Morbid - Episode 83: The Strange Case of Hallie Illingworth

Episode Date: July 29, 2019

We love a good, creepy case from the 40s in here, don't we? The strange, tragic murder of Hallie Illingworth is fascinating for one big reason, and that reason is saponification. Trust us, this one has it all....science, history and corpse wax.  This episode was sponsored by Embr Wave. Head over to EmbrWave.com and use our special code MORBID for a big $50 discount at checkout! Sources: https://www.myolympicpark.com/park/the-lady-of-crescent-lake https://morbidology.com/the-lady-of-the-lake-hallie-illingworth/ https://www.thevintagenews.com/2018/04/06/lady-of-the-lake-2/ https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemistry/saponification See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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That's W-O-N-D-E-R-Y-P-O-D. Audible.com slash wondery pod or text wondery pod to 500-500 to try audible for free for 30 days. Angie has made it easier than ever to connect with skilled professionals to get all your home projects done well. Whether it's routine maintenance and emergency repair or a dream project, Angie lets you browse home on her reviews, compare quotes from multiple local pros, and even book a service instantly. So the next time you have a home project, just Angie that and start getting the most out

of your home. Download the free Angie mobile app today or visit Angie.com. That's ANGI.com. Hey weirdos, I'm Elena, I'm Ash. And this is Super Dupor Morbid. A whole last morbid for you to listen to. Super sized. Wow. Actually, it's just regular sized. I'm pretty sure. All right well, tell me. No. Either way, it's gonna be good. It's always good. We're here. We're ready. I don't have time to recommend morbid. Yes. All your friends.

To all your friends. And people you hate do it. Yeah, say fuck you. Listen to morbid. I fucking hate you. Rewind your day. Go listen to morbid. Thanks everybody. So first, I just wanted to start out by saying you guys are the most beautiful people that have ever existed on planet earth. They all are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. They are. anytime now. I did. I thought you were going to say fungal of joy and I was like, get the fuck out of here.

Bundle of weird. A bucket of weird just coming into the world. Bundle of weirdo. And so I just wanted to thank each and every one of you for all your amazingly kind words. You're like stupid, beautiful. Oh, you're just stupid, beautiful. I hate it.

I want to hate the beautiful right out there. Like I hate you so much because you're so wonderful each and every one of you. So I just wanted to tell you how lucky we feel that you all cared. And also, Billy Jensen congratulated us. Because he listens to the podcast I bet. So I'm dead. I am personally the sweetest. The person that your baby could be named after him.

Yes. He works for a boy and a girl. He suggested Billy as a name for either way. And you know what? It's in consideration. I mean, we have to. I feel like it's not our choice anymore, but yeah, that was really rad. So again, thank you guys so much. You guys are the sweetest and you like humble me. So you prove to us every day how amazing you are. And how lucky we are. So we just fucking love you. Speaking of lovely things. Let's talk about some fucking body parts.

You guys heard about, because we definitely got sent this a lot, which I love that everybody sends us these great stories. Like, it's amazing. I'm sure you have all heard about the crazy bonkers scene at the Arizona Body donation facility. So basically what happened was at the Arizona Biological Resource Center, the FBI raided it in 2014 and they closed it. Okay. But the witness testimonials have just become public and holy shit. Oh no. It is House of a Thousand Corps is up in there.

Really? It's insane. So an FBI agent named Mark Kwayner, I think his name was. He said in his, and it's like in testimony, like recorded, sworn, everything. He said he saw infected heads. Ew. He saw buckets of heads, arms, and legs everywhere,

just thrown around. And there was a cooler filled with male genitals. What the fuck? Which sounds like a nightmare. What the fuck? And the worst thing was that on the wall, no, used as a decoration. No.

Was a large man's body with a tiny woman's head sewn on top of it What like in any call that like a Frankenstein type thing who who owned this place so these crazy Fucks that were working in here So a tiny woman's head onto a large man's body and then hung it on the wall like it's funny Okay, that is like that is somebody's mom. But that's the worst part is it's like these people were donated to science. Yeah, they were expecting their bodies to be used for research purposes and treated respect.

That's horrific. This guy named Troy Harp was saying he gave his mother and grandmother's bodies to this place because he said he believed they would be used for scientific research and that's what they had. You know because somebody wants to be donated for that. Yeah. And he said, quote, cancer and leukemia and whatever else using sample cells, that's what I was told. And it's like now he learns that like people's heads are being sewn onto other people's bodies. And you have no idea what's happening in there. that's awful Apparently the guy who owned it Steven Gore which wow wow I mean you can't write that shit you really can't Steven Gore said to in a letter to the judge that the business was quote a labor of love in that it had just overwhelmed him

So you did what yes, what and he And he's literally said, this is an industry that has no formal regulations to look for, to go for like guidance. And it's like, I feel like we don't need to look for guidance to not hang a man's body in a literal head on a wall. Like I'm, I'm sorry. You were literally looking for someone to be like, bro, like don't, don't create Frankenstein.

So don't need a body, don't do that. Like you really needed someone to tell you that. Yeah. Apparently he was sentenced to one year of deferred jail time and four years of probation. That's it. Yeah, that's a bummer. Wow.

So that's a crazy story. Sure. Thanks everybody for sharing it. In other news, we're working on a Patreon bonus episode. That's a crazy story. Sure. Thanks everybody for sharing it. In other news, we're working on a Patreon bonus episode that is being released in the next couple of days. So we will let you know when that is in your feeds. Look out for that. Maybe we should start our case.

Start our case. So today we are going to be talking about the lady in the lake. Oh So the lady in the lake was Halley, Ellingworth. I love the name Halley and This is kind of a cookie crazy story and we thought this was like this is one of those like super old ones I love it. Yeah. It's a nice old, like mysterious, crazy spooky case. It's a good old spook, spook. It is a good old spook, spook. So on July 6th, 1940, two fishermen,

Louis Rolf and his brother were spending the afternoon doing what fishermen do. What do they do? They fish. Oh, yeah. So while they're having a relaxing afternoon on the waters of Lake Crescent, which is located near Port Angeles and Olympic National Park in Washington,

Olga. They're floating around. They come across something that probably shattered you know the picturesque surroundings and peace that fishermen often go out on the water for. It's not a fish, I'm assuming. It was not a fish. Along the shoreline, they spotted something pretty big floating. A shark. And they were like, that's a shark in this lake, obviously. Yeah, it makes sense. That was their first thought.

Duh, absolutely. No, at first they thought it was some large debris or something. They were like, what the hell is that over there? Like just a big bag or something. But when they got a little closer to it, they were kind of shocked to find that it was a body of a woman floating in the water. That'll really fuck up your morning. That'll ruin a fishing trip. Totally.

Because I mean, for several reasons. Number one being that it's a dead body and that's about my... Correct. And two, you're like, oh shit, now we have to go through this whole like. Yeah, we found her, but we're not involved in this in any, that's always my biggest fear. Yeah, I don't want any part of it. Like I always say like, wow, it would be crazy to find a dead body, but then I'm like, yeah, I don't want any part of that. Because immediately you're the first person that they're like, so what were you doing on this afternoon? How do you know this, and you're the first person that they're like, so what were you doing on this afternoon?

How do you know this person? You're like, oh damn. They're like, I was going fishing. I don't know. I was just floating around the lake, man. Just let me live my life. So the corpse had been wrapped in two gray striped blankets and tied with heavy rope.

Interesting. She was clearly wearing a green dress and they said she was remarkably well-preserved. Interesting. So immediately they're thinking like she's been in the water for like a minute. Like they were like holy shit. Did someone like just put her in here? Like what the hell is going on?

Now just to get into Lake Crescent a little bit, so because this is going to tie into why she was so well-preserved, Lake Crescent is a super deep lake. It's a official maximum depth is 624 feet. Holy shit. It's officially the second deepest lake in Washington, and it's a freshwater lake which affects de-comp in bodies. Oh, okay. Like, because if it's saltwater, it'll slow down the process because it kind of preserves the salt. Yeah.

It's known for being like super blue and very clear. And the reason for that is because it has a lack of nitrogen in the water and that inhibits the growth of algae. So there's no devil's water. Allah, Carl drew in this. Because if you guys haven't listened to the Bridgewater triangle episode you should and you'll understand that. Exactly.

But yeah green water is not devil's water. It's just algae. It's just salt. It's just salt. Fucking Karl drew. So just to put it out there floaters as dead bodies in water are called or poop are sometimes poop are floaters. You know, you are correct. I cannot argue. I am 12. I am trash. I am trash. Um, floatos, floatos, floatos.

floaters are rarely, if ever, well preserved. So a lot of floaters decomp is obviously influenced by fresh versus saltwater or duration and temp of immersion. I love when you get all science. I'm about to. So when you're really as many, I'm just kidding. Hopefully that's not what I lose anybody else. No, everybody else is like, oh my God, that's so interesting. So, putrefaction is also delayed in deep water.

It's really in like shallow water, that putrefaction is going to happen really quick. Okay. It's also going to be delayed when the body is covered with clothing like she was, because obviously that's just an extra layer that the water can't go to as quick. And the main thing that happens to a dead body that's thrown in the water, this is like really the main takeaway of, because there's a lot of variations depending on fresh water, salt water, cold hot depth, you know, like all that stuff. But the main thing that's going to happen to a body thrown in any water

that gives it its floater nickname. The bacteria in your gut and chest cavity will build up and build up and build up. And even if I take a probiotic, even if you take a probiotic, yeah, you can't get away from this. Okay. And it's going to produce methane, carbon dioxide, and hydrogen sulfide gases. So this stanky ass, gassy combo is what makes your body bloat and it's going to float you up to the surface.

The thing is it's going to make your torso bloat mostly. So your torso is going to bloat and that's why they float but like your arms and legs are going to dangle into the water and your head. This is reminding me of silence of the lamps. Yeah, they find her in the water. Oh, yeah, there you go. She's all. And I think I mentioned some of this during my,

like, mini episode that I did about, like, about the body farms. And this, that's the reason you often will find dead bodies, like, face down in the water floating. Okay. Because it just rises you up like that. Right. And otherwise you'll just kind of flip around like a floaty

Okay, like a really fucked up floaty like a pool float that no one on like a fourth one. So float from hell Your body generally breaks down more slowly in water than it will in open air. Why basically? It's because it's, like open air allows for a lot more like organisms. It's come, yeah, and it's oxygen rich, but you're going to putrify faster in warm, fresh, or stagnant water. Okay. And that's because it's a really good breeding ground for bacteria. Okay. Cold, salty, or running water is less of a breeding ground for bacteria, so that's, it's

kind of like when you, when you're in a freezer. Exactly. Or when you want to like wash raw chicken, you don't do it under hot water because that's a breeding ground for bacteria. You do it under cold running water because that's not a breeding ground for bacteria. And that will thought out for you. Lake Creston being a fresh water lake would mean that it would likely putify your body a lot faster.

But the fact that this body was so well preserved actually had nothing to do with the time frame it was in the water. Okay. So Dr. Cavenni, I think his name was, he was the doctor who examined the body and did the autopsy. Yep. He said, quote, I never saw a corpse just like this one

before. The flesh is hard, almost waxy. She must be nearly as large as when she went into the water. I'd say she's about five foot six inches in height and that she weighed about 140 pounds when she was alive. So the main reason for her being so well preserved in it, like, waxy, almost like he said, yeah, that's interesting is that she had been sub-ponified. No, what does that mean? Now this is the process by which

adipocere forms. You want to know what adipocere is? I'd like you to speak in English. Please. Is what I'd like. Well, adipocere is actually referred to as corps wax, or the fat of graveyards. It's shut up. Because graveyards are fat, y'all. I mean, it's same, but. But basically, what adipocere is, is it's a product of decomp that turns body fat into soap. What?

Essentially. No. Yes. And it forms Through the process like I said of sub-ponification. So was she was the water bubbly around there? So basically what happened is it tends to develop when body fat is exposed to anaerobic bacteria So anaerobic bacteria is bacteria not requiring oxygen to thrive or grow. Yep In a warm damp alkaline environment, like soil or water, that's when that can form. And basically, that's what like crescent is.

So the corp's wax is a soft, it gives it like this weird soft, greasy, gray appearance when it starts to form. And as it gets, as it like starts to age, it hardens in turns kind of brittle and it preserves the body. So it was like around her. It basically, it's like a, almost like a covering. Okay.

But so, pontification will stop the decomp process and it's tracks. That's so interesting. And it's, like we said, it going to like kind of encase the body. And what they'll call them sometimes is soap. They'll call them a soap mummy. A soap mummy? Yeah.

Because they're like this corpse that's perfectly well preserved and like wax. Like soap. Like literally soap. And it helps them to float. Now, is this soap like, could you like use it as soap? I mean, I wouldn't. You absolutely can, I'm sure. If you felt like that was something you wanted to like,

if that was a journey, you wanted to take in your life. But is it, what it clean, you like to, does it have the most obvious? No, it doesn't have like cleaning properties because your body would have to create like cleaning properties. So it's not so. And it for show is not after you die. So no, but it's like, it is like soap. It's waxing because actually the process of making soap is sub-onification as well. So wow. I'm fucked up right now. Isn't that crazy? And so just to give a little background on how this was discovered because this is fascinating. It ought so fascinating. It better be fascinating to everyone because this

is insane. In 1786, between 1786 and 1787, the graves in Paris's cemetery of the innocence were starting to be, they were having to like, exume them and dig them up because they were moving the bones to what would become the catacombs. Okay. These two French scientists, Forcroy and Thoreau, or Thorey. I'm not French, guys. I'm sorry. I love you guys so much. I like Thoreau.

I like Thoreau, but I think it's Thorey. I like both. They were kind of like working with the exhumation and like making sure everything was going right. They were studying the decomp and the bodies that were being exhumed. And they were like, what the fuck is this waxy grey shit that's on all these bodies? And it was on some of the, because these were children, it's graves. But they were like, what the hell is this? So they named it out of Pacir, which is from the Latin adepts,

which means fat, and sear, which means wax. Fat wax. Fat wax. So, because that's literally what it is. It's like your body fat turns to wax. Injusically. So basically, the most important ingredient is specific bacteria needs to be present.

And they are the ones that are found specifically in the intestinal tract of human beings. Which again, during the body farm episode, I talked a lot about this, like these kind of gut bacteria that are necessary for decom. When a body is exposed to certain conditions in the environment, A chemical reaction occurs and the fat undergoes a type of hydrolysis. Hydrolysis is just any kind of chemical reaction where a molecule of water will rupture one or more chemical bonds in your body.

Interesting. Science. When this type of hydrolysis happens, it forms fatty acid salts and other stuff that make up the adipacy. Okay. So during the formation of the adipacy, the water from your soft tissues is extracted,

and it will make the body basically not a cool place for bacteria to want to live. Okay. Because it takes out that moisture and bacteria is like, I don't want to fucking live in the Sahara desert of a body like fuck this. So they're like, no. So, um, an adipocere is also not a super hospitable place for the types of insects that also, like, help in the decont process. So it keeps those away. So it makes the decomposing tissues kind of left intact.

So it literally mummifies. So it literally mummifies and preserves you and allows environmental conditions around you to not contribute to your decomp. I want that to happen to me when I die because I'm not trying to let my body rot. Like, sorry, body rot is just not something I'm out here endorsing. And you know what? There is something we are out here endorsing. I'm out here endorsing what? Hi, I'm Lindsey Graham, the host of Wondery's podcast American Scandal. We bring to life some of the biggest controversies in US history, presidential lies, environmental disasters, corporate fraud.

In our newest series, we look at the Kids for Cash Scandal, a story about corruption inside America's system of juvenile justice. In Northeastern Pennsylvania, residents had begun noticing an alarming trend. Children were being sent away to jail in high numbers and often for committing only minor offenses. The FBI began looking at two local judges, and when the full picture emerged,

it made national headlines. The judges were earning a fortune, carrying out a brazen criminal scheme, one that would shatter the lives of countless children and force a heated debate about punishment and America's criminal justice system. Follow American scandal wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen ad-free on the Amazon Music or Wonder App. What if you were trafficked into a cult over shot nine times, or fell in love with a vampire, or went into a minor

surgery and woke up one week later, paralyzed. What would you do? I'm Whit Missaldine, the creator of this is actually happening, a podcast from Wondry that brings you extraordinary true stories of life-changing events, told by the people who lived them. From a young man that dooms his entire future with one choice, to a woman who survived a notorious serial killer, you'll hear their first-person account of how they overcame remarkable circumstances.

Each episode is an exploration of the human spirit and personal discovery. These haunting accounts sound like Hollywood movies, but I assure you this is actually happening. Follow this is actually happening wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen ad-free on the Amazon Music or Wonder app. Okay, back to the show. Alright, so back to suponification. Great, and ad-apaceear in Corpse Wax. Back to suponification. Great. And adipocere and corpse wax. Back to dead people soap.

You know. So after I gave you the whole shabang about the history of adipocere and suponification and dead bodies, thank you for that. There was just like a little side that I thought was kind of interesting. So apparently these soap mummies can be like a big problem in grave yards. And they were an issue for some German graveyards in 2008. Not too long ago. Not too long ago are German listeners. Because apparently in Germany, a lot of German cemeteries recycle graves every 15 to 25 years.

And basically, that's when bodies are kind of expected to be completely skeletonized. And basically, that's when bodies are kind of expected to be completely skeletonized. And so what they'll do is they'll go in and they'll zoom these bodies or they'll like move them over to use the plot for someone else. But apparently the soil conditions in some German cemeteries created corps wax build up. And it got so bad that the bodies weren't decomposing at all. So they were just preserved bodies. So when the grave diggers started going into exhumed the graves and turned them over to

do new plots, they found tons of just soap mommies straight up. Just like whole last bodies. Just whole last bodies. And so some of the cemeteries solve this problem by basically creating burial chambers and Had to do like the super expensive soil reconditioning to like change the Biology of the soil. That's cool So that I just thought that was kind of interesting that it like is still a problem. I think so many are a problem I just want you to yell the zinga now

Bazinga Okay, thank you. I think that's what science people do. And we don't. No. They can tell you that right now. But yeah, I just think it's funny that like on the list of problems,

so mummy's is a problem. We actually look pretty close to the top. Like you never think it, but they are. So basically, so these again, these fishermen ran across this body now that I've gone into that whole thing. I just thought of I got 99 problems, but it's so mummy one. That's what I just was thinking in my mind. But it's so funny. Mummy is one. I love it. So upon discovering this this woman's body in the water, well preserved. They, these two fishermen were like,

oh shit. So they ran to the dock of the Washington State trout hatchery, because that is where you would go first. Like when I find a dead body, I would go to a trout hatchery. I don't even know what a trout hatchery is. It's exactly what it's up to.

Like they hatch trout. To trout hatch? I know you guys are having eggs. Oh, fuck. Fish two of my eggs. Yeah. And it that out. People are gonna literally be like, did you take biology you dumb bitch? It was gonna keep that whole thing. So yeah, they ran to the Washington State Trout Hatchery and they were like, hey, somebody help us. So they found the superintendent AD M and Roth. So he was like, hey guys, what's going on? And they were like, whoa, we just found something real scary in the water. We're pretty sure it's a lady. And he was like, okay, so he followed Ralfan's brother back to the scene and

Obviously they discovered that he discovered, you know, they were not lying bullshitting because at first He was like you probably are seeing a deer you dumbasses or something like on the shoreline, right? But he was like, oh no, that's a dead body. Okay, so yeah, so this superintendent M. Rath Yeah. So this superintendent, Emma and Roth contacted the Clalum County prosecutor slash corner, Ralph Smythe and Sheriff Charlie Kemp. And these are the guys that all rushed to the scene and we're helping. So apparently the body, the parents of the body well preserved in white as marble.

Same because soap. I was going to say, same. Because you know, subonification. Right. That's not why I'm white as marble, but we're just Scottish and I guess. We're just, yeah. We are not. We are not subonified right now, but you know, someday. So the body was taken to the mortuary immediately and an examination was done right away. They probably thought again that she had been in the lake for like a minute and a half

because they were like whoa shit so well so they were like wow we're gonna find so much out because she's so fresh Oh and she wasn't so the um the a medical student that was present at the autopsy at the time said quote there was no real smell and no decay Interesting the autopsy concluded that with certainty that she had been beaten and strangled to death. Oh no. Poor Holly. I know. Poor Holly. Following her death, she had been tossed into this lake, but she was first hog tied with ropes and weighed down with rocks and thrown into the lake, like to the bottom. Jesus. And she was floating because whoever had done this didn't count on the fact that rope would rot away. And the supantification made the body super light, so it floated it right up to the

surface. So this dumbass whoever threw her in there was like, oh, no, we'll never find you. And he twisted his mustaches. And both of us, all of us, as he had. He just twisted them all. But he wasn't thinking, oh, it's a modification. It's a modification and that the rope is going to rot away and she's just going to float back up to the surface.

Right. Don't mess. You're trying to dispose of a body. You know, I'm just going to be so stupid that we're just kidding. That's not at all. Cool. Yeah, that's not cool. Don't do that. If you're trying to dispose of a body, you know, it's gonna be so stupid. We're just kidding, that's not at all. Cool. Yeah, that's not cool, don't do that, don't do it.

If you're trying to dispose of a body, don't do that. Yeah, just stop doing that. Turn yourself in. So the pathologist estimated that she had been in the lake for, are you ready? One, two, three, go. Almost three years. Wow.

Yes. Three years. This body that was super well preserved did don't smell and had barely any decomp three years. I've been in that lake for three years. It's a long time. That like blew my mind. Three years ago, you didn't even have children.

Whoa. Three years ago, I couldn't legally drink. That's a long time. That's a long time. Wow. She was estimated to be in her 30s, I think like mid to late 30s. But other than that, she was a straight up Jane Doe

because they were like, oh, she's been in there for like 400 years. We have no idea who this girl is. Like could they not get fingerprints or anything like that? That can be tough because of slippage and stuff in water. Okay. But again, because she was so well preserved, you know, but this is also like the 40s.

Yes, so this is kind of early. And it's like if her finger print sign on record, then they'd be nothing so. So the body was actually the first ever to be found floating in Lake Crescent at the time. A plus. So like good on Lake Crescent. Yeah. Like a good job. But because of this, she became like known as the Lady of the Lake, like sensationally,

you know, you mean like all the publications were like the Lady of the Lake, which romanticizes it too much, I feel like. Yeah. She was brutally murdered and thrown in a lake. Stuffed, hog tied and like thrown in a lake. She's not like sitting in a throne, I'm sure. She's not this like siren or something that's like floating through the lake. She wasn't there by choice. Let's not make this great. But you know, you know how

they do. And actually funny little side note. A lot of people have been sharing that thing that says that we should stop giving serial killers like super cool names. And everybody's been coming up with hilarious names. And keep doing that because it's really funny. And that just reminds me of it, calling it the Lady of the Lake. Don't romanticize her death. No. So she was buried as a Jane Doe

in a poppers grave near the area initially, because they didn't have anything else to do. So initially, they did think they might have known who she was. They were like, oh, we think we know. Okay. And a woman named Marion Francis Stephens was from Chicago. She had disappeared in the Olympic National Park Wilderness in September of 1939, so the year before.

Okay. That doesn't make sense because it would only be three years. But I think they were like, I think the reason they were so into this was that, like a lot of things, including her clothing matched up with both women, like, what they were wearing. Maybe that's another reason. Yeah. So well, they were like, oh, maybe it wasn't that bad. Maybe we had it wrong. But Stephens had suffered a fractured neck vertebrae and there was no evidence of that kind of injury on Jane Doe. So, dead end.

So, that was a bummer because people were like, oh, we know, no, we don't know. So, she was, um, Halle, who we know, who she is now, was exhumed a couple of times in an attempt to give her a name. And at the time, criminologist Hollis B. Fultz had begun to look at a ton of missing persons reports from the area and he was just trying to get anything to connect. This is when it kind of started coming together. When he made this move to like really start looking into this stuff, he focused his attention on a missing person who was a missing waitress, and her name was Halley Illingsworth. Oh no.

Halley had been an attractive woman with Auburn hair in her mid-30s. It's huge. This corpse? That's right. Actually, that's really scary. Yeah. But this corpse also had Auburn hair

and was in her mid-30s and was attractive. So they were like, that works. We like that. It wasn't until 14 months later that dental records were actually a thing to really nail down her identity. And it finally gave her her name back. The corpse, Halle, had a unique six-tooth bridge in her mouth. It was a unique six-tooth bridge.

Okay. Because it was made out of beaten gold. I want fucking six feet. So that's like, it was a unique one. It wasn't like just any old bridge. That's cool. That's like some baller shit. I also don't know how like common a six-tooth bridge would have been then or would be now.

Anyways, that seems like a pretty unique dental feature. Like you have six gold teeth. Yeah. That's cool. That's pretty rare. Investigators knew this could probably trigger someone to be able to identify her. So they distributed pictures of the bridge to more than 5,000 dentists in the area. Finally, a dentist in Falkton, South Dakota recognized it immediately and he was like, in the South Dakota recognized it immediately. And he was like, that's Halle Eilingsworth. She's 38 years old.

She was a waitress at Lake Crescent Tavern. Oh wow. So they were like boom. We got a name. Identified. Now Halle was last seen on the 22nd of December, 1937. Okay. So this does match up with the amount of time

she had been in the water. Yeah. She had apparently gone back home to her apartment. She was waiting there after her shift. Her, she was waiting there for her husband, Monty Ellingworth. Ellingworth. Monty Ellingworth was a beer truck driver who had been at a party that night in Port Townsend. Okay.

So apparently the last thing anyone knew she was waiting at home for him. Now, Monty is a real piece of work. What am I sorry? Oh, come on. Monty and Halley had been married in Seattle in June 1936. Basically, everyone who knew them said the couple constantly fought. And they were always fighting over alcohol and affairs that he was having. Oh, so he was a literal douchebag.

He was a douche. And apparently he was like a wicked nasty drunk. And during one fight, police were called to break it up and Halle would often come to work with a ton of bruises all over her. So he was an abusive fuck. That makes me really sad. And he was just an all around piece of shit.

Like, oh, quite obviously. Now investigators immediately locked in on him, obviously, because they were like, oh, hello. And he was eventually tracked down, living with another woman. Oh, great. In Long Beach, California, and that's where they arrested him.

The woman he was living with was Eleanor Pearson, who was a daughter of a wealthy timber magnet. Oh, just as a fun fact. Fun fact about Monty When they came to him he told investigators that he last saw Halley Close to Christmas 1937 and he was like all I know is that she ran off with a Navy Lieutenant commander and left me doubt it And it's like yeah, right right, Monty. Right. I don't believe you.

You're rude. Well, further investigation revealed that Hallie had never contacted any of her family, and they were like, like in this whole time. And they were like, so she ran off with this random Navy commander. And then no one ever heard from her again? And just that's it. Yeah, and she was like close to her. They were like, that doesn't make any sense.

Yeah. Like, no. Nice try Monty. So they were like, try it again. And the other thing that was pretty suspicious was the fact that Monty had filed for divorce five months after she was last seen. And he didn't file for divorce on like the grounds of like desertion, which you would do if like you didn't know where this person went. He's filed on the grounds of incompatibility, which they were like, that's weird that you did that. That's an existence.

So they started being like, what's going on? So he was arrested at 1351 St. Louis Street in Long Beach. His mother and Eleanor Pearson, the woman who he was basically living with as a husband of wife at this time, they visited him while he was waiting to be extra-dited back to Washington. And they said in his jail cell, in his jail cell records, it says that Monty said to his mother, mother, you know I didn't do it, I didn't. And she said, yes, I know you didn't son, I know. So it's typical, like clearly this dude was raised to be like, yes, no, you didn't son. I know. So it's typical, like, clearly this dude was raised to be like, yes, no, you didn't do anything wrong.

You're perfect. And it's like, yeah, fuck you, mom. You know that. Yeah. You know your son's a piece of shit. Now, during his murder trial, he immediately started like contradicting all his statements because then he claimed he had last seen Halley

on the 22nd of December, 1937. And he said that Halley went to work that night. And he said later on she came home, they got into a super bad argument, which he'd never said before. And then he said that that Halley just left and he never saw her again. So he told the court, I just know, he was like, I don't know where she went, but I know she just left me. Oh yeah, that makes sense. She just left me.

And it's like, okay. Now, obviously during the trial, they were like, oh, that's all well and fine. Like yeah, you're totally a victim, Monty. And then they were like, about the fact that you abused her on the reg. Like, what are you talking about? And it came up a ton. And he did confess that it was the norm for them to get into physical altercations.

Oh good. I bet it was her fault though. Of course. He said, quote, I struck Halle. She also struck me. Of course. I never beat her up. I did not kill Halle. And at one point during this whole thing, the prosecutor was like, why do you hate Halle? Like, why do you hate your wife? Interesting. And he said he didn't hate her. And the prosecution said, quote, then why did you beat her so? Because that's how she was found. Oh, wow. And the fucker had nothing to say. Exactly. Because what do you, how do you even

get a try and cover them up? Exactly. Now, the prosecution eventually put forward the theory that they were like, okay, so Monty clearly strangled his wife during an altercation. At some point, between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m. the night she went missing. And then he placed her body in the trunk of his sedan, drove her to Crescent Lake, and he threw it in. And then just decided to start a new life. And thinking that she would never float up to the surface again. Right.

Which he was almost right if those things didn't all happen perfectly. And it was the rope, and this is kind of just like poetic to me, because it's like the rope that brought her to the surface is the rope that was also the smoking gun in this case. Yeah. Because a guy named Earl F. Eneuse, who was a manager of the Port Angeles Distributing Company,

where Monty had worked before, said he went on the stand and he said, that rope is the exact rope I went to Monty, and he never gave me it back. Oh, shit, Monty. So they were like, yup, that's the rope. You thought. And that's the rope that brought her to the surface. You thought Monty. Oh, you thought Monty. Wow. Oh, you thought. So on March 5th, 1942, the jury found Monty, Ellingworth guilty of second degree murder, because they all decided that it was a crime of passion and not premeditated. Okay.

Which is annoying, but whatever. Now, he was sentenced to life imprisonment in Washington State Pentetonchery, and after serving only nine years behind bars, he was paroled in return to California. Are you serious? And he lived until his death in 1975. Wow. He was paroled after nine years. That's not a long time ago.

For her death. For literally murdering his wife. I mean, he did now. But like, he got out and got to my side. R-I-D. R-I-D, Monty. Rest in distress. Yes.

So that is the really spooky and weird story of the death of Halle Ellingworth. Halle was a bad bitch till the end. She really was. She came up mummified just so she could be like, how can you mon-tune? She was like, Oh, you thought you hid me.

Like she would really. Like the lady of the lake now. She's like, you guys wanna call me that? Oh, her. Oh, her. So Halle Ellingworth, that's sad. Oh, Kerr. Oh, Kerr. So, Hallie Ellingworth, sad story, sad marriage, that's awful. And fuck Monty, man. I'm glad he's dead. But nine years, like you're sent into life in Prisman, you get paroled after nine years. Right. He's just dick, it just bothered me.

But yeah, so that's the story of the lady in the lake. Hope you enjoyed that spooky tale. You're welcome. Also, we just wanted to quickly mention because we love to give shout outs to awesome fellow podcasters. We wanted to give a shout out to Horsoop, Brie and Caleb, our new best friends. We fucking love them, and we love their podcast. And I seriously think that We fucking love them and we love their podcast

and I seriously think that all of you guys would also love their podcast. Because I listen to it every single morning. Yeah. They do deep dives and horror movies. They also do true crimes so they kind of have like the best of both worlds going on. Yep. And you should go listen to it because we love them and their beautiful hilarious and really well researched. Super well researched. So much respect. And they just did an episode for us.

They did. They just covered the craft because we love the craft and we requested it. And who doesn't love that? So I love that. So we love them. And we want you guys to listen to them because they're great. Because we love them so much that it's disgusting. It is. It's disgusting. So give them a try because I don't think you guys are going to be disappointed

and we love to let you guys know the things that we think that will make your life brighter. Bri and Caleb, you are the testicles. Horror soup y'all. But you guys know what you can do to brighten your spirits after listening to like such a kind of sad case Because you need it. You could go over to murder a peril Do it and buy yourself some fucking merch. You could buy the morbid shirt or you could buy the husband did it shirt Because he always did it. He did you could find the dead inside shirt and guess what guys pretty soon Murder apparel is gonna have some more morbbatured's for you, merbatured's. Merbatured's. You go get those merbatured's.

You're merbatured's. Some morbid shirts, they're working on some more morbid shirts. Yes, some really good designs, cause they're amazing over there. And we're so fucking excited to see them. We are, we're very excited. And as soon as they come out, you better had your little asses

and your loyal hearts over there. And at checkout, use the code morb bid m-o-r b-i-d for 25% off some new fucking merch. Cause it's awesome. Yeah. Yeah. Shit off. Merch. I love when I can get a discount. I love it. I love a good discount. Same. I use our discount. I do too. I love it. Um, and should we think some patrones? Yeah, I think now we're going to thank our beautiful bubbly bright brilliant patroneses. Are you going to say the names and I'll come up with the joke? Yeah.

Okay. We're going to reverse it. We're going to flip it and reverse it. Reverse, reverse. So the first patrones that we would like to thank tonight is Rose Grady. Rose Grady, you are so rosy, cheeked, and beautiful, and I appreciate you. It's true, I do too. I love you, Rose Grady.

Thank you. The name Rose is beautiful. I do too, it's really pretty. I have a rose on my foot. And it reminds me of Betty White. Yes, Betty White. So good on you, Rose. And I've latched that.

There you go. The next patronus we would like to thank is Kali Burrows. Kali Burrows, your name rhymes with Hally, so you're pretty much the star of the show this week. Congratulations, Kali. You win. I don't know what you win, but it's something. Our love and devotion.

Yes, we love you, Kali. Thank you. Thank you. The next person we are going to thank, the next patronus we are going to thank is Amanda Ruiz. Amanda Ruiz? Yeah. Amanda Ruiz, thank you. I love you so much. I love you, Amanda. You're the best. You're just the best. I simply love you. And the next patronus is Annabelle Club. Annabelle Club, I love you, but I really hope that.

I don't wake up in your creepy doll faces in my room because that scares me. That's exactly what I was thinking. So thank you so much, Annabelle. You're the best. Thank you for having a great horror name. Yes. Thank you to Abby Lyndon.

Abby Lyndon, the name Abby is just like so cute. Thank you. It's like Abby Road. Yup, reminds me of The Beatles. It's also a cool bar in Boston that I love. There you go. Thank you so much, Abby. Thanks.

Next person we're gonna thank is Brook Barrett. Brook Barrett, that reminds me of One Tree Hill and I love One Tree Hill and I love you Brook Barrett. And we also love Barrett's one at home. So, I also love her literations. So, thank you. Thank you very much, Brook Barrett. Next, Patronas, we are going to thank is Jennifer Ramos. Jennifer Ramos.

I love the name Jennifer. I love your soul. I love your being. I love you. Jennifer's body. That's a horror movie. Oh, you're getting, you're killing it. I am. You're way better. Thank you so much, Jennifer. And the next Patronis, we want to thank is Samantha Fleming. Samantha Fleming, my old cheerleading coach, her last name was Fleming and she was so great. So thank you Samantha. Thank you so much Samantha. And the next person

we want to thank is Casey Gail Whitaker. Casey Gail Whitaker. Number one, Gail Weathers. That's what I thought. When I was thinking Whitaker, I feel like that's a tree. Yes. I love you. And when I was thinking, Whitaker, I feel like that's a tree. Yes. I love you.

I don't think it's a tree, but I want to. Sounds good. Thank you so much, Casey. Next, Patronus, who want to thank is Emily McGregor. Emily McGregor, I work with a girl named Emily, and she's one of my best friends, and I bet you would be too, and I love you. Yep, you are our best friend, Emily.

So thank you. So thank you, best friend. Next person we want to thank is Scarlett Robles. Scarlett Robles. I love the name Scarlett. I love all your fucking names this week. Yeah, that's great. Thank you. Yeah. Robles it up. Yeah, we love you. Go on, Roblin. In the last patronis this week that we are going to think is Lilia. So hot right now. So hot right now. My first friend at Community College, her name was Lilia.

Oh, look at that. So everybody, your names are meaningful to me this week. They are. I love your names, I love your faces. I love that you love us enough to donate your kashish to us. You are beautiful. You are brilliant and kind and wonderful. You is smart, you is kind, you is important.

Exactly. And you are getting a patronus bonus episode this week. So, a patronus bonus. A patronus bonus. A patronus bonus. That's what we're naming the episode. Yeah, that's it from here on out. All right guys, well as always,

you can follow us on Instagram at Morbid Podcast us on Twitter a morbid podcast during the Facebook group It's so much fun morbid colon a true crime podcast that place is the shit It's getting there. It's great also send us an email because we are actually working on compiling some listener stories. Yes, we are morbid podcast at gmail.com. Check out the website that Elena designed morbidpodcast.com. If you want to hear our beautiful voices say your hot ass name, then donate to the patreon patreon.com slash morbidpodcast. We hope you keep listening and we hope you keep it weird. But not so weird that you beat your wife up because that's weird.

And you can't throw her in a lake because guess what? She's gonna float to the top because rope rots. And you know what? Also, she's gonna turn into soap and not the kind that you can clean your body with because that's a dead people soap and you shouldn't be doing that.

And also, bye, thank you. So, bonification. Bye. Bye. Hey, Prime members, you can listen to Morvid, early, and ad-free on Amazon Music. Download the Amazon Music app today, or you can listen ad-free with Wondery Plus and Apple podcasts. Before you go, tell us about yourself by completing a short survey at Wondery.com slash survey.