Michiana true crime drawn to life By Kate Luce
An infamous female serial killer whose ultimate fate remains elusive more than 100 years later, Belle Gunness is one character whose mystery rivals her murders. It’s a story well known in parts of northern Indiana, but others might not know this tale. Well, not until now.
multiple husbands, after purchasing life insurance policies on them and/or taking all of their money. She moved from Norway to the United States and rehomed herself in La Porte in 1881. During her spree, it is said she killed anywhere between 11 to 40 men.
John Thompson, lecturer in fine arts, has researched, written, drawn, and published a graphic novel about the life and true crimes of Belle Gunness, titled The Comely Widow: The Crimes of Serial Killer Belle Gunness.
In 1908, her farmhouse was burned to the ground. The authorities found the body of a headless adult woman and her children. The authorities also found 11 bodies buried on her property. However, after Belle’s supposed death, many people reported sightings of her throughout the Chicago area. These sightings never lead to any confirmed identities or arrests.
Taking place mostly in La Porte, Ind., Gunness murdered
Thompson has been developing this graphic novel since 2018, spending a long time researching the project. From reading books, to going to the La Porte County Historical Museum, to even visiting the property where Gunness’s home once stood, Thompson has been hard at work learning the details of the story before crafting the book. Thompson’s interest in true crime came from his grandmother, who was extremely interested in the dark side of people. The story of Belle Gunness resonated with Thompson, from the mysterious twists and turns to the tie to Michiana. “I advocate for the Midwest a lot,” Thompson explains. He wanted to bring attention to this story “. . .because I mean, this is still one of the biggest stories that ever came out of the door.” There is also an interesting political angle to the Belle Gunness case. The reporting from the local newspapers at the time tended to each lean in a different way according to the politics of that newspaper. “It’s as if they felt ‘Here’s the story, but let’s sensationalize it’,” Thompson explains. “But they didn’t really need to do that with this story, because it’s already pretty interesting. At the time in the La Porte area, there
