Rosalie Jean Willis worked as a waitress, but she is best known as the first wife of infamous cult leader Charles Manson. Along with the burden of being the wife of a monstrous husband, she had to endure the deaths of all three of her children before she could rest in peace.
Rosalie Jean Willis Is Charles Manson’s First Wife
Rosalie Jean Willis, as previously stated, was the first wife of American criminal Charles Manson. She was born in the United States on January 28, 1937. Clarence Willis and Virginia McNich raised her as their daughter. Rosalie, the third of her parents’ four children, had a very ordinary upbringing.
She spent the majority of her childhood in Benwood, West Virginia, with her parents and siblings. The 84-year-old had two older sisters, Amy and Eileen, as well as a brother, Clarence “Buster” Willis.
Unfortunately, neither her parents nor her siblings are still alive. Rosalie’s ethnicity was Caucasian, and she was an American national.
Rosalie Jean Willis Married Charles Manson When She Was 15 Years Old
On January 7, 1955, Rosalie Jean Willis married Charles Manson. Their wedding was held in Nazarene Church in a private ceremony attended by close friends and family. The most intriguing aspect is that Rosalie was only a 15-year-old teenager when she married Manson, who was reportedly 20 at the time.
The former couple first met in a hospital where Willis was working as a waitress. Their meeting happened by chance when Charles, a part-time auto mechanic and car thief, had to relocate to Charleston, West Virginia, with his mother Kathleen Maddox. Maddox happened to befriend Rosalie’s father there, laying the groundwork for the infamous marriage.
The most fascinating fact, however, is that Willis married Manson despite knowing he was a thief. Her hope that she could change him after marriage proved to be an unattainable goal. As a result, three years into her marriage, in 1958, she filed for divorce, which was finalized the same year.
Her Son With Manson Killed Himself
Rosalie Jean Willis gave birth to Charles Manson Jr. in 1956 after a three-year marriage with Charles. When Charles was sentenced to Terminal Island prison in San Pedro, California, for smuggling a stolen car across the border, she was only about three months pregnant.
While her then-husband was away, she cared for the child on her own until her mother arrived. Willis married another man and moved to a different city as her child grew. Her oldest son, on the other hand, was unable to overcome the stigma of being a criminal’s son.
He eventually shot himself in the head around the age of 37.
She Married Twice After Her Divorce From Charles
Rosalie was more than just Charles’ wife. She married twice after her divorce from him. She married a man named Jack White for the second time. Though she has not stated when she married Jack, they reportedly had a good but brief relationship. They divorced amicably in 1965.
She had two children as a result of their marriage. Her first child, Jesse J. White, was born in 1958, and her second child was born in 1959.
Willis married Warren Howard “Jack” Handley for the third time after divorcing her second husband. They had a good relationship, but it wasn’t going to last very long. Things got worse for her when she had to watch all of her children die in front of her eyes.
Rosalie Jean Willis’ Three Children All died In An Unnatural Manner
It’s difficult to imagine the agony Rosalie endured, but she did. Rosalie had to witness the deaths of all the children in her life. Aside from the death of Charles Manson Jr., whom she renamed Jay White (after her second husband), her children from her second marriage also perished.
The tragedy began in January 1971, with the death of her 11-year-old son Jed. His death was reportedly caused by an accident in which her friend shot him in the gut while they were playing.
Similarly, her second child, Jesse, was discovered dead in his car at the age of 28. According to reports, he and a friend were drinking at a bar in Houston, Texas, on the night of his death. His death was said to be the result of a drug overdose.
What Happened To Rosalie Jean Willis? Her Death
Rosalie is no longer among us. She died on August 21, 2009, almost 11 years after the death of her third husband in 1998, according to Find a Grave. She reportedly died as a result of a lung cancer complication. She was at her home in Tucson, Arizona, when she died. Rosalie was 71 years old at the time. She was laid to rest at the Southern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Boulder City, Clark County, Nevada.
In terms of her first husband, Charles Manson, he died on November 19, 2017, at the age of 83, in Bakersfield, California.
