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American History HotlineAuthor: iHeartPodcasts
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Arsenic and Cyanide: The Dark Side of Victorian Womanhood in America
Wednesday, 27 August, 2025
Why did so many women in the 1800s turn to poison to solve their problems? (Sorry husbands). Poisons like mercury, arsenic and strychnine were so cheap and readily available in the Victorian Era that it was called the "Golden Age of Poisoning." Besides being readily available, there were very few tests to detect murder by poison. Combine this with a society where women were powerless and poison becomes "the great equalizer for women in the 19th Century," as science historian Daniel Kevles wrote. But not all poisonings in the 1800s were acts of desperation. Plenty were just good old fashioned murder. DUN DUN DUUUUN!!! Joining Bob Crawford to help sort out the means, motive and opportunity of these Victorian Era women poisoners is Lisa Perrin. GUEST: Lisa Perrin, author and illustrator of the book, The League of Lady Poisoners: Illustrated True Stories of Dangerous Women See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
