Who Put Bella In Cowboy Times?

"This week Chelsea tells us a tale of possible espionage. Who put Bella in the witch elm is a serious question we ask today. Meanwhile Cristina takes us back into Cowboy Times! The tales of the Superstition Mountains and the Lost Dutchmen's Mine have a lot of history

Presented By: Chelsea
Category: Unsolved Murder

In 1943, four boys in Worcestershire were trespassing on a neighbor's estate in Hagley Wood when they found a human body stuffed in a tree, specifically Witch Hazel. They made a vow to never speak of it for fear of getting in trouble. That night, the youngest of them broke and told his parents.

The investigation determined that body was that of a young woman who had been in the tree from anywhere from 18 and 26 months. From the rigor mortis, she must have been put in the tree when her body was still warm. She was found with a shoe some torn fabric and a taffeta in her mouth. Her hand was found in the area. However, despite a skull with hair and teeth, there were too many missing women at the time to identify her.

The following year, graffiti reading Who put Bella down the Wych Elm – Hagley Wood appeared in Birmingham. This has since been modified to "Who put Bella in the Witch Elm?"

The most popular theory is that Bella was a German spy, given that it was during World War II. At one point, Bella was identified as Clara Bauerle, a German singer. However, she was a full foot taller than Bella and was determined to have died in Germany a year earlier than Bella. She is still believed by most to have been a spy, though her identity remains unknown.

Takeaway: Know your trees.

Presented by: Cristina
Category: Historical Mystery

The Lost Dutchman is mine alleged to be somewhere in the superstition mountains somewhere in the Superstition Mountains in Arizona. The legends around it are varied, but it's thought to have belonged to the Peralta family after being gifted it by the King of Spain. The story was told by the fictional Dr. Thorne, who claimed to have been led to it, blindfolded, by an Apache man he healed.

The story rose to legendary status when a man called Adolph Ruth went looking for it in 1931 and was found dead the following year. Despite the fact that his skulls had two bullet holes in it and his gun fully loaded, the police ruled it to be due to natural causes. His notebook was found, in which he claimed to have found the mine.

Since then, more people have searched for the mine, with many of them reporting mysterious gun men tracing them. These stories have not discourage everyone from looking.

Takeaway: Don't go treasure hunting alone.

Trivia

 * Patreon Skit: Apple Launch