Margaret Waters, otherwise known as Willis,
was an English murderer hanged by
executioner
An executioner, also known as a hangman or headsman, is an official who executes a sentence of capital punishment on a legally condemned person.
Scope and job
The executioner was usually presented with a warrant authorising or order ...
William Calcraft
William Calcraft (11 October 1800 – 13 December 1879) was a 19th-century English hangman, one of the most prolific of British executioners. It is estimated in his 45-year career he carried out 450 executions. A cobbler by trade, Ca ...
on 11 October 1870 at
Horsemonger Lane Gaol
Horsemonger Lane Gaol (also known as the Surrey County Gaol or the New Gaol) was a prison close to present-day Newington Causeway in Southwark, south London. Built at the end of the 18th century, it was in use until 1878.
History
The gaol was b ...
(also known as Surrey County Gaol) in London.
Waters was born in 1835 and lived in
Brixton.
[
] She was known for
baby farming
Baby farming is the historical practice of accepting custody of an infant or child in exchange for payment in late- Victorian Britain and, less commonly, in Australia and the United States. If the infant was young, this usually included wet-nu ...
, the practice of taking in other women's children for money, a practice which often resulted in
infanticide.
Waters drugged and starved the infants in her care and is believed to have killed at least 19 children.
Charged with five counts of wilful murder as well as neglect and conspiracy, Waters was convicted of murdering an infant named John Walter Cowen. Her sister, Sarah Ellis, was convicted in the same case for obtaining money under false pretences and sentenced to eighteen months'
hard labour.
See also
*
List of serial killers by country
This is a list of notable serial killers, by the country where most of the killings occurred.
Convicted serial killers by country Afghanistan
*Abdullah Shah: killed at least 20 travelers on the road from Kabul to Jalalabad while serving under ...
References
*
1835 births
1870 deaths
1870 murders in the United Kingdom
1870s murders in London
19th-century executions by England and Wales
Baby farming
English murderers of children
English people convicted of murder
Executed English women
Executed people from London
Infanticide
People convicted of murder by England and Wales
People executed for murder
People from Brixton
Suspected serial killers
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