In 1825, a man by the name of John McAfee was convicted of murdering his wife and sentenced to death by hanging. Although he never made a formal confession, he was said to have written one out in rhyme:
Draw near young man and hear from me
my sad and mournful history.
And may you ne’er forgetful be
of all this day I fell to thee.
my sad and mournful history.
And may you ne’er forgetful be
of all this day I fell to thee.
Before I reached my fifth year,
my father and my mother dear
were both laid in their silent grave
by Him who their being gave.
No more a mother’s love I shared,
no more a mother’s voice I heard,
no more was I a father’s joy –
I was a helpless orphan boy.
Dayton Unknown 
