[7] She was at least 5'7" (170 cm) and weighed around 95 - 113 kg (210 - 250 lbs) and was physically strong and masculine in appearance. She changed her name to Bella Petersen and worked for a time as a servant girl before getting married in 1884 to Mads Sorensen from Drammen, Norway. [7], Sorenson had purchased two life insurance policies. She was a hog farmer that, legend has it, could lift a 100 lbs hog in each arm. Belle Gunness was an immigrant who came to America in 1881. The happy couple owned a candy store and looked after foster children. She married her first husband, Mads Sorenson, three years. What these children knew about their mothers murderous activities is completely unknown because none of them lived to adulthood. La Porte, IN 46350, Admission Fees: She enjoys playing the clarinet, taking ballet classes, textile art, and listening to an unhealthy amount of true crime podcasts. Available at: https://www.crime-scene-investigator.net/RecoveryInterpretationBurnedRemains.pdf, La Porte Library, 2022. Soon after the shoot, various bodies were tracked down on the Gunness property. document.getElementById("ak_js_1").setAttribute("value",(new Date()).getTime()). Authorities were told how Peter had reached up to grab something from a top shelf, and a sausage grinder fell on his head and killed him. The youngest Gunness girls died about a week after the marriage, and Peter died eight months later. She changed her name to Belle Petersen and moved in with her sister Nellie and her husband, who had immigrated a few years before Belle did. Do not venture past the "No Tresspassing" sign. It is accepted that she faked her demise to get away from location. After not finding any clues in the ruins of the fire, Joe Maxson and Asle began digging on the farm in an area where Joe and Belle had buried garbage in March. Therefore, police officers didnt view her in a serious way as a suspect, even as proof mounted against her. Refreshment stands were set up, and the people (as many as 15,000 in a single day) could buy a nice hearty bowl of Gunness stew to enjoy while watching the morbid scene unfold. Enormous crowds, numbering in the thousands, visited the farm during the investigation. Belle Gunness was born Brynhild Paulsdatter Storseth in Selbu, Norway in 1859. These ads were asking for a good and reliable man to become a partner in her farm. [9] In November 1908, Lamphere was convicted of arson in connection with the fire at Gunness' house. . Then they . In 1908, Gunness' ranch house burst into flames and caught fire. If that was not horrible enough, the meat grinder overhead fell off a shelf and hit him between the eyes. Ray had hoped to marry Belle and become a partner in the farm. After travelling to La Porte, Gurholt wrote his family, saying that he liked the farm, was in good health, and requesting that they send him seed potatoes. Add to Watchlist. After sluicing through the ashes of the home, dental work reportedly to be Belle's was found. While I was trying to determine where the actual farmhouse once sat, many residents in the area were not surprised to be asked. [10] But she continues to live on in folklore, fiction, songs, and even as the name of a beer, Belle Gunness Stout. With the large sum of money from her husbands unfortunate death, Belle was financially stable and bought a farm in La Porte, Indiana, and three foster children moved with her to the new farm in 1901. Asle Helgelien was still writing to Belle and inquiring about his brother, while Belle decided to go to her attorney to make out her will. said, Damn kids trying to catch a glimpse of those strange balls of light. Because the head has more soft and exposed tissue, it will burn fast. Exploring Big D: A Historians Guide to Dallas, Texas, The Sordid Story of Marquettes Holy Family Orphanage, Meet Sandra Lord: The Tunnel Lady of Houston, The True Story of the Witch of the Monongahela. [9] Sorenson and Gunness owned a candy store which burned to the ground. How did this lady pull off murder for such a long time? She married her first husband, Mads Sorenson, three years later in 1884. Colitis is a digestive disease that can cause cramping, lower abdominal pains, fever, nausea, and diarrhea. Asa therefore traveled to LaPorte County to inquire about the welfare of his brother. The couple had two kids together, however both died youthful. When he did not return home to South Dakota, Andrews brother Asle Helgelien became concerned. It killed at least 14 people, but some estimate it killed as many as 40 victims. But what they found instead was the stuff of nightmares. Late one night in April 1908, Belle Gunnesss farmhouse burned to the ground. But we are sure that it is not available and his spouses name is not available. When asked if the property was haunted, his eyes twinkled. To draw her most recent casualty, Gunness expressed: My heart beats in wild delight for you, Andrew, I love you. Investigators on the scene discovered that the first floor had fallen through and the piano had crashed down into the basement. The current Belle Gunness exhibit, Bruce said, was something that he put together for the 100th anniversary of the fire. Meanwhile, Belle fired Ray Lamphere in February 1908 for trespassing on her farm and hired Joe Maxson as her new farm hand. [7], John Moe of Minnesota answered Gunness's ad in 1906. In each depression was a burlap sack filled with arms, legs, and torsos with loose flesh that dripped like jelly. [6], After the fire at the Gunness homestead led to the discovery of bodies believed to be Gunness and her children, La Porte police authorities were contacted by Asle Helgelien, who had found correspondence between his brother, Andrew Helgelien, and Gunness; the letters included petitions for him to relocate to La Porte, to bring money, and to keep the move a secret. She stated openly to the lawyer that she feared a former hired hand was going to kill her. Mads Sorenson died in 1900, with Belle collecting approximately $8,000 through his life insurance policy. "If a geocache is archived by a reviewer or staff for lack of maintenance it will not be unarchived. [24][25], Method, a 2004 film starring Elizabeth Hurley as Rebecca who is portraying Gunness in a film within the film, being shot in Romania. In each depression was a burlap sack filled with arms, legs, and torsos with "loose flesh that dripped like jelly". In the spring of 1902, Belle married Peter Gunness, a widower who had been left with two young daughters. I grew up in La Porte County and distinctly recall seeing a play in elementary school about Belle Gunness, complete with Belle hitting one of her husbands over the head with a coffee grinder. They resided in Chicago, and in 1900 Sorenson died under most suspicious circumstances. One time it sounded like there were people fighting inside when the officer arrived on the scene. Perhaps she knew this because her farm burned to the ground in the early morning of April 28, 1908. It's been several years since I've visited the Gunness exhibit in the La Porte County Historical Museum, but it's peculiar enough to warrant a visit. Belle Sorenson Gunness (November 11, 1859 - April 28, 1908) left her native Norway in 1881, at the age of 21, to travel to Chicago. All that remained were bones. In 1881, at the age of 21, Brynhild left Norway and settled in Chicago. The bag was opened, and its contents horrified, changing how the public and police saw Belle Gunness. Details on her early life are pretty scanty, but a homestead near Selbu in Norway claims to be her birthplace. La Porte County Sheriff Albert Smutzer and a crew continued to dig for several days and discovered at least 13 bodies that had been buried on Belles farm. [29], In the Garden of Spite: A Novel of the Black Widow of LaPorte is a US-published 2021 novel by Camilla Bruce with elements of "Norwegian noir and true crime" based on the life of Belle Gunness. Belle married Gunness in April 1902. . It is assumed to be not in their nature, but this is a fatal assumption. She was confirmed at the Evangelical Lutheran Church in 1874. Excludes: The authorities in La Porte knew nothing about Belle Gunness first husband and his mysterious death. We have no more Information about his Father; we will try to collect information and update soon. Born in Norway, she moved to Chicago then LaPorte leaving a trail of bodies. A farm building was used as a temporary morgue, where onlookers could view the remains as they were recovered and put on display. More, Trail of Governors, Pierre, South Dakota (Jan 16-22, 2023). Elizabeth, a former Pennsylvania native, recently moved to the beautiful state of Massachusetts where she is currently involved in researching early American history. Summaries. It was also reported that she had put different body parts of different men together in one hole. Ray said that he didnt kill anyone but did help Belle Gunness bury the sacks of body parts. It is conceivable that these casualties were killed by Bill Gunness herself. The couples home had also burned down, and both instances granted the couple insurance payouts. Soon after the shoot, various bodies were tracked down on the Gunness property. Then there was a case in 1931 of a woman, Esther Carlson, who poisoned an older man for access to his bank account. She was born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strsetjare. A victims head is made of relatively thin soft tissues, and the lack of clothing on the head and face mean that the skull is where the most burns and heat-related lesions will appear. Peters death was listed as a terrible accident, and Mrs. Gunness collected on the insurance she had taken out against his life. Belle Sorenson Gunness (November 11, 1859 declared dead April 28, 1908) born Brynhild Paulsdatter Strseth was a NorwegianAmerican serial killer. Some accept she did it for the cash; Others accept she partook in the adventure of pulling off murder. 2,482 views Mar 30, 2015 12 Dislike Share Save Hoosier Diggin Some 540 subscribers Got a chance to hunt serial killer Belle Gunness property. Not long after the marriage, both their home and their store burned down. She changed her name to Bella Petersen and worked for a time as a servant girl before getting married in 1884 to Mads Sorensen from Drammen, Norway. I say this as someone whose grandmother, as a kid, bought milk from Belle Gunness, who lived on an adjacent farm. The youngest died within a week after his marriage to Belle, and Peter died under suspicious circumstances 8 months later. dissected their bodies like a butcher, feeding the remains to her pigs. Meanwhile, there were also newspaper reports that Gunness had managed to escape the US and landed in either Australia or New Zealand. Not long after the death of Peter, Belle Gunness began placing ads in three weekly Norwegian newspapers in the American Midwest. [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. A new novel explores her psychology. More, Roadside Presidents app for iPhone, iPad. Licensed nurse Genene Anne Jones is believed responsible for the deaths of up to 60 babies and young children in her care. The woman had plans.[1]. One more piece of the response was that Ringer was quick to target weak men who were probably not going to miss their family or companions men who were battling monetarily and searching for a new beginning throughout everyday life. Credits, Media/Business Inquiries In all, at least twelve other bodies were recovered from the property. For what reason did she kill her spouses? pic.twitter.com/EwsUQBunhd, Over The Fence True Crime Podcast (@OverTheFencePod) October 24, 2022. Ray said that he had taken Gunness to a train station, and she hopped on a train headed to Chicago. [23], Gunness has also been the subject of at least two American musical ballads. Attraction status, hours and prices change without notice; call ahead! Gunness then, at that point, moved to Indiana, where she started functioning as a ranch. Burned bodies: post-mortem computed tomography, an essential tool for modern forensic medicine. Try My Sights, Roadside America app for iPhone, iPad. If you live in the Midwest, then you have heard of the The fourth body, a headless woman, was initially assumed to be that of Gunness herself.[5]. Brynhild Paulsdatter Strset ( Belle Gunness) was born on November 11, 1859, in Selbu municipality, Norway, to Paul and Berit Strset; she was the youngest of eight children. The suitors. Belle Gunness lived in La Porte, Indiana and would go on to become one of America's most shocking Serial Killers. They all took large amounts of cash from their bank accounts and gave it to Belle, would tell only a few people or none where they were going, and disappear off the face of the earth. After a suspicious fire leveled the house killing her children, authorities would later unearth scores of missing men's bodies from the "murder farm," many beheaded and dismembered. On an otherwise unremarkable stretch of highway in the middle of Indiana is the location of Belle Gunness's Murder Farm. In 1906, 49-year-old Andrew Helgelien answered a personal ad in a Norwegian-language newspaper called the Minneapolis Tidende. Without success, he hurried to La Porte and got the fire department to come put out the fire. Belle Gunness's farm shed was salvaged and made part of the museum exhibit. He has been a guest speaker on numerous national radio and television stations and is a five time published author. Also, we have no information about his son and daughter. We have no more Information about his Father; we will try to collect information and update soon. When the Altic Farm House, on the outskirts of La Porte, Indiana burnt down in 1908, locals thought it a tragedy that claimed the lives of three children and their heroic mother, who had died trying to protect them from the flames. Available at: https://laportecountyhistory.org/exhibits/belle-gunness/, Symes, S. et al. Not only did she dismember them, but she also soaked gunnysacks with lye and wrapped them around the body parts. Did the murderess die in that fire, or did she escape? Join now to view geocache location details. Source: Master1305 / Adobe Stock. In 2008, the mystery surrounding Belle Gunnesss disappearance was still very much alive. 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