In Lincolnshire in 1934, 44-year-old Arthur Major died suddenly. He had previously been healthy, and his wife seemed unusually eager to arrange his funeral. The ensuing investigation revealed a troubled marriage, and the circumstantial evidence against Ethel Major began to mount, in this vintage true crime case that captured the attention of both the local community and the national press, with Ethel later being dubbed the “corned beef killer.”

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Sources:
Ancestry.co.uk; National Archives; Society for Lincolnshire History & Archaeology; Hull History Centre. Newspaper coverage:
Lincolnshire Echo, 29 May 1934; Daily Mirror, 30 May 1934; Lincolnshire Standard and Boston Guardian, 2 June 1934; Nottingham Journal, 1 August 1934; Daily Mirror, 3 August 1934; Nottingham Journal, 3 August 1934; Louth Standard, 4 August 1934; Boston Guardian, 4 August 1934; Lincolnshire Echo, 31 October 1934; Daily Express, 2 November 1934; Western Mail, 2 November 1934; Leicester Evening Mail, 19 December 1934, p.10; Taunton Courier and Western Advertiser, 26 December 1934; Taunton Courier, Bristol and Exeter Journal.

87 | Murder in a Lincolnshire Village: The Ethel Major Poisoning Case