Ada Chard Williams (c. 1875–1900) was a

baby farmer Baby farming is the historical practice of accepting custody of an infant or child in exchange for payment in late-Victorian era, Victorian Britain and, less commonly, in Australia and the United States. If the infant was young, this usually in ...

who was convicted of strangling to death 21-month-old Selina Ellen Jones in

Barnes Barnes may refer to: People * Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name) Places United Kingdom *Barnes, London, England **Barnes railway station ** Barnes Bridge railway station ** Barnes Railway Bri ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in September 1899. Florence Jones, a young unmarried mother, had read an advert in the local newspaper which offered to find homes for unwanted children. She agreed to pay £5 to a Mrs Hewetson (Ada Chard Williams) but could only give her £3 on the day. She returned later with the balance and found that Mrs Hewetson and Selina had vanished. Florence reported the matter to the police. Ada Chard Williams wrote a letter to the police denying the crime but in effect admitting she was a baby farmer who bought and sold babies for profit. The police soon discovered that Mrs Hewetson was Ada Chard Williams. However, they had no body with which to prove there had been a murder, at least not until Selina's corpse was washed up on the bank of the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after the R ...

Battersea Battersea is a large district in south London, part of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is centred southwest of Charing Cross and extends along the south bank of the River Thames. It includes the Battersea Park. History Batter ...

Braxton Hicks Braxton Hicks contractions, also known as practice contractions or false labor, are sporadic uterine contractions that may start around six weeks into a pregnancy. However, they are usually felt in the second or third trimester of pregnancy. A ...

, the coroner who carried out the subsequent inquest, pointed out that the knots in the cord, a "fisherman's bend", had been found on three other dead bodies of children. On the child's head there was a very large bruise, which suggested that someone had taken the child by the legs, and struck it against a wall before it was strangled. Like

Amelia Dyer Amelia Elizabeth Dyer (née Hobley; 1836 – 10 June 1896) was an English serial killer who murdered infants in her care over a thirty-year period during the Victorian era of the United Kingdom.

, Ada Chard Williams had her own "signature" way of tying up bodies she wished to dispose of, using a knot called a

Fisherman's knot The fisherman's knot is a bend (knot), bend (a knot for joining two lines) with a symmetrical structure consisting of two overhand knots, each tied around the standing part of the other. Other names for the fisherman's knot include: angler's knot ...

or bend and which was a crucial piece of evidence at her trial at the

Old Bailey The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, commonly referred to as the Old Bailey after the street on which it stands, is a criminal court building in central London, one of several that house the Crown Court of England and Wales. The s ...

on 16 and 17 February 1900. She was hanged, aged 24, in the yard of

Newgate Prison Newgate Prison was a prison at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey Street just inside the City of London, England, originally at the site of Newgate, a gate in the Roman London Wall. Built in the 12th century and demolished in 1904, t ...

on 6 March 1900, the last woman to be hanged there. She was suspected of killing other children although no proceedings were brought. However, it was suggested that she might not have been the one who murdered the children as it was clear that she and her husband were both involved in the active fraud that surrounded their lives and the baby farming. When considering whether to respite her conviction it was noted that in all crimes other than murder that the influence of a husband could be used as a defence and it was thought more likely that it was her husband that had murdered the children and even wrapped them up and that all Ada Williams had done was assist and dispose of the packages, all under the influence of her husband. The jury found the husband at the least an accessory after the fact but the judge noted that he was not on trial and could not be convicted and it was noted that considering his probable involvement, he got away without any punishment whatsoever whilst Ada Williams suffered the final penalty. Her husband was 47-year-old whilst Ada Williams was only 24-years-old.

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* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Ada 1870s births 1899 murders in the United Kingdom 1900 deaths 1890s murders in London 19th-century executions by England and Wales 19th-century English criminals 19th-century English women Baby farming British female murderers English murderers of children English people convicted of murder Executed English people Executed English women Infanticide People convicted of murder by England and Wales People executed for murder People from Barnes, London Suspected serial killers

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