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Prison Sentence Reports And Records

brum baby

brum baby

master brummie
I have just found out that my Gt Gt Grandfather William Lyons was sentenced to six years imprisonment for receiving stolen property. I found him in the 1881 census in the H M Convict Prison, Portsea Hampshire.
His was sentenced at the Birmingham Quarter Sessions in April 1879 and I wondered if a Birmingham newspaper would report on the quarter session sentences or has anyone any ideas where I can find out exactly what he was imprisioned for. He was a leather dealer in Birmingham so it might have been something to do with his trade.
 
Thank you for your help Louisa I will try the link. I wonder if it might be worth a trip to the Birmingham Library I live about 60 miles away but would love to find out more about my 'black sheep'
 
He stole around 800 pair of boots and uppers valued approx £300.....,

the opening sentence of the newspaper report isn't very kind...

" A mischievous cancer was successfully removed from the commercial body of this town and neighbourhood on Friday, by the conviction and sentencing of William Lyons at Birmingham Sessions, on a charge of knowingly receiving stolen goods.

date 21st April 1879......Birmingham Daily Post and Journal

Anyone with a Birmingham Library Lending Ticket can access their on-line newspapers........and you don't need to live in Birmingham to have a ticket.....I applied on line and got mine within 5 days......
 
Doris you are a star, can't thank you enough. He was a leather dealer so I wondered if his receiving was for leather.
I will apply for a ticket.
Once again thank you so much you have made my day....
Roz
 
I have looked at the Birmigham Library Lending information. Is it right that they charge for issuing a ticket. Can I be cheeky and ask you for the whole report.
I have puzzled about Gt Gt Grandfather for some time and you have answered quite a few questions. He returned to Birmingham and was, once again, a leather dealer in the 1891 census.
 
Hello Doris,
I was interested to see that you have a B'ham library ticket & can therefore access the online newspapers.....I want one !! I have looked at the site & it seems to say that tickets are ONLY for B'ham residents...any thoughts & advice will be MUCH appreciated..

Regards,
Margaret.
 
I've got a Birmingham ticket and I live in Staffordshire. I went into Mere Green Library with identity and there wes no trouble.
 
i live in tamworth and joined birmingham library yesterday all you need is proof of address
 
how do you access the online newspapers? does any one have a link?
 
Does any one know if records go back to 1842 for Worcester Assizes and where I can get them? I have found a cutting in Dudley library about a Samuel Rose who sounds like my GGG Uncle he was sentenced to 1 month hard labour for being involved in a Chartis riot.
 
I have checked the Criminal Registers on Ancestry for him without success. Might he have used an alias. I have looked for just Samuel, or Rose, and everyone in 1842
 
Before I applied for my library card I emailed Birmingham Central Library....my reply...


Dear ........

Thank you for your e mail
You can still join Birmingham Library even if your home address is not in
Birmingham.All we require is one form of ID with your name and address
printed on it.The ID if a letter cannot be older then 2 months and we
cannot accept a passport as the address is handwritten at the back as an emergency contact.

I did not attend in person to obtain my card....I used the on-line application page on the main library's web site, I received my card within 5 days...I did not have to pay a fee for it either.....

The Times database is from 1790 until 1985....also a National paper database from 1800 to 1900...which includes Birmingham Post and Journal. plus some modern day papers with some from 1985 up till todays date........its a superb service

Just go to the main web site for the central library and just look for "newspapers" then follow the links.....do the same if you want a lending card.......its very easy.
 
hi
baby brum and rose
i would be very intrested in the out come on this one in worc courts as i would like to find out what judge dealt with it
and i hope some-one will come up trumps and find the info;
and let us know i will be watching over the next few days and in the mean time , i will try and contact my old friend at the worc news
he,s an old retired news reporter whom as a column in
the saturdays edition on crime reports of yester year he goes back to the dark ages he digs into the archives of the crimminal world and prints the stories even for 100 years back in time
he access,s these stories for his weekly page
he sent me the story lines of the case of william yarnold
and with photos of mr yarnold in the dock with a police officier by his side also pics of the hanging cell of mr yarnold and other pic
of the prison grounds where he was burried
so he may be able to locate the case if i asked him
it was my grand father whom sentenced william yarnold
to the gallows for the murder of his wife
and he sent for henry piepoint to come from bradford to worc
to hang at the gallows in worc jail
there was a 6 , thousand people petition to repreive him
but they still went ahead and hung him
you never know michael,might be able to dig this case out
best of luck hope some-one will discover it
have a nice day best wishes astonian ;;;
 
Thank you for the information. My brother, who lives in Walsall has been sent off to get a card and then we can look for our Black Sheep in the newspapers. I think I will also apply although I live quite a way from the library.
 
Hello again,
I do intend to get myself a library ticket...but in the meantime can I ask a BIG favour ?? Can some kind person who has access to the newspapers do a lookup about a possible scallywag in my family ( actually not the first) !

GEORGE MINCHIN, B'ham Quarter sessions 01/01/1880
Larceny from dwelling house
sentenced to 9 Months

Many thanks,
Margaret.
 
Thank you for looking Doris, I do appreciate you taking the time & trouble to help me find him...he is OUT there somewhere !!!

Best regards,
Margaret.
 
There are some very kind and helpful people on this forum. A huge thank you to 'Doris' for providing the Birmingham newspaper report about my 3 x Gt Grandfather, who was likened to Fagin. Oh er.....

-------------------
Brummie family research: Bracey, Tibbins, Hollingsworth, Lyons, Horton Baker and many more.

-------------------------
Age is strictly a case of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter.
 
Goody Goody ! Received my B'ham library card today..I am keen to have a look at the newspapers that are online...trouble is I am thick..as I cannot see on the library site WHERE I access them..Help is needed here please, can some kind person take me through the process ????

Margaret.

And if you want a laugh...I am off to a pub quiz tonight !!!!!!:D:D:D
 
Glad to hear I am not the only one!
My Central Library card arrived yesterday, took three weeks but happy to wait. I spent an hour going round and round in circles before I found the site. Of course once I got there I was engrossed in searching and reading the Birmingham Post.
I went into archives and heritage section under the heading 'Newspapers in the Archives and Heritage Service' is a link Websites available to Birmingham Library users, it takes you into the site where you can put in your bar code info (not the last two letters though) and you will be off.

Researching: Bracey, Tibbins, Hollingsworth, Lyons, Baker (all Birmingham)

Youth pases, but with luck immaturity can last a lifetime.
 
Hi Margaret,
I'm with you on this one! I have managed to get onto the site with Brum Babys instructions - here is the link to the page:

https://www.birmingham.gov.uk/cs/Sa...092583061&pagename=BCC/Common/Wrapper/Wrapper

but.....I cant access the newspapers. I have tried entering my bar code on my library ticket, with the letter at the front, without spaces, with spaces, without the last 2 digits, with them and I just the following message Your entry was not recognized as valid, access denied.

Am I entering the right number? or should it be from the little blue card that you have to enter the 'inner sanctum' of the library?

Mand
 
Hi Mand when you are asked to enter your bar code just put in the first 14 letters and digits, ignore the last two letters on the code.
 
- not working for me at all now!:( off to work - will try again later - I will not be defeated!!:wave:
 
Mand & Baby...thank you for your help....MADE IT !! My card number was recognised okay so all should now be well... Thanks again....

Margaret:)
 
I made it into B'ham library today at long last for a flying visit. So I looked up the 1880 QS for the info regarding GEORGE MINCHIN in the B'ham Mail, he was given 9 months hard labour for theft from a dwelling house ( I had an awful feeling he was one of mine) ! Thankfully he wasn't....but he was daft enough !! He was a 25 year old hairdresser who stole £33.00 from his female employer, he then scarpered back to Aldershot, where he obtained a gun. While in a pub, the gun went off & he managed to injure a bystander as well as blowing part of his own hand off !!!! Priceless !!!!

Margaret.
 
A lot of us can relate to stories like this .Margaret thanks for the update.
 
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