Sarah Whiteling

Sarah Jane Whiteling (1848 – June 25, 1889), known as The Wholesale Poisoner, was a German-born American serial killer who poisoned her husband and two children in the span of three months in 1888. She was sentenced to death and executed for her crimes, becoming the first woman to have been executed in Philadelphia County.

Early life Claiming to have been born in Germany, Sarah was initially married to Tom Brown in Clinton, Iowa in 1868. At some point, the couple moved to Chicago. After the Great Fire, they moved to Philadelphia. A few years later, Brown was imprisoned in the Eastern State Penitentiary for highway robbery, and died serving his sentence.

Sarah then had a child with a man named Thomas Storey, who kept an oyster saloon in the city, naming her Bertha. In March 1880, she married John Whiteling, bringing along her then 9-month-old daughter with them.

Murders On March 30, 1888, John died suddenly, with the attending physician Dr. G. W. Smith evaluating that the cause of death was inflammation of the bowels. His life had been insured in two companies: the John Hancock Financial and the Benevolent Order of Buffalos, each paying Sarah $145 and $85 respectively. When questioned about his death, she claimed that he had committed suicide.

When questioned about her motives, Mrs. Whiteling claimed that she had murdered Bertha in order to prevent her from becoming a "sinful and wicked girl", as she had constantly misbehaved and stolen various items, such as pennies and pocketbooks, from her teacher and neighbors. As for Willie, he was apparently poisoned because he was "in the way". While the verdict didn't faze Sarah at all, it shocked the contemporary public in Philadelphia, especially the female population, who went so far as to sign a petition for commutation of her sentence.

Despite this, Gov. Beaver did not change her sentence. Whiteling was only prosecuted for her daughter's murder, as there was insufficient evidence for the other murders. While imprisoned, Sarah was informed that she had been left a fortune from a deceased relative back in Iowa.

On the execution date, Sarah Whiteling appeared to be unmoved by her conundrum, as she believed that God would forgive her sins and that she would go to Heaven to be with her children. On June 25, 1889, at 10 o'clock, following a short prayer delivered by Rev. William D. Jones, the trap was sprung. Whiteling suffocated from the strangulation although, according to physicians, her heart had continued beating for a little while after the drop. Her body was then sent for dissection to Dr. Alice W. Bennett, who examined her brain before eventually being sent off to be buried alongside her murdered relatives.