In 1875, the sudden death of Fanny Crozier, a respected wife and mother in the small town of Benton, New York, initially seemed to be the result of a sudden illness. But within months, the case took a dark turn when an exhumation revealed arsenic in her body, and her husband, George Crozier, a man known for his moral rectitude, was arrested for her murder. George Crozier was born in 1833 in Benton, part of the Finger Lakes region of New York. He came from a strict, religious family and was widely regarded as a person of integrity.
In 1855, he married Fanny Becker, a 19-year-old who had been adopted by her uncle. The couple was seen as dignified and virtuous, and in January 1857, they had a son named Frank. In the 1870s, however, Crozier began spending a great deal of time with a young woman named Minerva Dutcher, an 18-year-old from a large local family. Between 1872 and 1875, residents of Benton reportedly noticed Crozier walking past her house, meeting her near her school, passing her notes, and seeing her in church.
Many believed he was infatuated with her, and there was speculation that she returned his feelings. On July 15, 1875, Fanny Crozier became suddenly ill with severe stomach pains, which she attributed to eating cucumbers. Though she seemed to improve slightly, she fell ill again on July 27. A friend, Sarah Towner, visited and found Fanny in great distress, vomiting and complaining of horrible stomach pains.
When Towner asked why a doctor had not been called, Crozier shrugged and said a doctor had already seen her and prescribed powders of subnitrate of bismuth. Dr. Barber was eventually called back and visited that evening, finding Fanny with a swollen stomach, dry throat, and rapid pulse. He prepared new medicine and said he would return in the morning.
On July 29, the couple’s son, Frank, arrived at Dr. Barber’s house early, saying his mother was in a particularly bad way. By the time the doctor arrived at 6 a. m.
, Fanny was unable to speak and her pupils were contracted. She died shortly after. Crozier told Dr. Barber he did not want an examination of his wife performed, saying he wanted to bury her and have time to grieve.
Fanny Crozier’s funeral took place on July 31, 1875. She was 37 years old and had been a popular member of the community. A week later, her son Frank married Emma Armstrong, and the couple moved in with George Crozier to support him. At the end of August, Minerva Dutcher moved into the Crozier residence as well, apparently hired as a housekeeper.
Emma objected, saying she could take care of the house herself, but Crozier said Minerva’s trunk had already arrived and there was no use discussing it. Rumors about Crozier and Minerva had circulated long before Fanny’s death, and they intensified afterward. Crozier was seen passing notes to Minerva in church just days after his wife died and meeting her at the graveyard where Fanny was buried. In October 1875, three months after her death, the coroner ordered Fanny’s body to be exhumed.
Doctors removed her stomach, lungs, and heart, which were sent to Professor John Tower, a professor of chemistry and toxicology at a medical college in Geneva, New York. Tower found significant traces of arsenic in the stomach, and he determined that this had undoubtedly caused Fanny’s death. George Crozier was arrested and charged with murder. The small town was shocked.
Crozier claimed he was innocent, and many residents believed him. His trial began on March 6, 1876, in Penn Yan, New York. He pleaded not guilty. The prosecution argued that the 42-year-old Crozier had poisoned his wife so he could be with Minerva Dutcher.
Witnesses testified to the close relationship between the two, including one man who recalled a picnic where Fanny told her husband he had been playing with the girls all day and he responded sharply, telling her to shut up. Another witness said Crozier often distributed Sunday School papers in church, deliberately giving the last one to Minerva and then sitting next to her. The defense acknowledged the cause of death was arsenic poisoning but argued that Crozier had not administered the poison. They noted that Dr.
Barber had prescribed powders of subnitrate of bismuth, which medical books warned contained arsenic. If the dose was too large, they argued, it could have been fatal. The defense also claimed that Fanny believed she was dying of stomach cancer and had decided to take her own life. Her son Frank testified that his mother had told him if she had stomach cancer, she would make away with herself.
He said he warned her that if she did, blame would fall on either him or his father, but she replied that no one would ever know. Frank also said his mother had asked him to buy arsenic to kill rats, and when he forgot, his father purchased it. Other witnesses contradicted this, including Crozier’s sister-in-law, who said Fanny had never mentioned stomach cancer to her. The most damaging testimony came from Crozier’s daughter-in-law, Emma Crozier.
She said Crozier told her after Fanny’s death that he had discovered arsenic kept for killing rats was missing and that he feared Fanny may have taken it herself. Emma also testified that Crozier visited her in jail after his arrest and asked her to falsely swear that Fanny had said she would take arsenic. When she refused, she said, he offered to make sure she did not want for anything if she would agree. She said she told him she would only speak the truth.
The jury deliberated for two hours and returned a verdict of guilty. Asked if he had anything to say, Crozier calmly protested his innocence, saying the testimony of his daughter-in-law was utterly false and that he expected to answer to his heavenly father for what he had done. The judge sentenced him to death. An appeal and a request for a retrial were denied, but the execution date was changed from May 3 to June 16 to allow time for a petition asking for the sentence to be commuted.
Eventually, the sentence was changed to life in prison, on the condition that the defense accept the guilty verdict and not campaign for a second trial. George Crozier was sent to the state prison in Auburn, where he died 20 years later, in 1896. He maintained his innocence until the end. Minerva Dutcher continued to live in Benton, married a man named John Calhoun, and had five children.
She died in Penn Yan in October 1915 at age 58.