Today, it’s not unusual to see a woman have a child out of wedlock. However, during the 1870s, a pregnant woman without a husband often became an outcast. But every rule has an exception. For instance, consider Mary Stannard, who engaged in a sexual affair with a man who impregnated her. At 19, she gave birth to her son Willie. But instead of treating Mary like an outcast, the Madison, Connecticut community respected and cared for her. 
Unfortunately, Mary would soon engage in another sexual affair with a married reverend named Herbert Hayden. Reverend Hayden and his wife Rosa had two children and another on the way. Whenever Reverend Hayden traveled to teach, Mary cared for Rosa and the children. Not only did the Hayden children love Mary, but Rosa and Mary became good friends.
Unfortunately, the pressure of trying to earn enough money to care for his growing family wore on Reverend Hayden. He began confiding in Mary and seeking comfort from her. Eventually, the reverend and Mary began a sexual affair. And it didn’t go unnoticed because others saw them together. So it wasn’t a well-kept secret.
After their affair ended, Mary left to work for the Studley family. Shortly after working for her new employer, Mary began to notice changes in her body. She became ill and her breasts got larger. Mary assumed Reverend Hayden had gotten her pregnant. She confided in Mrs. Jane Studley, her employer. However, Mrs. Studley wasn’t so sure about Mary’s pregnancy. Mary didn’t want to take any chances. If she became pregnant again without a husband, the community would shun her. Mary left the Studley residence and moved back home. She needed to discuss her pregnancy with Reverend Hayden. On September 2, 1878, Mary visited Reverend Hayden.
She told him about the pregnancy and that she didn’t want to keep the child. Mary and the reverend both agreed to abort the child. The reverend said he could buy some medication that would end the pregnancy. Mary and Reverend Hayden agreed to meet the next day, which was on Mary’s 22nd birthday. Her family planned a party for Mary.
The reverend said he would meet Mary at the party and then they would meet in the woods. Afterward, she would take the medication and abort the baby. The reverend arrived the next day at 11 a.m. to meet Mary. They stepped away from the party and went into the woods together. No one ever saw Mary alive again.
After Mary didn’t return to the party, her father looked for her. He found her dead body in the woods about four hours after her meeting with the reverend. Someone had struck Mary in the head and cut her throat. The killer had also taken the knife away. Her death was ruled a homicide.
The sheriff considered Reverend Hayden a suspect and arrested him on September 6, 1878. The presiding judge, who was friends with the reverend, dropped the charges and released Hayden. He said there wasn’t sufficient evidence for a trial. However, the reverend’s freedom didn’t last for long.
Authorities arrested Reverend Hayden again in November 1879 for killing Mary Stannard. The prosecutor claimed that Reverend Hayden murdered Mary to prevent anyone from finding out about their affair. Allegedly, the reverend poisoned Mary with arsenic, beat her, and then cut her throat.
The prosecutor had put together a case with sufficient evidence to convict Hayden. Here are some case facts:
– Mary wasn’t pregnant. She unknowingly had an ovarian cyst.
– Mary’s body contained arsenic.
– Authorities located the reverend’s knife; It had human blood on it.
– Reverend Hayden purchased the arsenic found in Mary’s body.
– Susan Hawley (Mary’s sister), testified she knew about her sister’s affair with the reverend. She also said Reverend Hayden killed her sister to hide his affair with Mary.
The trial became a media circus. The local press and out-of-state newspapers like The New York Times covered the trial. The prosecutor presented an excellent case and provided experts who testified about the arsenic Reverend Hayden used to poison Mary. Although the case didn’t look good for the reverend, you never know how a jury will respond. After 82 hours of deliberation, the jury couldn’t arrive at a verdict. Eleven had voted for acquittal while one ruled guilty. On January 19, 1880, the judge declared a mistrial. Reverend Hayden was freed and never prosecuted again for Mary Stannard’s murder. However, his career was over. He wasn’t permitted to preach again. He died in 1907.
Seven years after Reverend Hayden’s death, a newspaper interviewed Horace Perry, the lone surviving juror from the trial. The paper asked why the jury considered Hayden innocent. The shocking answer had nothing to do with the evidence. Instead, it had more to do with the reverend’s wife. Perry referred to Mrs. Rosa Hayden as a beautiful woman and said the jurors just couldn’t convict a man with such a beautiful wife.
Although Rosa Hayden knew about her husband’s affair with Mary, she stood by him and gave a riveting testimony to the jury. Her powerful courtroom testimony had people in the courtroom wiping tears from their eyes. Did the reverend get away with killing Mary Stannard? No one knows for sure, but if not for Rosa Hayden, the good reverend may have faced a death sentence.
Marc is a longtime resident of Clermont County and an avid reader. Contact him through his website at www.themarcabe.com or through Facebook: www.Facebook.com/themarcabe or his Twitter account @themarcabe. Marc also has a podcast called Catch my Killer where he interviews family members seeking justice for their murdered loved ones. You can listen at www.catchmykiller.com.