. Winans: From the Stampede for Gold in California to the Capitol of Michigan. A writer of both fiction and non-fiction, her books are written to inform and entertain readers of all ages. She currently resides with her husband in Traverse City, Michigan. More information can be found at www.valeriewinans.com.