what happened to adeline ed gein

Adeline Watkins was reportedly a real acquaintance and occasional girlfriend of Ed Gein, the notorious murderer and grave robber. According to a 1957 interview with the Minneapolis Tribune, Watkins claimed to have dated Gein for about 20 years and described him as "good and sweet." She revealed that Gein had even proposed to her around 1955, but she declined, saying it was because of something wrong with herself, not him. She also admitted that sometimes she felt like she was taking advantage of him. Their relationship included frequent visits to movies and taverns, and they discussed books and murder cases. However, shortly after this story was published, Watkins retracted her claims, calling the romance "exaggerated" and "blown up out of proportion." She clarified their romantic relationship lasted less than a year and that Gein only intermittently called on her during that period. She also stated she never entered Gein's home, where his gruesome crimes had taken place, and maintained that she kept her distance after his criminal activities were exposed. In summary, Adeline Watkins had a complicated and somewhat unclear relationship with Ed Gein that has been presented with some contradictions: a claimed long-term romantic involvement that she later downplayed to a brief, intermittent acquaintance with some emotional complexity. She expressed continuing affection for him despite his crimes but also distanced herself from his more horrific actions.