Mary Mohrman
Mary Mohrman (or Mohrmann) was a six-year-old girl killed in 19th-century North Philadelphia, her body found near a shallow pool of water on the morning of September 8, 1868. Known as "Little Mary Mohrman," her murder and the subsequent trial and execution of the suspect was an international sensation.[1] She had been playing with friends on Orkney Street in the Norris Square neighborhood.[2]
Born into a German-American Catholic family in a working class district next to Kensington, Mary was described described as “one of those sunny-haired, bright-eyed, sylvan-like children, whose innocence, one would think, could soften the hardest soul.”[3] Her father, a cordwainer, died in 1866, leaving her mother with five children.
A 20-year-old, recently-married barber was arrested for her murder. John F. Hanlon Jr. lived with his wife and mother on Fifth Street, a block away from the Mohrmans. He was the first child born in the U.S. to a large Irish Catholic family who fled Ireland during the Great Hunger.[4]
Hanlon, who reportedly went by the alias Charles Harris, was tried, convicted and hung on February 1, 1871, at Moyamensing Prison.
He never confessed to his accusers for the crime.[2][5]
On September 9, 1868, Mohrman became one of the first interments at the New Cathedral Cemetery; her body was later moved to Saint Anne Catholic Church Parish Cemetery. Hanlon was interred at Cathedral Cemetery, his body later moved to Saint Michael Catholic Church Parish Cemetery.[6]
References
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- ^ "John Hanlon Tried". The Empire. 1871-03-07. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-02-10.
- ^ a b Wilhelm, Robert. "Little Mary Mohrman". Retrieved 2025-02-09.
- ^ Headsman (2016-02-01). "1871: John Hanlon, guilty but framed | Executed Today". Retrieved 2025-02-10.
- ^ 1860 Census, Schedule 1 Population, Philadelphia, southeastern part of the 17th ward, dwelling no. 1635, John and Bridget Hanlin with eight children, page 735. Accessed February 1, 2025.
- ^ "Life, trial, confession & conviction of John Hanlon : for the murder of little Mary Mohrman, containing Judge Ludow's charge to the jury, & the speeches of the ... counsel on both sides". Wellcome Collection. Retrieved 2025-02-09.
- ^ Burial ledgers. New Cathedral Cemetery, Saint Michael's Cemetery, Philadelphia. Accessed February 2, 2025.