There is a type of female killer that has become so infamous that they have their own nickname - the black widow. This name comes from the Black Widow spider that are found all over the world. They are considered to be the most venomous type of spiders found in the United States, so people are naturally not big fans of them even though people rarely die from their bites. But it wasn’t due to their venom that these spiders are compared to deadly female killers. It is actually because of a a widely circulated myth that the females of the species eat their mates after sexual contact. While this actually does happen sometimes; this isn’t regular behaviour. This didn’t stop this falsehood persisting today, and now being attached to women who decide to murder their lovers. These women are a lot more dangerous than their spider counterparts, and are known to act out their anger, sociopathic tendencies, or desire for financial gains by killing their husbands, boyfriends, or both. One of the most famous was a woman who immigrated to the United States in 1881. It is said she killed over forty people, but the murderess herself disappeared without a trace. So get comfortable my spooky friends…you are about to hear the tale Belle Gunness, the black widow of the American midwest. But before we get started, I do need to give you all a heads up. Today we will be speaking about the murders of both adults and children, along with graphic crime scenes. Listener discretion is advised. Our website is the one stop spot for everything spooky!  Go to https://horrifying-history-shop.fourthwall.com to watch our history videos, find our social media links, read our spooky blog, get yourself some great creepy merch, and to join our fan club! If you are a member of our fan club - you will receive a permanent discount in our store while you are a fan club member.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.