Mum-of-two makes move to fascinating “haunted” house, where murderer allegedly poisoned husband

A MUM-OF-TWO has made the move to an allegedly haunted house, where a “murderer” is claimed to have poisoned her husband.

Wendy Moore decided to downsize earlier this year to a unique “half-house” with a dark past in Wrangle Toft, Lincolnshire.

The 59-year-old’s new home – Hillcrest House – was built in the late 1800s and is thought to haunted by Mary Lefley – a murderer known to the area as the Wrangle Poisoner.

Lefley is thought to have poisoned her husband in the late 1800s by lacing his rice pudding with a deadly substance.

She was later sentenced to hang on 26 May 1884 and protested her innocence up until the sentence was carried out.

Despite its chilling history, Wendy has waived any possibility for ghostly sightings, and has now begun the two-bedroom home’s renovation after collecting the keys last month.

While the work has only just begun, Wendy has many plans for a complete modernisation, including a pink kitchen, a new front door and carpeted flooring.

Wendy took to social media on Sunday to share the ongoing project, writing: “This is my Lincolnshire half-house.

“I moved in ten days ago and I’m so excited to get started on the renovations.

“It has been empty for three years and has a very interesting history (the last woman to be hung in Lincolnshire, UK, allegedly murdered her husband there in 1886).

“It was built somewhere around 1830, I think. I’d be interested to see if anyone (particularly in the UK) has a half-house. There are quite a few nearby me.”

The post received over 42,000 likes and 2,400 comments from users left fascinated by Wendy’s new home and its history.

Kit Maddocks wrote: “Oh, its lovely. When I got to you saying she allegedly murdered her husband there, I said out loud, ‘Oh good for her.’”

Paul Smith said: “Enjoy sleeping with the ghosts.”

Tracey Ball commented: “What a fabulous house – and what a history.”

Sarah Janine joked: “Greetings from my half-a-house in Barry, South Wales. Very suitable because everybody leaves half-cut.”

Speaking to Wendy today, she said: “I began looking for a small and ruiral cottage in early 2023. I lived in a large house in the south of Lincolnshire, at which I brought up my two children.

“I had lived there for over 26 years but I felt the time was right to downsize. Hillcrest was only the second cottage I viewed and I instantly fell in love with it.

“It had been empty for a couple of years and was in need of some love and attention.

“I was unaware of the history of the house until my second viewing when the estate agent mentioned that the last woman to be hanged in Lincolnshire may have murdered her husband there.

“I was instantly hooked and started my search for further information with Google.

“There is quite a bit of stuff about the Mary Lefley case on Google but in the late 1800s the house was referred to as being at Wrangle Tofts, which is an area rather than a road.

“I made contact with Martin Gosling who is a member of Stickney History group (the village where Mary was born, I was later to discover) and he very quickly confirmed that Hillcrest was the house.

“I am not worried about the house being haunted at all. The couple who lived there previously spent over 60 very happy years there.

“The purchase process was very slow, with problems arising further down the chain, however I finally completed the purchase of Hillcrest on 29 August and moved in.

“I slept in my caravan for a few days until I had some basic things sorted out inside the house but have moved in now and it feels very cosy indeed.

“I’m just in the process of getting quotes at the moment but have given myself a year to get it all done. I have a very detailed vision in my head of how it will look and can’t wait.

“Planned renovations include central heating, a new bathroom, a new kitchen, new windows and obviously decorating and flooring.

“I’m going to have a pink kitchen, not bright pink but dusky, grey stone floors throughout the downstairs apart from the front lounge which will be carpeted.

“The stairs and upstairs may keep the wood floors. A new front door – at the front of the house, move the bathroom upstairs and the list goes on.

“I really don’t want to rip the house about too much and I am not planning any huge extension at all.

“I want to keep the integrity of it. I sometimes think that as a nation we are a bit obsessed with bigger is better but I believe that small and cute are equally as lovely.

“It is going to be a challenge but I am up for that.

“My sister pointed out that I am the third generation of women in our family who have bought and renovated houses on our own and in their late 50s/early 60s (me, my mother, and my grandmother).”