ANN Marie Johnson has a skeleton in her closet – her ancestor was reputed to be the most efficient hangmen in Britain.
The 69-year-old from Doreen will share her family secret on online community project Wikinorthia – where residents of the northern suburbs reveal their stories. It is the first of its kind in Australia.
Mrs Johnson is related to Albert Pierrepoint, made famous through the 2005 movie Pierrepoint: The Last Hangman.
He actually wasn’t the last hangman in Britain, retiring in 1956, eight years before executioner Harry Allen retired, but he was one of the most prolific. It is estimated he killed between 400 and 600 criminals.
“People are amazed, I was amazed, that I am related to the last hangman,” Mrs Johnson said.
“He didn’t just kill people; his father did and his grandfather did.”
The genealogist, who runs a free genealogy service at Mill Park library, said Pierrepoint was noticed by military officials during the Nuremberg trials into war criminals in the 1940s.
“Albert was then responsible for executing war criminals and, on his first day alone, he executed 13 criminals,” Mrs Johnson said. “Over the weeks that followed, Albert executed staggering numbers of criminals and this caused Albert to question the morality of his deadly acts.”
Yarra Plenty Regional Library, which covers the City of Whittlesea, and Darebin council libraries and Moreland council libraries, wants residents to share stories on the Wikinorthia website.
“The first of its type in Australia, Wikinorthia is an online encyclopedia designed to document life in the northern suburbs of Melbourne,” YPRL chairwoman Helen Coleman said.
Wikinorthia will be launched on Monday, April 29, at 10.30am at the Mill Park Library.
