Lyda Southard’s Trail of Poisoned Husbands
The Old Idaho State Penitentiary in Boise housed America’s first female serial killer for a decade. Lyda Trueblood started killing in 1912 after marrying into the Dooley family in Twin Falls.
She poisoned four husbands and three family members with arsenic from boiled flypaper, collecting life insurance each time. Her victims suffered slow, agonizing deaths that doctors blamed on typhoid and food poisoning.
When chemist Earl Dooley found arsenic in soil samples, authorities dug up all her victims. Lyda escaped prison in 1931 using bedsheets and a smuggled saw, but was recaptured a year later.
The Women’s Ward where she plotted her famous escape still stands today.
Behind Thick Sandstone Walls She Plotted Her Escape
Lyda Southard went to the Idaho State Prison in Boise on November 9, 1921. A jury found her guilty of killing her fourth husband, Edward Meyer, by poison.
She got 10 years to life. The prison had huge sandstone walls that prisoners themselves had cut and put up.
Few women spent as much time as Lyda in this fortress, where she became one of Idaho’s most famous female prisoners.
Roses Bloomed While She Planned Her Freedom
Prison staff liked Lyda’s good behavior and let her garden in the Women’s Ward.
She took care of plants, made friends with other prisoners, and looked after animals on the grounds. The warden allowed her to plant roses outside her cell window, adding color to the grim walls.
A trusted prisoner named David Minton made two metal rose trellises in the workshop just for her garden. These simple structures would later help with her dark plans.
The Guard Who Fell For Her Deadly Charm
Jack Watkins couldn’t help falling for Lyda’s tricks. The prison guard became obsessed with the killer and broke rules to help her.
Lyda talked him into bringing a saw into prison, plus extra sheets she claimed she needed for comfort. Jack never saw her escape happen because he died before she made her move.
His death didn’t stop her plans – she simply found another man to use.
Prison Romance Turned Into Freedom Plan
Lyda focused on fellow prisoner David Minton during her time in the Women’s Ward. Minton worked as a machinist before going to prison for stealing.
She wrote him love letters while also flirting with the guard.
Her plan worked perfectly – when Minton got out, she convinced him to wait for her outside prison on a certain night.
Completely in love, he bought a car from a Boise dealer and got ready for their life together, not knowing he was just another tool for her.
The Night She Slipped Away
On May 4, 1931, Lyda started her escape. She used the saw Jack smuggled in to cut through her cell window bars.
Her small body, listed on her $50 reward poster as 5-foot-2 and 142 pounds, fit through the narrow opening. The poster also noted her light brown hair, blue eyes, and “very shifty look.”
By morning count, Lyda and Minton had gone, leaving prison staff rushing to find prisoner No. 3052.
Her Garden Tools Became Escape Tools
Lyda smartly joined her two rose trellises to make a ladder. She put this metal creation against the 17-foot-high sandstone wall around the prison.
The garden hose and a rope she made from twisted bed sheets helped her climb down safely on the other side. The garden that once showed how good she could be now gave her the perfect cover for breaking out.
Love-Struck Minton Waited With The Car Running
David Minton sat nervously in his new car outside the prison walls on May 4, 1931. Released just three weeks earlier, he risked everything for the woman who wrote such loving letters.
When Lyda came over the wall, he helped her down and they drove away from Boise.
Their car took them across state lines into Colorado, where Lyda already had plans that didn’t include her smitten helper.
She Left Him Behind Without A Second Thought
The couple reached Denver, where Lyda quickly grew tired of Minton. She left him without saying why or thanking him for his help in her escape.
Free from both prison and her helper, Lyda found work as a housekeeper for a rich widower named Harry Whitlock. Minton waited for her return until police caught him a year after the prison break.
He went back to Idaho alone, still loyal to the woman who used him.
Her Final Marriage Nearly Killed Again
Lyda charmed Harry Whitlock, a wealthy widower who lived with his mother and son in Denver. She got him to marry her in March 1932, hiding her murderous past and escaped prisoner status.
Harry had no clue his new wife had poisoned four earlier husbands with arsenic from boiled flypaper. Their marriage ended suddenly when police caught her in Topeka, Kansas, on July 31, 1932.
Harry later canceled the marriage after learning who his wife really was.
Freedom Ended After 15 Months On The Run
Police finally caught Lyda in Topeka, Kansas, in July 1932, ending her 15 months of freedom. Officers took her back to the Idaho State Prison in August.
While she sat in her cell, Warden R. E. Thomas got a strange letter from David Minton. The love-struck helper confessed to all of Lyda’s murders, despite meeting her only in prison.
His desperate try to free her failed, and the $50 reward for her capture went to the officers who found her.
Lady Bluebeard Got A Second Chance At Life
The prison released Lyda on probation in 1941 after serving nearly 20 years. She received a full pardon in 1943, walking away from her crimes as a free woman.
The Old Idaho Penitentiary records show she spent 18 years, 7 months, and 23 days behind bars, making her one of the longest-serving female inmates.
Lyda married one last time to wealthy Hal Shaw, who mysteriously disappeared. She died of a heart attack in 1958, taking the secrets of her deadly marriages to the grave.
Visiting Old Idaho Penitentiary
The Old Idaho Penitentiary at 2445 Old Penitentiary Road in Boise gives you a look into Lyda Southard’s story, America’s first female serial killer known as “Lady Bluebeard.”
Regular admission costs $8 for adults, $6 for seniors, and $5 for kids. Add guided tours for $2 extra on a first-come basis.
The prison opens daily 12pm-5pm, with summer hours 10am-5pm from Memorial Day through Labor Day. Check out the Historic Weaponry exhibit and prisoner displays before 4pm last admission.
This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.
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