Mrs. Anna Blann Foster, 64, shown with District Attorney Ramey A. Smith and Hopkins County Sheriff Avera Rasure

Creator

Preview

Identifier

20037860

Description

Mrs. Anna Blann Foster, confessed poisoner of a former husband, J. G. Blann by giving him the deadly poison in a glass of blackberry juice. She is discussing her case with District Attorney Ramey A. Smith and Hopkins County Sheriff Avera Rasure. Mr. and Mrs. Blann had moved from their farm, a mile away, to the home of Governor Young Foster, who was living alone. Foster explained the Blanns moved to his house for convenience. The move also gave Foster someone to do his housekeeping. He explained that he had inherited the farm when Mrs. Nannie Foster, who also was considerably his senior in age passed away. Mrs. Anna Blann Foster related that after she and Blann moved into Foster's house she and Foster were intimated frequently and that Blann grew suspicious of them and several times told her that she and Foster were "too thick". Then, she said, one night just before bedtime Blann brought in a jar of milk and gave both her and Foster a drink from it, but excused himself. She recounted they became sick. Then they decided that Mr. Blann had tried to poison us. Foster told her to poison him and he would marry her. She said she started hunting for a bottle of strychnine which she know Blann kept around the place. Finally, after looking every place possible, she said she got up early one morning before Blann awoke and found the strychnine in his trousers. After breakfast, she went to the storm house and got a jar of blackberries and poured the juice in a glass. Then she put in a quantity of strychnine and took it in the house to Blann. The death of Blann didn't look right to District Attorney Smith and Sheriff Rasure, but lacking sufficient evidence, they decided to await developments. Mrs. Blann Foster moved into Sulphur Springs to a hotel and stayed there for about a week then she and Foster left together on a train. The officers kept a check on their activities and meanwhile disinterred the bodies of Blann and Mrs. Nannie Foster and found the poison in the bodies. Twenty-four hours after receiving the report of the chemical analysis, the district attorney and the sheriff were in Peoria, Illinois, where they arrested the couple. Published in Fort Worth Star-Telegram, evening edition, April 12, 1945.

Archival Date

1945-04-11

Collection Name

Fort Worth Star-Telegram Collection

Collection Number

AR406-6-656

Original Format

Negatives, Black & White

File Format

JPG

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License

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Subjects

Homicides; Poisons; Strychnine; Lawyers; Discussion