No one knows if the graffiti was the work of an anonymous tipster who knew the unidentified woman’s name or a prankster who wanted to create controversy. So the question still remains – who put Bella in the Wych Elm? Talk:Who put Bella in the Wych Elm? Being wartime, one possibility they discussed was that the woman was involved in some kind of covert operation for the Germans. The graffiti that appears (and it’s been seen in other places locally) always refers to the murdered woman as ‘Bella’ or occasionally ‘Luebella’. Still the police seemed no closer to answering that question and, over the next decades, the graffiti artist continued to taunt them. Boys stumbled upon “Bella” in a wych elm, such as this one during WWII. Brian Haughton.com. More than 70 years later it’s back. Perhaps a spurned husband or lover put Bella in the wych elm. “Who put Luebella down the wych elm?” read the hastily painted message on a wall in nearby Old Hill around Christmastime that year. Due to audio problems, we don't have an episode this week so we are releasing it for you now. This dubious tale was further discredited by the fact Jack Mossop was confined to a mental hospital some years earlier, dying there before the body was even found. But that isn't the end. Variations on the theme soon appeared in and around the Midlands, usually including the name Luebella or Bella and the words Hagley Wood. One of the boys decided to climb the tree and see if it contained any nests. He quickly dropped his dark discovery back into the tree’s hollow. Oct 9, 2016 - Explore Elizabeth Ann Molloy's board "Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?" Image: Flickr/mjeshenton via CC by 2.0. Today, children still hear this story which ensures that the mystery of the unfortunate woman in the Wych elm will endure for many years to come. The graffiti simply read — “ Who put Bella down the Wych Elm — Hagley Wood.” No evidence of any ritualistic murder was found, however, leaving … At first, the boys only found the skull, initially believing it to be the remains of an animal. She could have been someone from the local area. began to appear throughout the town. Someone, it seemed, knew more than they were letting on. She was estimated to be around 35 years old, and was wearing a gold ring, a shoe, and remnants of clothing. The timeline fit, although there were no dental records or relatives to help further match the victim. In April, 1943, four teenage boys discovered a skeleton in the hollowed-out body of a wych elm tree. The graffiti was last sprayed onto the side of a 200-year-old obelisk on 18 August 1999. READ: London's Ancient Outcast Graveyard Numerous attempts to locate the author behind the graffiti were unsuccessful. Georgia Guidestones: Who Paid for It and Why. They dug further into the tree and came away with a full skeleton, minus one hand. The pair were reportedly drinking with an extremely drunk woman at a nearby pub and, after she passed out on the way home, put her in the trunk in the hopes she would see this as a wake-up call. Nationwide News Pty Limited Copyright © 2020. And every few years a new message appears.Source:Supplied. In December 1943, mysterious graffiti began to appear throughout the West Midlands, written on walls and eventually upon the stone obelisk at Hagley Hall. Later graffiti found on a stone monument near the site asked, “Who Put Bella In The Wych Elm?” This would be replicated in other areas, however, no one knew the identity of the person creating the graffiti. Sometimes it just said HAGLEY WOOD BELLA. Shortly after, Van Ralt strangled the woman, allegedly because of her spy associations. A year later, graffiti asking the question “Who put Bella in the wych elm?” began to appear on local buildings. In April of 1943, a group of young boys discovered the skull of a woman lodged inside a Wych Elm in Hagley Woods, West Midlands. Infamous Bella in the Wych Elm murder may be made into a film That crucial piece of evidence has been lost by police, Birmingham councillor Peter Douglas Osborn, an expert on the Bella … Similar messages kept popping up around town, seemingly written in the same hand, asking variants on the same question: “Who put Bella in the wych-elm?”. In 1943 a group of boys wondering the woodland of Hagley Hall discovered the remains of an unknown woman stuffed inside a hollowed-out Wych Elm tree. The graffiti continued all the way up to 1999. The first message, which appeared in Upper Dean Street, Birmingham, stated “Who put Bella in the wych elm – Hagley Wood”, but other messages have appeared throughout the area, with perhaps the most famous one on the Wychbury obelisk, still visible today (in 2014) on a hill about half a mile away from where the body was discovered. He sighed, carding a hand through his thick dark curls. The missing right hand, the evil-looking wych-elm, and the mysterious messages led to locals spinning the murder into legend. About six months after Jane Doe’s bones were found, someone started painting the message, “Who put Bella down the Wych Elm?” around Birmingham and Hagley. The name “Bella” or “Luebella” suggested the artist was aware of the identity of the victim, and led to reports of a Birmingham-based prostitute named Bella, who went missing in 1941. Luebbella would have been an unusual name. All times AEDT (GMT +11). This June, a cardboard sign again asking the question was attached to a fence near the woods, … Sources: A jilted love story? Then the graffiti started appearing, ‘ Who Put Bella Down the Wych Elm? Directed by Thomas Lee Rutter. War-time espionage? The only other presented explanation didn’t come until 1953, a full decade after the body was found. Sinister Symbolism. This is not THE elm tree, but it’s easy to imagine how creepy it must have been.Source:istock, Then that Christmas a disturbing piece of graffiti written in chalk appeared on a wall in a nearby neighbourhood, asking “Who put Luebella down the wych-elm?”, This was the first time a name had been attached to the victim, and police were obviously interested. Graffiti on the Wychbury Obelisk, Hagley Stranger Dimensions Interesting history topics are just a click away. "Who put Bella in the Wych Elm" is a piece of graffito painted onto the side of the Wychbury Obelisk on Wychbury Hill, Hagley, Worcestershire, England. The graffiti rang with the implication that somebody knew the answer to the question. Unfortunately, this led nowhere. The secret weighed on the youngest boy, Tommy Wittells, who told his parents, and a full investigation began. Historic Mysteries is an Amazon Associate and earns from qualifying purchases. Therefore, someone had most likely put her into the elm while she was still alive or soon after her death. It became a rage and the graffiti started appearing on walls throughout the West Midlands, seemed to be done by the same hands. Click Here for more information. This June, a cardboard sign again asking the question was attached to a fence near the woods, once more bumping this mystery into the news-cycle. If you can believe it, the story takes one last peculiar turn. The graffiti appeared on walls throughout the West Midlands, seemingly by the same hand. Did someone in the locale know the identity of the dead woman? This led investigators down several new leads tracing who Bella could have been. Similar graffiti would turn up on walls and monuments for quite some time. A ritualistic killing? She became known as "Bella" and after the discovery, graffiti asking "Who Put Bella in the Wych Elm?" Police wondered about the name. In 1944 a graffiti message, related to the mystery, appeared on a wall in Upper Dean Street, Birmingham, reading Who put Bella down the Wych Elm - Hagley Wood. Oddly, “wych” became “witch” in many cases, but eventually, the graffiti just stopped. The mystery is now 73-years-old, so it is unlikely the 2016 sign is anything more than copycat graffiti. At that moment he found a skull nestled in the tree. They pulled it out with a stick, soon realising the horrible truth of what they’d found. The probing slogan spread throughout England and Europe – … Find out more about our policy and your choices, including how to opt-out. These led investigators down several new leads tracing who Bella could have been. The skull the boys found in the woods.Source:Supplied. The youngsters talked among themselves and decided that, since they were on the property illegally, they would keep the grisly find a secret. Nobody knew why. 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