Warning: Not for the faint of heart or those prone to nightmares
An unmarked grave in Forest Home Cemetery holds the remains of one of America’s most devious seria killers … or does it?
Belle Gunness was born in 1859 under the name Brynhil Paulsdatter Storseth. A local rumor claimed that when she was a young woman, a rich man jilted her and beat her, causing her to lose a baby. In 1881, Brynhild left Norway for America, changing her name to Belle along the way in order to sound less foreign. Belle was a tall, strong woman who was not afraid of work. Her many jobs included one in a butcher’s shop, a skill that would later prove useful.
Three years after arriving in the U.S., Belle married Mads Sorenson. The marriage was not blessed with children – some speculated that the beating in Norway had left Belle infertile. In 1891, Mads and Belle adopted baby Jennie whose mother, a neighbor, had died. Three years after adopting Jennie, a candy store that Belle and Mads owned in Chicago at Grand and Elizabeth Street burned to the ground. Jennie and Belle were the only two in the store at the time of the fire. It wasn’t a total loss, as the store was insured. Belle collected the insurance money…