Mary Ball (poisoner)

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Mary Ball
a broadside published after the execution
Born
Mary Wright

c. 1818
Died9 August 1849(1849-08-09) (aged 31)
Cuckoo Lane, Coventry
Cause of deathexecution by hanging
Resting placeCoventry Gaol
Occupationhousewife
Known forlast person to be executed in Coventry
Criminal statusexecuted
Spouse
Thomas Ball
(m. 1838; died 1849)
Motiveunhappy marriage
Criminal chargemurder
Penaltydeath
Details
VictimsThomas Ball
Date20 May 1849
Black Plaque marking the site of Balls execution

Mary Ball (c. 1818–1849) was a Nuneaton housewife who poisoned her husband with arsenic. She was hanged in Cuckoo Lane, outside Coventry Gaol, before a crowd of about twenty thousand. She was the last person to be publicly executed in Coventry.[1][2][3][4]

A plaque on the former County Hall in Coventry marks the nearby site of her execution.

References[edit]

  1. ^ Mullen, Enda (16 February 2020). "Is this the exact spot where Coventry's last public hanging took place?". CoventryLive. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  2. ^ "Tales from the Archives: Mary Ball, Murderer? - The Herbert Art Gallery & Museum". www.theherbert.org. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  3. ^ Bell, Neil R. A. (2016). The A-Z of Victorian crime. Trevor N. Bond, Kate Clarke, M. W. Oldridge. Stroud, Gloucestershire. ISBN 978-1-4456-4787-6. OCLC 1012128380.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  4. ^ McGrory, David (2003). A history of Coventry. Chichester, West Sussex, England: Phillimore. ISBN 1-86077-264-1. OCLC 54903656.