Elizabeth Van Valkenburgh

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Elizabeth van Valkenburgh (1799 - 1846) poisoned her first husband by adding arsenic to his rum, because she was "provoked" by his drinking in bars. She first denied that she had poisoned him but later admitted that she did, although she stated that he was able to work after this, and that she did not intend to kill him.

She then married John Van Valkenburgh. In her confession, she stated that he was an alcoholic, that he "misused the children", and that "we frequently quarrelled" when he was drunk. She stated in her confession that "John was in a frolic for several weeks, during which time he never came home sober, nor provided anything for his family." Therefore, she purchased arsenic and put some in his tea. He recovered from the first dose of poison, and several weeks later, she mixed another dose in his brandy. So gruesome was his death, however, she said that "if the deed could have been recalled, I would have done it with all my heart."

She ran away, hid in a barn, and broke her leg in a fall from the mow. She was captured, tried and convicted. She was sentenced to death by hanging. Many people, including ten of the jurors, petitioned the governor for clemency, but the defendant was subsequently executed on January 24, 1846.

Because of her broken leg and her obesity, van Valkenburgh was hanged in an unusual way. She was carried to the gallows in her rocking chair and was rocking away when the trap was sprung.