Based on the fact that many of history’s most brutal murderers were named “Mary,” this special delves into the notorious tales of these women and what drove them to such heinous acts. It should be noted that “Mary” was one of the most popular names from the 1800s to the 1960s, so it may be just a coincidence.
Here are some of the scary Marys that will be featured in the special:
Mary Frances Creighton (Baldwin, NY) – It’s the Great Depression, and Mary Frances and John Creighton decide to make some extra cash by renting a room in their cramped house to Everett Applegate and his wife, Ada. All goes well for a little while, until Everett’s wandering eye settles on Mary Frances and the two become lovers right under their spouses’ noses. But Everett soon tosses Mary Frances aside in favor of her 14-year-old daughter, Ruth. In order to salvage her family’s reputation, Mary Frances hatches a plan to fatally poison Ada’s eggnog and allow Everett to make an honest woman out of her daughter. She would have gotten away with the murder, but a savvy detective sees more to this story than just a freak stomach bug. He exposes a handful of mysterious deaths linked to Mary Frances, including the deaths of her own brother and in-laws.
Mary Pearcey (London) – In Victorian England, 24-year-old Mary Pearcey is caught in a heated love triangle between Frank Samuel Hogg and his pregnant wife, Phoebe, who knows nothing of the tryst. Despite being the “other woman,” Mary sparks a friendship with Phoebe and her toddler Tiggy, all the while continuing her secret affair with Frank. But when Mary is abruptly banished from the Hoggs’ home, she becomes obsessed with falling back into their good graces. One October afternoon, tension rises as the women confront each other over tea. It ignites a frenzy of anger in Mary, who knocks Phoebe unconscious before taking a knife to her neck. Like an untamed animal, she then suffocates Phoebe’s daughter and discards the slain mother and child, as if trash, a mile apart from one another on the gritty London streets. When police track the murders back to Mary and find the blood-stained walls in her flat, she simply says she was “killing mice.”
Mary Farmer (Watertown, NY) – Mary Farmer is sick of living a humble life and often asks why she can’t enjoy the same luxuries as her well-to-do neighbors Sarah and Patsy Brennan. One day, Mary steals the deed to the Brennan home, then disguises herself as Sarah and has the deed transferred to her “friend” Mary Farmer. Before Sarah can realize the fraud, Mary catches her off guard with an axe to the back of the head. With the deed secured in Mary’s name, the Farmers and their infant son move into the Brennan home and kick Patsy to the curb. It’s after Patsy goes to the constable that they discover a foul-smelling trunk tucked away in a corner. Sarah Brennan, or at least her corpse, was still in the family home after all. Mary Farmer became the second woman ever to die in the electric chair in the state of New York.
So make “Bloody Marys” on Investigation Discovery the first thing you watch this Halloween when the clock strikes twelve.
-Larissa Mrykalo