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04-10-2016, 09:05 PM
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Tales from the mid 19th Century

Not sure where to put this, so here will probably do. Over the past couple of years I've been researching people and stories connected to Ripon in the mid 19th century. Details have come newspapers of the time, census returns, various birth, marriage and death certificates and criminal records.

I thought I would post a couple of stories. Rather than making a new narrative, I'll post the details as recorded by the newspapers of the time as the language is interesting in itself.

This tale concerns a chap called William Marshall, who drowned two of his children in a tub that was usually employed as a trough for pigs.

MURDER OF TWO CHILDREN BY THEIR OWN FATHER AT RIPON 1837

Introduction

On the morning of Friday, 16th of June last, an alarm was spread though the town that William Marshall, a shoemaker, aged 32, of Low Skellgate, had drowned two of his youngest children in a tub of water, and the assemblage of people collected to the spot was quickly immense. The horror and disgust portrayed on every countenance at this most unnatural and cruel deed, cannot be described, nor can any plea, either of the poverty or domestic unhappiness, be ascribed for the wretched man’s commission of the crime. His circumstances, though not affluent, were respectable, and amply sufficient (aided by his wife’s endeavours, who takes in work as a dress maker, a mantua-maker) to render himself and family comfortable. From his appearance, he was a man who had a great fondness for his children, and he was particularly partial to William, the poor unfortunate boy (a youth of eight years of age,) whom he drowned; the other child drowned was called Elizabeth, aged about eight months. After the wretched man was secured and lodged in the House of Correction, a highly respectable Jury, on which were summoned some of the principal inhabitants of Ripon, and the inquest held the following morning, Saturday, at nine o’clock at the workhouse, before Mr. John. Cartman, coroner. After the sorrowful duty of viewing the bodies of the deceased had been gone though, a mass of evidence was adduced in elucidation of this melancholy event.
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04-10-2016, 09:17 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

I am reading old newspapers most nights, and the stories i find interesting , off of FMP.
Most are related to my own family history,but I often find other stories that catch my attention.
Id rather read old news from Victorian era than to days news .
The sentencing and what crimes were commited all make for a good evenings read .
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04-10-2016, 09:39 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

Originally Posted by Eliza ->
I am reading old newspapers most nights, and the stories i find interesting , off of FMP.
Most are related to my own family history,but I often find other stories that catch my attention.
Id rather read old news from Victorian era than to days news .
The sentencing and what crimes were commited all make for a good evenings read .
I've got quite a lot on my family, on my mother's side. They all ended up in abject poverty on one of the worst streets in London, and then were admitted into one of the worst workhouses. Thing with research is that once you start the whole thing opens up into something much larger.

Anyway, thanks for the comment, and I'll carry on posting the rest of this, bit at a time. If there's any more interest I've a particularly good story about transportation, burglary, highway robbery and assault.
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04-10-2016, 10:22 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

I'd like to find out what happened, was he found guilty, did the police discover why he did it, if he did it, etc.
I buy post cards mostly of horses as I collect them, one sequence, around 5, bought from a dealer were all from the same lady, telling a relative about her young son, I never got the last or last few cards about his illness so never knew if he survived or not. I thought that very sad.
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05-10-2016, 02:09 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

William Marshall was taken into custody by Thomas Sweeting, one of two paid policemen in Ripon at that time (the police force, as we know it, only began in 1829, when the first Metropolitan Police Force was established as a result of Robert Peel's Police Act. Sweeting had been appointed police officer in 1831). Sweeting took Marshall to the House of Correction, where he was left in the care of Thomas Stubbs, the gaoler. The following day, Saturday 17th June, Marshall was taken the short distance from the prison to the workhouse on Allhallowgate, where the bodies of the drowned children were laid out. The jury present then heard evidence from witnesses.

These are the first three.

Mary Harrison stated that about nine o’clock on Friday morning, I took up a hair cord belonging to William Addison, and I went to the door of Addison’s shop; I saw William. Marshall, the father of the deceased, sitting in the corner of the hay-loft; near his house. I said, Marshall, what are you doing there? He rose up immediately, and gave a dreadful shriek and was like a madman. I was afraid, he was nearly falling from the loft, and so I cried out for William Addison, his wife’s brother.” Addinson went to him, and I went to my own house. I, about a quarter of an hour afterwards, I went out to him and Addison who I heard talking at my door. I said “Marshall, what’s to do, you have frightened me.” He said, Oh, Mistress, I have drowned my two children.” I said, “don’t talk such nonsense. You have done no such thing. How did you get that into your head? He said, “Oh, but I have, I have drowned my William and my dear bairn.” I said, “don’t talk in that way. He said “Oh but I have.” I could not believe him but I went into his house at last, with a neighbouring woman, Caroline Balmforth, and I desired her to go up stairs; I went up afterwards, and found the children dead, and observed their hair were wet;. They were laid out dead; one of them was laid upon the bed, the other upon a crib near it; when I went back to my own house, Marshall was lying on the kitchen floor; I said Marshall, Oh! what have you been doing; come you must get up.” He said, “No, let me lay.” Addison came in, and helped him into his own house.

I am in the habit of supplying the family with milk, which I generally take into the kitchen. I frequently saw William Marshall, and there could not have been a more affectionate father, nor kinder husband than Marshall. I have seen him ride the infant in a go-cart.

William Addison, dyer, said, I am the brother to Marshall’s wife, and reside the next door but one to him; I was at work in my back shop on Friday morning a little after nine o’clock; Mrs. Harrison, last witness, came out of her own house, and said something which I did not exactly hear. She had a piece of hair chord in her hand; I asked her what she had said, and what she wanted; she went to the other shop door, and looked up into the hay-loft, and called out, Oh! man; what are you doing up there. She then called out to me, William for God’s sake, what’s the matter with Marshall? Marshall immediately darted down the ladder and approached me; he was quite wild and terrific; Mrs. Harrison called out to me to take hold of him; I laid hold of him; he then told me that he had drowned two of his children; he saw he had not completed his work, a few minutes longer would have done it - he had himself to destroy. I took him into Mrs. Harrison’s back kitchen; he threw himself on the floor, and repeated his declaration of what he had done. I did not see that Marshall had a rope or any thing else in his hand, or about his person, to injure, himself. I have known Marshall for twenty years. When I first knew him he was of a very cheerful disposition although never really talkative. I observed an alteration nearly two years since, from cheerfulness to lowness of spirits and dejection. Marshall had made a little go-cart for the infant, with which he used to draw the child about. I’d seen him the day before. He seemed to be in cheerful mood and was nursing his youngest child.

I’d seen Marshall on the 30th May, when he looked very ill and dejected. I asked him, “Marshall, how do you feel yourself? I suppose you have had another of those attacks” Marshall replied “Yes and a very severe one.” I asked him how those attacks affected him. He said, “I have spoiled some boots after an attack upon my nerves. It struck up into my brain, and I can not describe my feelings at the time. I can not tell what will befall me and I can not avoid it.”

Caroline Balmforth, ‘I was the first to go up the stairs. There were a few drops of water on the stairs. Both children had been wrapped up as if they were asleep. About a fortnight before this matter happened Marshall’s wife came to me, and in consequence of what she said, I went to her house, where I found William, who looked quite wild. I asked him how he was, and he said he ailed nothing. Afterwards he said, “Where am I?” I replied, “you are at home with your wife and family.” He looked very wild at his wife, and said, “she is not my wife, I am going.” He said this in quite a wild manner, and upon a laugh. I went immediately to Dr. Smith as I thought that Marshall was not in his right mind.
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05-10-2016, 04:01 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

Sounds from that as if he has some sort of mental problem, which comes & goes & he remembers when he's been bad.
More please.
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05-10-2016, 04:23 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

ive cheated and read the ending

Was he one of your relatives?
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05-10-2016, 04:37 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

Originally Posted by Eliza ->
ive cheated and read the ending

Was he one of your relatives?
That's a quick bit of research. Perhaps I should set you a test and see how you do. No, not one of my relatives. At this time my lot were living in squalor in one of the less salubrious parts of London.
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05-10-2016, 07:15 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

Tiffs waiting for more , so don't disappoint.
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05-10-2016, 07:58 PM
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Re: Tales from the mid 19th Century

Originally Posted by Eliza ->
Tiffs waiting for more , so don't disappoint.
Yes but you know the ending, so the abduction by lizard aliens won't be a surprise any more.

So...

The next three witnesses were Marshall's apprentice and two neighbours.

George Peacock, of Ripon, an apprentice with Mr. Marshall, said that about nine or ten o’clock yesterday forenoon, Marshall brought some leather from Mr. Theakston, to make some shoes of; he was in the habit of working for Theakston. He said to me, “George, can you fettle this stuff?” He went away, and I saw no more of him, until he was brought into his own house by Lowley and Isaac Gowing. When Marshall came to me with the leather, he seemed quite composed, and in his usual state of mind; I saw no difference whatever in him to what he had usually been. Marshall sat down and served the young child with some breakfast. Mrs. Marshall, the mother was not at home. He seemed affectionate and attentive to the child as usual. I get my meat in the house with my master. On Thursday, Marshall was washing the pig tub out, sometime in the forenoon; he said some rats had got into it, and he would have it cleaned out; the tub usually stood in the coal-house under the shop steps. There were some taws or marbles at the bottom of the tub yesterday morning when I saw it; the little boy had generally marbles in his pocket.

Jane Rumfitt, of Ripon, said, yesterday morning about a quarter past nine o’clock, I saw Marshall bring a pig tub into his house from out of a corner of the yard. (The yard is an open one with the cottages round it looking into it.) It usually stood in the coal-house; in about ten minutes afterwards he took it back to the place where it usually stood. There was water in the tub when he brought it out; when he took the tub back, he put it in the coal-house and shut the door. About an hour after, William. Addison went and found a bucket full of water in the tub; I was present and observed some taws which must have fallen out of the boy’s pocket.

Margaret Tomlinson I was called into Marshall’s house, on Friday morning. I laid the bodies out; the hair of both the children was wet; the stairs were wet; the pillow and the sheets were wet. I searched the room for the clothes the deceased had on; I found their clothes in another adjoining room to the front; the clothes were very wet; they were all wrapt up together, and laid on the floor against the wall, with some dry linen over them. When I came downstairs, I saw James Lowley and George Forths apprentice, Isaac Gowling holding Marshall; he looked at me when I went in, and asked me what I wanted; he seemed wild and dejected, and appeared to slumber; he hardly seemed to know what he was about.
 
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