‘Mary Ann Cotton – Dark Angel’ by Martin Connolly

My Review (5 stars out of 5)

In West Auckland, County Durham, in 1872, Mary Ann Cotton was arrested and charged with the murder of her stepson. Married four times and supposedly having borne twelve children, she was found guilty and hanged in Durham Goal. Charting the details of the trials and claims she may have murdered up to twenty people, this book highlights the problems with Mary Ann’s defence, and asks if she really did commit murder, or was simply the victim of rumour, gossip, and an unfortunate set of circumstances.

Martin Connolly has written a highly researched and very detailed book, including newspaper reports, photographs, and witness statements from the two trials. Some of this detail makes for unpleasant reading, as it deals with the deaths of several individuals from initial illness to death. What the author makes clear are the many instances of missing or unexplored evidence which may have had a bearing on the outcome. These include several possible sources of arsenic, such as the wallpaper in the house, and the prepared medicines provided by Dr Kilburn (which may have contained arsenic). Issues with the postmortem (carried out on a table in Mary Ann’s house), lack of defence representation, and the various statements made by witnesses who then changed their stories, point to—at the very least—an unfair trial.

A fascinating account that questions the legitimacy of Mary Ann’s trial and therefore her guilt.

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