“Murder By Female Fury”: The Mary Senff Killing, Part Two

The second part of the story of the 1880 murder of 18-year-old Mary Senff by a member of a prominent local family that ignited a national sensation.

Read Part One

Note on spelling: Not surprisingly, the Senff surname is spelled differently across many of the historical documents, newspaper articles, headstones, etc. For consistency, I have decided to use the spelling that appeared on the 1850 census record for the family.

The woman who murdered young Mary Senff in the spring of 1880, Ellen Crites Athey, came from a family with deep roots in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. Despite being only ten years older than Mary, Ellen had already demonstrated a violent temper that ultimately resulted in the taking of Mary’s life. Who was Ellen Crites Athey and how did she come to cross paths with the vibrant and attractive household servant Mary Senff?

Andrew Crites (1787–1843) was born in Washington County, Pennsylvania, at a time when the region was still a developing frontier. As a young man, he moved west and settled into Ohio, where he met and married Mary Herbach (1785–?) in 1811 in Tuscarawas County. Together, they raised seven children, including David Crites (1821–1903), who would go on to establish his own legacy in Tuscarawas County. While Andrew and Mary eventually returned to Pennsylvania, David stayed and spent his years carving out a life from the wilderness, working the land, and securing a future for his children and grandchildren.

David Crites grew up working on his father’s farm and learning the skills necessary to become a successful farmer himself. David married Lydia Ann Fackler (1824-1900) in October 1842 and together they raised nine children between 1845 and 1864, including a daughter named Ellen Ann (1855-1922) and a son named Alexander (c. 1856-1940). The family farm was located in York Township, just outside of Stone Creek where, in 1860, they lived with their seven children and a married daughter. A decade later, their household had shifted, and now included Lydia’s mother and, by 1880, only two of their children still remained at home.

Their daughter Mary (1847–1874) married Civil War veteran Henry Athey (1848–1931) in November 1875. Henry’s family had migrated from Hampshire County, Virginia, to Licking County, Ohio, after 1840. Henry and Mary settled in a home on the Crites property in York Township, where Mary gave birth to two sons. Tragically, she passed away unexpectedly in 1874. A year later, Henry married her younger sister, Ellen Ann Crites. The first public sign of Ellen’s temper emerged in September 1877 when she assaulted a neighbor with a four-pronged potato hook. The attack resulted in the woman suffering a punctured lung. Ellen was arrested but was ultimately released without charge.

Henry and Ellen welcomed a daughter in January 1879, and it was no surprise that when Mary Senff arrived at the Crites home to work, Ellen sought her help in managing her own household as well. While it is not known exactly how much time Mary Senff spent working at the Athey household, newspaper reports at the time stated that Mary stopped working for the Crites family due to, what was perceived as, advances from Ellen’s brother and school teacher Alexander Crites. Mary did, however, spend the last few days of her life in May 1880 working in the Athey household.

On the night of May 28, 1880, Ellen and Mary spent the evening at the home of Ellen’s father David Crites, where they joined others in conversation and song. As the night grew late, the two women returned to the Athey home, where they were alone except for Ellen’s sleeping children. Henry Athey was away, working a shift at the Dover Salt Works. As Ellen and Mary prepared for bed, Ellen confronted Mary about trying to possibly seduce her husband. Ellen’s temper flared and what began as an ordinary evening took a dark turn that ended in the horrific killing of Mary Senff that night.

Read Part Three

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© Noel B. Poirier, 2024.