Episodes
Greetings from the great beyond, listeners! The great beyond of course being either that ephemeral place between life and death, or your preferred web browser depending on if you're reading this off the website or getting it from a ouija board. Today in the Nightmare Cottage, we're giving you an atypical double dose of true crime from your ghostesses with the mostest, so strap in!
Nylene brings us the short and not at all sweet tale of Blanche Monnier, or as she's known in France - la Séquestrée de Poitiers. The young socialite's tale may not end in her untimely demise like most of the stories we read here, but by the time we're done giving you the details, you might question if there really are some fates worse than death. FYI, nobody is going to judge you if you need to pause the episode and take a shower after this one.
Eh? What's that? Not enough bloodshed, you say? Hold your horses, sickos, because Nym's topic today is sure to leave you satisfied. Tell me, listener... Are you familiar with the name Brynhild Paulsdatter Storseth? No? Well maybe you'd know her by some of her other aliases, like "Lady Bluebeard", "Mistress of Murder Farm", or even "Hell's Princess"? Evocative nicknames to be sure, and yet they still only capture a fraction of the money-crazed monster that was... Belle Gunness.
It's all about brutal belles from Hell and bonafide bitches of the bourgeoisie elite today, y'all. Moral of these stories? Love may make you do some crazy things, but cash might just get you killed.
Blanche Monnier by Nylene
Blanche Monnier prior to her disappearance
Blanche Monnier when she was found at age 52
Newspapers reporting the crime.
Louise Monnier - Blanche's mother.
Marcel Monnier - Blanche's brother.
Blanche after she was freed.
Belle Gunness Nym
Belle & Kids
Gunness Farm
Officials sift through the ashes of the Gunness family home that burned to the ground April 28, 1908. Four bodies were found – Belle’s two daughters, a son and a headless torso that was believed to be Belle Gunness.
Sightseers view the holes where several of bodies were found on the Belle Gunness farm in 1908.
Skull of one of the victims that was found.
Ray Lamphere, Belle Gunness’ handyman, was convicted of arson for burning down the Gunness home on April 28, 1908.
Newspaper Article
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Blanco, J. I. (n.d.). Belle Gunness | Murderpedia, the encyclopedia of murderers. https://murderpedia.org/female.G/g/gunness-belle.htm
Dec 14, 1901, page 14 - New Zealand Times at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/951021989/?match=1&terms=Blanche%20Monnier
Dimuro, G. (2023, August 17). Blanche Monnier spent 25 years imprisoned by her mom for falling in love. All That’s Interesting. https://allthatsinteresting.com/blanche-monnier
Geringer, J. (n.d.). Belle Gunness — Fire! — Crime Library. https://www.crimelibrary.org/serial_killers/history/gunness/index_1.html
Hell’s Princess: The Mystery of Belle Gunness, Butcher . . . (n.d.). Goodreads. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35134342-hell-s-princess?ac=1&from_search=true&qid=B50jdMNlMw&rank=1
Jun 23, 1901, page 41 - The St Louis Republic at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/76465270/?match=1&clipping_id=new
May 06, 1908, page 1 - The New York Times at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/20415238/?match=1&clipping_id=177391784
May 11, 1908, page 10 - The Indianapolis News at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/35187613/?match=1&terms=olaf%20lindboe
May 13, 1908, page 2 - The Duluth News Tribune at Newspapers.com. (n.d.). Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/image/1127066516/?match=1&clipping_id=177330466
Research Guides: Belle Gunness Murder Farm: Topics in Chronicling America: Introduction. (n.d.). https://guides.loc.gov/chronicling-america-belle-gunness-murder-farm
VanessaEccles. (2023, September 8). Locked away for 25 years: The story of Blanche Monnier. Fabled Collective. https://www.fabledcollective.com/blanche-monnier/