The Winton baby farmer

Published: Aug. 30, 2011, 5 a.m.

The peaceful town of Winton was the centre of a national scandal in 1895. Local woman Minnie Dean, a 'baby farmer' who looked after infants in her home, was convicted of murdering one of her young charges, and the bodies of several children were found buried in her garden. Dean is the only woman to ever be hanged in New Zealand.