Louisa May Merrifield
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Louisa May Merrifield (3 December 1906 – 18 September 1953, née Highway) was a British murderer and the third-last woman to be hanged in the United Kingdom. She was executed by Albert Pierrepoint at Strangeways Prison in
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
for poisoning her elderly employer. She was notorious at the time as 'The Blackpool Poisoner'.


Marriages

Born in
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in
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancashi ...
as Louisa May Highway, she was the youngest of five surviving daughters and two sons of Job Highway (1867–1945), an underground labourer in a coal mine, and Emma ''née'' Duncan (1863–1944),. By the time of her execution, Merrifield had been married three times. She married her first husband, Joseph Ellison (1905–1949) in 1931 and with him had six children. Two of them (Horace Ellison (1932–1933) and Ernest Ellison (1943–1944)) died in infancy. She lost custody of all four of her surviving two daughters and two sons when she was sent to prison for 84 days in 1946, having been found guilty of ration book fraud and refusing to pay the £10 fine.Anette Ballinger
'Dead Woman Walking: Executed Women in England & Wales 1900 – 1955'
PhD Thesis (1997), Faculty of Law,
University of Sheffield , mottoeng = To discover the causes of things , established = – University of SheffieldPredecessor institutions: – Sheffield Medical School – Firth College – Sheffield Technical School – University College of Sheffield , type = Pu ...
Joseph Ellison died in 1949, aged 44, due sub-acute infective
hepatitis Hepatitis is inflammation of the liver tissue. Some people or animals with hepatitis have no symptoms, whereas others develop yellow discoloration of the skin and whites of the eyes (jaundice), poor appetite, vomiting, tiredness, abdominal pa ...
. Merrifield subsequently married 78 year-old Richard Weston on 6 February 1950. He died 10 weeks later of a heart attack. Two of her husbands were much older elderly men while she had been married three times in 10 months.


Sarah Ricketts

From 1950 up to the time of the murder, Merrifield had some 20 jobs working as a domestic helper and housekeeper. She had been frequently fired or forced to leave, due to her poor attitude to her work and her alleged pilfering. On 22 August 1950 she married her third husband, 68 year-old widower Alfred Edward Merrifield (24 August 1882-24 June 1962), whose first wife Alice Whittle had died in 1949. He had abandoned her and their 10 children in 1928. On 12 March 1953 the couple were employed as house-keeper, handyman and live-in companions to 79 year-old Sarah Ann Ricketts. Ricketts lived in her bungalow at 339 Devonshire Road in
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
. Ricketts was a widow, whose two husbands had both committed suicide by gassing themselves in the kitchen. Despite her diminutive height (she was only in height), Ricketts was a difficult woman with a short temper. Ricketts had a habit of changing her will whenever a beneficiary annoyed or upset her, which was often. Soon after the Merrifields took up their jobs, Ricketts was complaining about their lack of care towards her, the shortage of food and that they were spending a lot of her money in the local
public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and was ...
s where Louisa "drank excessively and habitually became severely inebriated". Louisa Merrifield was a liar and a braggart, who had a loose tongue when under the influence of alcohol. She preferred to spend her time in the pubs of Blackpool, rather than take care of her employer. She began to brag that Mrs Ricketts was dead and had left her the bungalow, even though the old woman was still very much alive. It was becoming apparent to Louisa Merrifield that her elderly husband would not be able to support her financially for much longer. By late March 1953, Merrifield had talked Mrs. Ricketts into writing a will which left the bungalow to her. The bungalow was valued at £3,000 to £4,000. On the complaint of Alfred Merrifield that he was not included in the will, he was assigned half of the property. On 9 April, Louisa Merrifield convinced Doctor Yule (Mrs Ricketts' doctor) to certify that Ricketts was mentally competent to make a new will. Dr Yule later stated: "She errifieldsaid the reason why she wanted me to go was that the old lady might die at any minute with a stroke or a disease and she wanted to keep herself all right with the relatives." On 13 April, Dr Yule’s partner Doctor Albert Victor Wood was called out by Merrifield. She stated that Ricketts was seriously ill, whereas Wood merely diagnosed mild bronchitis. He later testified at Merrifield’s trial: "I remonstrated with Mrs Merrifield for calling me out, as I thought, under false pretences. She again said she was afraid of something happening during the night... Mrs Merrifield mentioned something about a will. I said I wasn't interested." Although this evidence is only circumstantial, it does lead to the conclusion that Merrifield was already trying to prove that the elderly Mrs Ricketts was dying of natural causes.


A spoonful of jam and Rodine

Among her other rather odd eating habits, Mrs. Ricketts enjoyed eating sweet
jam Jam is a type of fruit preserve. Jam or Jammed may also refer to: Other common meanings * A firearm malfunction * Block signals ** Radio jamming ** Radar jamming and deception ** Mobile phone jammer ** Echolocation jamming Arts and entertai ...
s straight from the jar, eating them by spoon. Ricketts accompanied the jams either rum or a bottle of
stout Stout is a dark, top-fermented beer with a number of variations, including dry stout, oatmeal stout, milk stout, and imperial stout. The first known use of the word ''stout'' for beer, in a document dated 1677 found in the Egerton Manuscript ...
. Louisa Merrifield added Rodine to the jams, a
phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...
-based rodenticide. She had purchased it through a local chemist . On 12 April 1953, Merrifield told her friend Mrs Jessie Brewer that she had to return home to 'lay out' an old woman. On Mrs Brewer's inquiry as to who had died, Merrifield said "She’s not dead yet, but she soon will be." Mrs Ricketts died on the evening of 14 April, but Merrifield did not call for a doctor until the next morning. She claimed that as Mrs Ricketts was clearly dead, she had not wished to call the doctor out late at night. Merrifield asked the local
Salvation Army Salvation (from Latin: ''salvatio'', from ''salva'', 'safe, saved') is the state of being saved or protected from harm or a dire situation. In religion and theology, ''salvation'' generally refers to the deliverance of the soul from sin and its c ...
band to stand outside the bungalow, playing ‘Abide with Me.’ Merrifield insisted for Mrs. Ricketts to be quickly cremated. She also did not want the old lady's family to know of her sudden death. Later, funeral director George Henry Jackson stated that Merrifield did not want Ricketts’ "Two daughters to know she was dead or have anything to do with the funeral." On reading of the death in the local newspaper, Mrs. Brewer reported her conversation with Merrifield to the police. The police immediately ordered a post-mortem, which discovered that Ricketts had died of phosphorus poisoning, attributed to the rodenticide Rodine. When the police searched the bungalow, they didn't find any poison, but inquiries at a local chemist's revealed that Louisa Merrifield had recently purchased Rodine. She was legally required to sign the poison register.


Trial

Following the police investigation the Merrifields were arrested and were jointly charged with murder before being committed to the
Manchester Assizes Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
for trial. The couple were tried before Mr. Justice Glynn-Jones between 20 and 31 July 1953 with
Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
Sir Lionel Heald QC leading for the prosecution and Mr. Jack Messoud Eric Di Victor Nahum QC (1906–59) for the defence. Louisa Merrifield did not give a good impression with her photograph being on the front page of newspapers as she arrived at court every day in a taxi smiling and waving to the photographers and crowds outside the court. During the trial the largely deaf Alfred Merrifield appeared to be confused by the proceedings while his wife, who was confident she would be acquitted, seemed to be revelling in the attention. Three doctors testified against Louisa Merrifield as did several of her friends who recalled her boasts of an inheritance. To one of her many previous employers Merrifield had written "I got a nice job nursing an old lady and she left me a lovely littl icBundlow icand thank God for it, so you see love all come right in the end." Unfortunately for Merrifield's case the letter was dated two weeks before Ricketts had actually died. Merrifield's friend Mrs Jessie Brewer testified that three days before Ricketts died Merrifield had told her "We are landed. We went to live with an old lady and she died and she's left me a bungalow worth £4,000 ... It was all left to me, until that old bugger got talking to her and then it was left to us jointly ... I made everything all right. It cost me £2. 2. 0d to get a Doctor to prove she was in her right mind." Under cross examination Brewer was adamant that these conversations had placed the death of Ricketts in the past tense. Elizabeth Barraclough who "was a complete stranger" to Louisa testified that while waiting in a bus queue Louisa had told her that "she was very worried because she was looking after an old lady who was very ill" and after returning the previous day had found "her husband in bed with the old lady, and was messing about with her and this had got her vexed". She is quoted as having said "If this goes on again, I'll poison the old bugger and him as well... She's leaving me the bungalow between me and my husband, but he's so greedy he wants it all on his own." Professor J. N. Webster was called as an expert witness on behalf of the Merrifields and he stated that in his opinion Mrs. Ricketts had not died from poisoning but from the necrosis of the liver. However, the damage was already done and after deliberating for just six hours the jury found Louisa Merrifield guilty of murder. The judge described her crime "as wicked and cruel a murder as I ever heard tell of." The jury were unable to reach a verdict on Alfred Merrifield who the judge described as a "tragic simpleton"HO291/230 Trial Transcript Vol. 11, pg. 12 and he was acquitted and eventually released from prison. The evidence against the Merrifields was largely circumstantial but what little there was had been exacerbated by Louisa's actions and her boasts of an inheritance while Ricketts was still living. It had been Louisa who had called the doctor to verify that Ricketts was well enough to sign a new will and it was she who had called the doctors out claiming Ricketts was near to death when she was actually just unwell. When Louisa accused Ricketts of bedding Alfred the judge called her "a vulgar and stupid woman with a very dirty mind." If the accusation is true it is more likely that Alfred Merrifield was sexually abusing Ricketts. These incidences were used to demonstrate her guilt but Alfred's innocence. However, Alfred Merrifield had the same motives and opportunities as his wife: it may have been Alfred who had bought the Rodine, it was Alfred who refused to contact the solicitor when Ricketts wanted to write the Merrifields out of her will saying it "was too far for him", and Alfred who refused the doctor admittance to attend on the ailing Ricketts by pushing the dining table against the sick-bed while he ate his lunch.David Whyte, David Scott et al
''Expanding the Criminological Imagination: Critical Readings in Criminology''
Routledge (2007) – Google Books pgs. 81–83
The anti-death penalty campaigner
Violet Van der Elst Violet Van der Elst (4 January 1882 – 30 April 1966) was a British entrepreneur and campaigner best remembered for her activities against the death penalty. Biography She was born Violet Anne Dodge, the daughter of a coal porter and a washerwo ...
petitioned the Home Secretary
David Maxwell Fyfe David Patrick Maxwell Fyfe, 1st Earl of Kilmuir, (29 May 1900 – 27 January 1967), known as Sir David Maxwell Fyfe from 1942 to 1954 and as Viscount Kilmuir from 1954 to 1962, was a British Conservative politician, lawyer and judge who combine ...
by letter to commute Louisa's death sentence to life in prison. She wrote:
The husband ... posed as a kindly and simple old man, never spoke – and it seemed as if this old man had been made use of by his wife and had been made to do things under her stronger will. This was not true, he was a cunning old man acting a part in court, but if one could judge of the two people, I would consider that the old man was the most guilty ... He never troubles about his wife being condemned to death. He thinks, to look well he will take her a few flowers, but she can see through him and refused to see him.HO29/229 XC2573 Original letter to Home Secretary from Mrs Van der Elst 8th September 1953. Louisa had refused to see Alfred on two occasions. Unperturbed, he told newspapers: "I shall continue to do what I can for her, and I shall write her a cheery letter every day. " (Liverpool Daily Post 10th September 1953).
Days before her execution Louisa and Alfred were reconciled and she was visited in the condemned cell by her husband to whom she said, "Goodbye Alfie. Look after yourself and God Bless."


Execution

Louisa Merrifield was originally sentenced to be hanged on 18 August 1953, but she appealed against her verdict. This was dismissed by the Court of Criminal Appeal on 3 September 1953 and after the Home Secretary
David Maxwell Fyfe David Patrick Maxwell Fyfe, 1st Earl of Kilmuir, (29 May 1900 – 27 January 1967), known as Sir David Maxwell Fyfe from 1942 to 1954 and as Viscount Kilmuir from 1954 to 1962, was a British Conservative politician, lawyer and judge who combine ...
had refused a reprieve she was hanged by Albert Pierrepoint assisted by
Robert Leslie Stewart Robert Leslie Stewart (April 1918 – 30 April 1988), from Edinburgh, Scotland, was one of the last executioners in the United Kingdom, officiating between 1950 and 1964. Brought up in Dundee Street in Edinburgh, 3 miles from Saughton Prison, S ...
at Strangeways Prison in
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on the morning of 18 September 1953. On the gallows she refused to remove her glasses when requested. A crowd of several hundred gathered outside the prison to read the official notice of her death. Pierrepoint later stated that the hanging "went very well. She said goodbye to the death cell officers – much better than I imagined." Louisa May Merrifield was the fourth and last woman to be executed at Strangeways Prison and the third to last woman to be hanged in the UK. As was the practice, her body was buried in an
unmarked grave An unmarked grave is one that lacks a marker, headstone, or nameplate indicating that a body is buried there. However, in cultures that mark burial sites, the phrase unmarked grave has taken on a metaphorical meaning. Metaphorical meaning As a f ...
alongside other executed felons within the prison walls of Strangeways.Phillip Jones
''Quickly to Her Fate''
Google Books, Chapter 25
During rebuilding work at the prison in 1991 following a recent riot the remains of 63 executed prisoners (of which 45 were identifiable including Merrifield) were exhumed from the prison cemetery and cremated at Blackley Crematorium in
Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
. The cremated remains were re-interred in two graves (plot C2710 and C2711) in the adjoining cemetery. In her will she left £45 13s 9d to her son Oswald Ellison, a brickworks labourer. Following his wife's execution, the "tragic simpleton" Alfred Merrifield suddenly became very astute and continued to live at the bungalow while he fought a legal battle with Ricketts' daughters for a share of its value, gaining one sixth in 1956. He then lived in a caravan and became a regular attraction at Blackpool’s
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beachfront side-shows billed as ‘The Murderess’s Husband’ talking about his wife and the murder of Mrs Ricketts. He donated some of her clothes to Louis Tussauds Blackpool Chamber of Horrors The chilling stories of the women who were executed at Strangeways
– ''
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'' 8 October 2017
and was paid £200 for his own waxwork to stand beside hers. Alfred Merrifield died on 24 June 1962 aged 80. He always maintained he was unaware of his wife's activities and told crime writer
Richard Whittington-Egan Richard Whittington-Egan (22 October 1924 – 14 September 2016) was a British writer and criminologist, the author of ''Liverpool Colonnade'' and ''Liverpool Roundabout'', two colourful chronicles of Liverpool's historical characters, crimes and ...
that "the old bugger" would have poisoned him next for his share of the bungalow.'Undone by her Boasts'
– ''
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'' 25 May 2017
Her case featured in the television true-crime documentary series ''Murder by the Sea''.Louisa May Merrifield – ''Murder by the Sea'' Series 3 Episode 6
– ''
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''


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merrifield, Louisa May 1906 births 1953 deaths 1953 murders in the United Kingdom 20th-century English criminals 20th-century English women 20th-century executions by England and Wales Executed English women People convicted of murder by England and Wales People executed for murder People from Wigan People from Blackpool British female murderers English people convicted of murder Executed English people Poisoners