Sarah Jane Makin: Australia’s Notorious Baby Farmer and the Tragic Trail of Starved Infants
In the sweltering summer of 1892, a foul odor seeped from trunks stored beneath a rented house in Redfern, Sydney. What began as a landlord’s complaint about a persistent stench uncovered a house of horrors: the tiny, mummified remains of thirteen infants, starved and neglected to death. At the center of this nightmare stood Sarah Jane Makin, a woman who preyed on the desperation of unmarried mothers by posing as a caregiver for their unwanted babies. For a modest fee, she promised to adopt or board the children, only to let them waste away in secrecy.
Baby farming, a grim practice in late 19th-century Australia, exploited the social stigma surrounding illegitimacy. Poor, unmarried women, often abandoned by lovers or families, sought out advertisements in newspapers offering homes for their newborns. Sarah and her husband, John, capitalized on this vulnerability, turning tragedy into profit across multiple rented homes. Their operation claimed dozens of young lives, leaving a legacy of grief for families who believed their children were safe.
This article delves into the dark world of Sarah Jane Makin, examining her background, the mechanics of her crimes, the investigation that exposed her, and the trials that delivered justice. Through a factual lens, we honor the memory of the innocent infants whose short lives ended in unimaginable cruelty, while analyzing the societal failures that enabled such monsters.
The Rise of Baby Farming in Colonial Australia
Baby farming emerged in the 1880s and 1890s as a shadowy industry in Australia, mirroring practices in Britain and the United States. With limited welfare systems and harsh judgments against single mothers, women turned to classified ads promising to “adopt” or “board” infants for fees ranging from £1 to £5. Many farmers, however, provided minimal care, leading to high mortality rates from starvation, neglect, or outright murder.
Sarah Jane Scales, born around 1844 in Wiltshire, England, immigrated to Australia as a child. By her 20s, she had married John Makin, a laborer with a history of petty crime. The couple, often destitute, fathered several children of their own but struggled financially. Sarah, described as stout and unremarkable in appearance, entered the baby farming trade around 1890, placing ads like: “The Friendless and Fallen! Women’s Refuge. Mrs. Makin, 195 Bourke Street, East Maitland. Homes for friendless girls in trouble. Babies boarded out.”
These notices preyed on the most vulnerable. Mothers, facing ostracism, handed over newborns with promises of weekly care or adoption. Sarah collected upfront payments, then vanished with the children, moving frequently to evade detection. Historians estimate that baby farming claimed hundreds of lives across Australia before reforms were enacted.
Sarah and John’s Deadly Operation
Multiple Sites of Horror
The Makins operated from at least five rented properties in Sydney’s suburbs between 1890 and 1892, including East Maitland, Tamworth, and ultimately Redfern. At each location, they accepted babies from desperate mothers. Eyewitness accounts later revealed the grim reality: infants were fed sparingly, often just bread soaked in milk or water, leading to rapid emaciation.
One survivor, a child named Daisy, was rescued by authorities and described conditions of extreme neglect. Bodies of deceased infants were not buried properly but stuffed into trunks lined with bloodstained newspapers or interred shallowly in backyards. The Makins profited modestly—perhaps £3 per baby—but the volume of victims suggested dozens perished. Police later suspected up to 33 infants across their trail.
Methods of Killing
While direct evidence of violence was scarce, autopsies on the Redfern bodies showed most infants died from marasmus, a wasting disease caused by chronic malnutrition. Some bore signs of opium dosing, a common baby farming sedative to quiet cries. Sarah, as the primary caregiver, bore responsibility, though John assisted in disposals. Neighbors recalled incessant infant wailing, abruptly silenced, and Sarah’s cold demeanor when questioned about smells or noises.
The couple’s own children were farmed out to relatives, allowing undivided attention to their grim business. This calculated detachment enabled Sarah to accept new “boarders” even as trunks filled with remains.
The Spark: Death of Horace Murray
The unraveling began on January 7, 1892, when four-month-old Horace “Harry” Murray died at the Makins’ Redfern home at 204 Ferguson Street. Sarah summoned Dr. Whitehouse, claiming natural causes, but the doctor’s suspicions arose upon seeing the emaciated corpse. Landlady Mrs. King, disturbed by the stench from trunks in the basement, confronted Sarah, who dismissed it as “rats.”
After the Makins fled without paying rent, Mrs. King pried open a trunk on January 13. Inside lay the skeletal remains of two infants wrapped in brown paper. Police arrived swiftly, uncovering eleven more bodies in additional trunks and the backyard—thirteen in total at Redfern alone.
The Police Investigation Unfolds
Detectives Thomas Gavan Duffy and William Wilson led the probe, tracing the Makins through rented homes. In East Maitland, they exhumed four more bodies from a backyard. Tamworth yielded two trunks with infant remains. By February 1892, Sarah and John were arrested in a Sydney boarding house.
Interrogations revealed a pattern: mothers identified from registry entries came forward, tearfully recounting payments for children who never reappeared. One mother, Mrs. Chard, paid £3 for her son Frederick, whose body was among those found. Post-mortems confirmed starvation as the cause in most cases. John confessed to burials but implicated Sarah in the neglect. Evidence included bloodied clothing and baby clothes stuffed in trunks.
The investigation shocked Sydney, with newspapers dubbing it the “Baby Farmers’ Atrocities.” Public outrage swelled, demanding an end to unregulated baby farming.
The Trials and Path to Justice
John Makin’s Trial
Tried first in March 1893 for the manslaughter of Horace Murray, John was acquitted of murder but convicted on lesser charges, receiving two years’ hard labor. He turned informant, detailing Sarah’s role.
Sarah Jane Makin’s Trial
Sarah faced trial in July 1893 for the murder of Horace Murray. Prosecutor Walter Abigor argued deliberate starvation, citing medical evidence of emaciation inconsistent with natural death. Sarah claimed the baby arrived sickly and died despite her care, blaming “teething convulsions.”
The jury deliberated just 30 minutes before convicting her. Justice Sir Frederick Darvall sentenced her to death, noting the “diabolical” nature of her crimes against “helpless innocents.” Appeals failed; Sarah was hanged at Long Bay Gaol on January 22, 1894, at age 49. Her last words: “Good-bye, God bless you all.”
John served 11 years before parole in 1905, dying in obscurity in 1911.
Psychological Profile: The Mind of a Baby Farmer
Experts retrospectively analyze Sarah Makin through a criminal psychology lens. Lacking remorse, she exhibited traits of instrumental antisocial personality disorder, viewing infants as commodities. Poverty and repeated childbearing may have desensitized her, but her methodical moves and lies suggest premeditation.
Comparisons to Amelia Dyer, Britain’s infamous baby farmer hanged in 1896, highlight shared psychopathy: charm to lure victims, compartmentalization of horror. Yet Sarah’s case underscores nurture over nature; societal neglect of single mothers enabled her, but her choices defined the evil.
Victimology reveals the infants’ profound vulnerability. These babies, born into stigma, deserved protection, not commodification. Mothers’ testimonies convey enduring grief, amplifying the tragedy.
Legacy and Societal Reforms
The Makin scandal catalyzed change. New South Wales passed the Children’s Protection Act in 1893, mandating registration of nurses and inspectors for boarded children. Nationally, baby farming declined as adoption laws tightened and welfare expanded.
Today, Sarah Makin symbolizes early true crime in Australia, featured in books like Baby Farmers by Liz Hardy and documentaries. Memorials remain elusive, but the case reminds us of progress in child protection—from 1890s orphanages to modern foster systems.
Annually, around 20th-century markers honor forgotten infants, urging reflection on enduring vulnerabilities in society.
Conclusion
Sarah Jane Makin’s crimes exposed the underbelly of colonial Australia, where desperation met depravity. The starved infants of Redfern and beyond were not statistics but individual tragedies—tiny lives extinguished for profit. While justice prevailed with her execution, the true legacy lies in reforms that safeguarded future generations. This story compels us to cherish child welfare advancements and remain vigilant against exploitation masked as care.
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