Lucy Theodate Holmes came into the limelight thanks to her relationship with the late serial killer Herman Webster Mudgett, alias Dr H.H. Holmes. Despite Lucy’s father going to jail when she was a young girl, her mother kept on to the Holmes pseudo name.
Lucy Theodate made it to the headlines first when a goodbye letter she had written to her father, who was condemned by the courts in prison, made it to the public. Despite that, Lucy forgot about him, and she moved on later while living with her mother.
Where was Lucy Born?
Lucy was born on July 4, 1889 in Englewood, Chicago. Lucy was the second child of the serial killer Holmes but was the first for her mother, Myrta Belknap.
Lucy’s parents met in the 1980s, and they married despite her father’s marriage to a different lady. A few weeks after Holmes married Myrta, he sought to divorce his first wife, Clara, but he was unsuccessful.
Lucy’s time with his father remains unknown, but it seems she had a great bond with him. Holmes later neglected his family and married a third wife while still married to his two wives.
Lucy’s Children
Lucy slowly moved on with her life, and they relocated to Duluth, St. Louis County, with her mother. Lucy found a job as a school teacher and administrator. When World War 1 broke out, Lucy worked with the local Red Cross as the secretary. She also wrote plays for schoolchildren and cooperated with the Red Cross in organizing and sending aid packages.
After the war ended in 2018, Lucy volunteered to teach in France, which was badly ruined by the war. While in France, Lucy met her first husband, James Douglas Hunter, who was also from Duluth.
Lucy and Hunter exchanged vows on May 15, 1919, and they relocated to Michigan, where they repeated their vows. In the same year, they welcomed their son, who unfortunately died the same year.
After a few years of marriage, Hunter asked for a divorce, citing he was not ready to settle. They divorced in November 1923, and Lucy moved on to stay in Michigan. While in Michigan, she met a Canadian national, John Thomass Moss, and exchanged vows in June 1927.
Despite some reports indicating that Lucy and Moss were divorced by 1936, Lucy’s ashes were laid to rest beside Thomass’s grave. Lucy confirmed that she was his wife on his death certificate after his early death in 1937.
Why Lucy Remains a Hero Despite Growing Up with a Serial Killer
While her father’s wrongdoing may have tainted Lucy’s family name, she remains a legend through her service after World War 1. She volunteered to serve in the Red Cross in France after the war and even helped students to produce plays.
Later, in 1936, Lucy travelled back to Europe alongside her husband, John Thomass Moss, to resolve the childhood trauma she had experienced earlier. Besides her significant contribution, her life remained unknown until the time of her death in 1956.
Upon the death of Lucy in 1956, she was laid to rest beside her husband, Thomas Moss, who had an untimely death in 1937.
