Rosalie Jean Willis was the first wife of Charles Manson. She endured hardships throughout her life after losing all of her children. However, Charles Manson lived to see the last of his days, and Rosalie outlived them all.
Rosalie Jean Willis wouldn’t have imagined that her first spouse, Charles Manson, would embark on a violent spree and deviate from their marital bliss.
He is now recognized as one of the most brutal and inhumane figures to have walked the earth, but he too was once an ordinary married man.
It also appears that Rosalie was destined for misfortune from the start. Charles Manson was her initial husband, whom she wed when she was only fifteen.
This was all prior to his infatuation with The Beatles, which led to the Helter Skelter slogan and the murders of Sharon Tate, marking the culmination of the hippie era.
Early Life
Rosalie Willis was born on 28 January 1937. She grew up in the city of Benwood, West Virginia, and was the third child of Clarence ‘Cowboy’ Willis and Virginia McNich. Her two sisters were Amy And Eileen, and she also had a brother named Clarence Willis.
Rosalie witnessed her parents’ divorce at a young age. Her father was a coal miner.
In 1954, Charles Manson resided near Charleston, West Virginia, with his mother, Kathleen Maddox. At some point, Rosalie’s father, Clarence ‘Cowboy,’ met the 20-year-old Charles Manson. The young man formed a friendship with the father, and things took off from there.
Encounter with Charles
Rosalie Willis was approximately 15 years old when she was employed as a waitress in a hospital. It was during this time that she would encounter Charles Manson in his twenties.
Rosalie would later recall Charles at this age as the antithesis of the monster he would become 15 years later. The man she married was a handsome, kind young man.
Shortly after they met, they would proceed to marry, thanks to the young man’s amicable rapport with Rosalie’s father.
Matrimony between Rosalie Jean Willis and Charles Manson
Rosalie Willis married Charles Manson on 7th January 1955.
The wedding took place at the Nazarene Church, chosen due to Nancy Inigram’s membership, Charles Manson’s grandmother affiliation.
At the time, Rosalie was employed as a nurse, while Charles Manson worked as a car repairman. He was also involved in car theft, and it is believed that Rosalie was aware of her new husband’s illegal activities.
Rosalie believed that she and her marriage would reform her husband. She later found out that this was not the case and old habits die hard.
Life After Marriage
Rosalie became pregnant shortly, and the newlyweds relocated to Los Angeles when she was only three months pregnant. To support his family, Charles Manson worked odd jobs and engaged in car theft across town.
Charles Manson later reminisced about the time when he would come back home to his wife after work every morning, cherishing it as ‘the good life’ and yearning for it.
He also recalled Rosalie as a ‘super girl’ who made no demands of him. Although he perceived that time as their youth, Charles still held onto those memories.
Arrest of Charles Manson
Despite Rosalie’s naive belief that Charles would change his means of livelihood, it shattered when he was arrested for car theft, crossing state lines in a stolen car to Los Angeles, considered a felony. Due to failing to appear in court and having an existing criminal record, Charles ended up in Terminal Island prison in San Pedro, California.
This left Rosalie Jean Willis to navigate her pregnancy alone, only being married for about a year.
Prison Time
Rosalie used to visit her husband in prison along with Kathleen.
However, Rosalie soon realized that there was no hope for Charles to reform in prison and salvage their marriage, so she decided to end it. It was during this time that she started seeing another man after losing all hope.
Divorce
Rosalie Jean Willis filed for divorce on 9th July 1957. The final decree was granted to her on 10th September 1958.
Charles Manson and Rosalie’s Offspring
Rosalie had one son with Charles whom they named Charles Manson Jr. He was born in 1956. Rosalie’s mother-in-law supported her as a single parent, and they raised the child together.
Meanwhile, Rosalie started seeing another man and gave marriage another chance.
Charles Manson Jr.
Charles Manson was a cult leader and a dangerous criminal. He assembled a group of likeminded people known as the “Manson Family,” based in California. In 1969, they committed a series of murders at various locations.
Charles Manson Jr. lived in the shadow of his father throughout his life. Despite his struggles, he failed to overcome the trauma of his father and his atrocities, leading to his untimely demise at the age of 13 when the news of the Tate murders shocked the world.
Failing to distance himself from his father, he took his own life at the age of 37.
Rosalie’s Second Marriage
After losing all hope regarding her husband Charles Manson in prison, Rosalie started seeing another man named Jack White. Following the decision to divorce, she married Jack.
The marriage bore two sons, Jesse J. White and Jed White. Jesse was born on 3 February 1958, and Jed was born on 4 April 1959.
Second Divorce
Jack White became Rosalie’s second husband and also the father of three sons: two of his own and Charles Jr, who would later adopt the name Jay White after his new father.
This marriage outlasted the previous one but ultimately failed, coming to an end in 1965.
Rosalie’s Third Marriage
Rosalie chose to give love another chance and tied the knot again, marrying Warren Howard Handley, also known as Jack.
This marriage endured but met an unfortunate end when Warren passed away in 1998.
A Mother’s Tragic Fate
Rosalie witnessed the tragic deaths of her loved ones and children. She outlived them all and saw each of them pass away, none due to natural causes.
The Whites
Jed met his demise at the age of eleven due to an accident in January 1971. He was fatally shot by a friend, resulting in a fatal wound.
Jesse lived until the age of twenty-eight when he was found dead in a car, having succumbed to an overdose after a night of heavy drinking at a bar in Houston, Texas, with a friend. The friends parted on negative terms.
Manson Jr.
Rosalie’s first child faced an unfortunate fate. He likely endured ostracism and bullying and was a victim of stress, tension, depression, and anxiety.
Having the notorious Charles Manson as his father didn’t help, as people were quick to associate him with his father’s actions.
Unable to distance himself from his father, he took his own life on a highway in Burlington, Colorado, at the age of 37. He actively distanced his own son for fear that he would suffer the same fate due to his father.
Rosalie Jean Willis and Her Legacy
Jason Freeman is Charles Jr.’s son. He has become a kickboxing cage fighter and is actively working to cleanse the Manson name.
To this day, he has managed to distance himself from his past and the perceived curse his family has endured. He wanted his father to refrain from suicide and move on from the family’s shadows.
Rosalie passed away 11 years after the latest demise and outlasted all her children. She was remembered as a person full of humor and a kind-hearted woman.
It is hoped that her grandson can now carry on and lead a noble life, clearing the name for future Manson generations to come.
