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I have aquired my great grandmother (Charlotte Mchugh)'s marriage certificate which states that she was 22 then it has been crossed out and 20 put there. So if she was 20 when she married in 1922 this would put her birth year as 1902. I have her death cert which states she was 29 years old when she died in 1936 which then puts her birth year as 1907. I was told that she was born in 1904 in Londonderry but I have had no luck there either. If she was born in 1907 that would only make her 15! My great grandfather was born in 1897 and it has been said that he was some 8 yrs older than her, he died in 1935 that would make him 25 on marriage which the cert agrees with. Charlotte was hung for the murder of my great grandfather and the story is well documented but gives different dates. Is there anyone who can help me with this problem or has any suggestions as to what I should do next or where I go from here .

I expect, though only presume she was 18 when she married but tried to say she was 22 to be closer to her husband, (They did that) But someone said are you sure your 22 and she said I'm 20. Sounds plausible? All guess work of course. Jo

The stories say she was born 1904, in the documents about her life that is. This would make her 18 when she married. No wonder she lied. My Nan did the same thing and said she was 20. Two years later in the census she was back to being 18. Jo

Are you SURE she was actually born in Londonderry ? .... or is there a SMALL chance she may have been born in England/Scotland or Wales ... (fingers crossed) Did she die in Ireland ? Elaine ;-)

Where was she executed was it in england? And was her married name McHugh Zoe

This is the only Charlotte I can find in 1936 who was executed Charlotte Bryant Age:- 33 Date of Execution:- Wednesday, 15th July, 1936 Location of Execution:- Exeter Hangman:- Thomas Pierrepoint Assistants:- Albert Pierrepoint Tried At:- Dorchester Trial Dates:- 27th - 30th May, 1936 Trial Judge:- Mister Justice MacKinnon Crime:- Murder Victims:- Name:- Frederick Bryant Age:- 39 Location of Murder:- Coombe, Dorset Date of Murder:- Sunday, 22nd December, 1935 Method of Murder:- Poisoned (By Arsenic) Relationship to Killer:- Husband

She may well only have been 15 when she married and lied about it! It would be a logical answer. Or maybe she was born early 1907 and married late in the year making her almost 16? Jill

Zoe Where did you find that info? Jill

The story of Charlotte McHugh/Bryant makes very interesting reading. I am surprised with all the publicity that you are not able to pinpoint her birth in Londonderry more positively as she was so infamous. Sorry if its a sore point. Jo

The murder. In May 1935, Frederick, who was then 39 years old, was taken ill for the first time, immediately after eating the lunch that Charlotte had cooked. He had severe stomach pains. Helped by a neighbour who induced vomiting, he began to feel a little easier. The doctor came to see him and diagnosed gastro-enteritis, and after a few days Frederick Bryant returned to work. A further attack followed in August and again Frederick made a full recovery. In November 1935 Parsons dropped a huge bombshell into Charlotte's life by announcing that he was leaving. His stated reason was the lack of work in that part of Dorset although the deterioration in Charlotte's looks may have had far more to do with it. On December the 11th, 1935, Frederick was again taken ill with severe stomach pains from which, once more, he recovered. Charlotte continued to search for Parsons in the local pubs but without success. She did however form a new relationship with a woman called Lucy Ostler who was a widow with seven children. Lucy moved into the Bryant's home and witnessed Frederick's final attack on the night of December the 22nd 1935. He once again suffered extremely severe stomach pains. This time it was so bad that he was admitted to hospital in Sherborne where he died in the afternoon of the 23rd. His death was regarded as suspicious by the doctors and therefore a post mortem was carried out. Analysis of his tissues by Home Office pathologist, Dr. Roche Lynch, found 4.09 grains of arsenic in the body. These findings were reported to Dorset Constabulary who visited Charlotte and removed her and the children to a workhouse in Sturminster Newton while they conducted a minute search of the Bryant's cottage and garden. Of the 150 odd samples sent to the Home Office laboratory, 32 contained arsenic. Among the items recovered was a burnt tin which had contained an arsenic-based weed killer. Armed with this vital piece of information the police systematically visited all the local chemists shops to try and establish where the weed killer had been purchased and by whom. Their efforts bore fruit and they discovered a Yeovil chemist who had sold a tin of the weed killer to a woman who only signed the poisons register with an X. (remember, Charlotte could not write, a fact known to all who knew her). The chemist however was unable to identify either Charlotte or Lucy Ostler in a subsequent identity parade. On February the 10th, 1936, Charlotte who was still at the workhouse in Sturminster Newton, was arrested and charged with the murder of her husband. She is reported to have told the officers that arrested her 'I haven't got poison from anywhere and that people know. I don't see how they can say I poisoned my husband' The trial. The trial opened on Wednesday May the 27th,1936 the Dorset Assizes in Dorchester, before Mr. Justice MacKinnon. It was to last just four days which was by no means unusual in capital murder trials in those days. As it was a high profile poisoning case the prosecution case was led by the Solicitor-General, Sir Terrence O'Connor. Charlotte was defended by the well known barrister Mr. J.D. Casswell KC

The fact that she was 33 when died in July 1936 limits her DOB to the first half of 1904. Thus it limits the time frame. Jo

I am not sure that she was born in Londonderry,I have had a search done for the years 1902 -1906 and there is no record.Charlotte died in exeter prison in somerset,england.Why she was taken there no-one knows.I only know that her father was called John as this is on the marriage cert,it states that she was married in wells,somerset but this is not true so I take what has been written in books, on-line etc as hearsay rather than fact.It is now known to have been an unsafe conviction but that does not help her family now. I have been to visit the house where it happened, the farm where her husband worked and after much searching have found my great grandfather's grave.I just need the link with my great grandmother's branch,but I may have to give up on it has it is difficult to trace irish relatives.Thankyou all for your replies. Regards Betty

Hi Jo, I have her death cert and she was 29 when she died according to that so that would throw me back to 1907.

Hi Zoe, That is the correct Charlotte Mchugh/Bryant.

Hi Betty What a strange tale. I suppose the old adage not to believe what you read in the papers is true. The marriage and death certs would have been equally mistrusting for detail. However I find it difficult to comprehend how the cert can say 29 when it is reported as being 33 in the papers. I read the full account of Charlotte before she married and the unsafe conviction too. I am unsure where you would look next. Have you looked on Rootsweb and on A2A? Might be worth a try. Jo

Hi Jo, I have never been on a2a do you have to subscribe to it?I have got some good news as far as this story goes I managed to reunite all of Charlottes children last year with the kind help of a lady from this site.

Just had an e-mail from a friend and she has said that Frederick death was not registered until the 2nd quarter of 1936 and it states he was 39,everything seems to tally with him but Charlottes details dont. I will perservere.

Hi Betty it seems like she may have fibbed about her age if you can get the years 1907-1909 for births you may find her in this group, as you didn't have to produce certificates to prove your age when married. As you say you have searched upro 1906 with no sign of her I would search the following years as you stated she may have only been around 15 when married but said 20. Zoe

The age at death is only as accurate as the person giving it. As has been mentioned, she MAY have lied on her marriage cert ... OR .. she may have given her year of birth and the Registrar miscalculated and then corrected his mistake. IF she was born in Ireland, then you have a struggle ahead of you. Have you looked for her Father on the 1901 census to see IF the family were living in England before her death ? ... she says - grasping at straws ! Elaine ;-)

Hi Betty Others sing the praises of A2A and someone else may well be able to advice you better. Certianly when I have looked, it has cost me nothing but I do not get on well with the site as I find it not so user friendly. May be my lack of experience as I expect to type in a name and get a result. Both A2a and Rootsweb, I find a little daunting. But I understand there is a mailing list and message board on roostweb which is supposed to be quite good. There is another website on BBC website, History message boards, fmily trees with some real Genealogy gurus on there. Hope you get lucky. Jo