When the name Nannie Doss appears, it’s often with eerie epithets like “The Giggling Granny” or “The Black Widow.” Her story horrified America in the 1950s. Convicted for killing four of her husbands but suspected of murdering 11 family members, she was a paradox— a cheerful, church-going woman with a sinister side. A 1954 report from the Chicago Tribune captured the public sentiment, stating, “It’s hard to believe that behind that matronly face lurks a murderer.”
Early Life and Marriages
Nannie Doss was born as Nancy Hazle in 1905 in Blue Mountain, Alabama. Her childhood was rife with abuse and hardship, thanks to an authoritarian father. After surviving a head injury in her youth, she married Charley Braggs in 1921, with whom she had four children. Her murderous tendencies seemingly began here—two of her daughters died under mysterious circumstances. It was the death of Arlie Lanning, her fourth husband, in 1952, that raised eyebrows. The Charleston Gazette detailed the incident, reporting, “Lanning seemed healthy until his sudden demise. A closer look revealed that he had a large life insurance policy.”
Timeline of Murders
- 1927-1954: In this timespan, Nannie cycled through five marriages. Each husband died unexpectedly, leaving her with hefty insurance payouts.
- 1953: Frank Harrelson, her third husband, died from what was reported as “acute food poisoning.” Insurance companies started growing suspicious at this point.
- 1954: Arlie Lanning was found dead in their home. Shortly after, Nannie’s mother also passed away. Both had symptoms of arsenic poisoning.
- 1954: Samuel Doss, husband number five, died within a month of their wedding. His sudden death spurred authorities into action.
The Investigation and Confession
Nannie Doss was finally apprehended in 1954, when an autopsy performed on Samuel Doss revealed a lethal dose of arsenic. The Tulsa World newspaper covered the bizarre aspects of her arrest, remarking, “She chuckled through police interrogations and seemed unphased by the gravity of the charges.” Nannie didn’t hold back during her confession. “I was searching for the perfect mate, the real romance of life,” she stated, with her unnerving grin.
Trial and Incarceration
Despite the public’s perception of her as a gentle grandmother, the courtroom was stunned as the evidence piled up. Convicted for Samuel Doss’s murder in 1955, she was sentenced to life imprisonment. The Oklahoma Journal observed the public’s reaction: “She sat there, smiling as if at a church gathering, while the judge read out a sentence for a heinous crime.”
Legacy and Cultural Impact
Even today, Nannie Doss has a hold on American pop culture and criminal lore. Documentaries like “Deadly Women” have episodes dedicated to her life, and books such as “The Giggling Granny: The True Story of Nannie Doss” delve deeper into her psyche. “The mystery around Nannie Doss refuses to die down,” said a retrospective article by the New York Daily News.
Aftermath
Doss spent the last decade of her life in the Oklahoma State Penitentiary and died of leukemia in 1965. “It was a somber ending to a life that fascinated and repelled the country,” noted an obituary in The Oklahoman. Her tale continues to inspire new generations of true crime aficionados who seek to understand her twisted motives.
Nannie Doss’s story disrupts our conventional understanding of killers. The tale of this “giggling granny” defies stereotypical narratives and serves as a grim lesson on the multi-faceted nature of human evil. As we continue to explore her story through modern media, she will undoubtedly continue to both fascinate and terrify us.