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Downes

M

MICHELLE HALL

proper brummie kid
Hi
On the 7th April 1926 at 3 back 36 Barker street Ladywood B'ham a Mr George Downes took his own life by placing his head in the oven and gassing himself. He worked on the railway and was accused of stealing the metal. Would this of made the local newspapers and would there be a record of it?
Thanks
Michelle x
 
It's hard to say for certain I think. It seems likely that it would to me. The new library has copies of local newspapers on microfilm which you can view but it can be hard going.
 
In all likelihood, there would have been an Inquest. When I spoke to Birmingham Central Library some years ago they stated that they have Coroner's records going back to the late 1800's.

However, as to what such a record would contain, I'm unsure. Probably just a summary of the conclusions and the Verdict.

Worth a visit?
 
Hi Michelle
As they say there would have been a coroners report of founding but it would say exactly what the news papers would have picked up at that period
And printed the story but if you probably already know you can go to the library and sort out the periodical news paper for that period and find the story and you can get a photo copy from that news paper of the finding as that also would have been printed in the out come of the finding of his death
As any think and every think was virtually printed in the news papers of tested years I used to go that library years ago and done a lot of researching
My an esters before moving to Worcestershire I can recall many years ago when I was a nipper a reporting of an out ragiuos things such as one Friday night
In lower Portland street in the paper an all edge space man a marsh on apparently knock on a person front door and in the early hours of the morning
They open end the front door and was faced with a man with like a gold fish type helmet on in a glass design they slammed the door and phoned the police and
The police put a emergency call out and had it printed in the news paper of the mercury
So you see they used to printed all types of stories so I can say yes if you want to get the stories and the out comes I reckon you could go there to the archived
And get the both sides of the story and written info of what you want best wishes astonian
 
The trouble is there is 100 year closure on inquest records.
 
Thanks everybody. I will go to the library and do some research. Is there a particular newspaper I should look for?
Michelle x
 
Wendy said:
The trouble is there is 100 year closure on inquest records.
Click to expand...


hi wend far as i know you are quite correct...i was told by the coroners office a few years back that any suicide or indeed death in prison that the records for these were closed forever

michelle my advise to you would be to phone up the coroners office in birmingham and clarify this as sometime rules can be changed..

the address is birmingham coroners office
50 newton st
birmingham
tel number is 0121 303 3920
good luck also with hopefully finding a newspaper article..

lyn
 
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Michele, my g/father took his own life in 1933 drowned himself at salford bridge...and we got a copy of the newspaper reporting the inquest stating he was of unsound mine....i am almost sure my brother got the report at the library....its so sad as this was his 3rd attempt ....he must have been a very troubled man and in those days there was'nt the help or the medications to be had like today..also the stigma of mental illness was never discussed....even my father never told my brother and l until we were grown.....Brenda
 
Brenda, it is very sad that people were driven to ending their lives in such a way. George was also described as "of unsound mind" (on death cert).
 
Michelle,
I have a copy of an inquest /hospital /police report that i aquired from the library i showed them the death certificate that i had and there was something about the 100 yr rule but they let me see it ,( the year was 1918 ) so nowhere near 100yrs rule cant quite remember how come i viewed it but it contained info of how and who reported the incident and action taken after, and i paid for a copy which i have now.
I had to get a research ticket and showed them my driving licence as proof of who i was no charge and it was all done on the same day, hope this helps.
Phil
 
Hi michelle i went to the library yesterday to view the coroners cuttings for my relative and as been said before the cutting contains only a brief account of what happened and the outcome, i asked about the coroners report and the reason i could view it was because there was only a 75yr time limit on it , in fact the coroners report contains more info.
phil
 
hi lyn ;/michelle ;
You can get the death certificates still from the birth and deaths agencie regardles of if they die in prison which would give you
the reason of death and it tells you the reason and cause of death that i do know ;
i have the death certificate of mr and mrs yarnold from 1825 whom mr yarnold murderd his own wife in wocestershire
and he was hunged by pierpoint from bradford as he served n the army during the war years and came home on leave to find out she had left him
and he begged and tryed to win her backl bt she refused him so he stabbed her in the back several times and she died
he was tried by judge jelf on hs first case and condemmed to death by hanging by pierpoint whom he sent for and hung him in worcester jail
and it tells me the reason of death and the actual ording used was he was hung to death was the expression
i surpose really yes its passed the 1000 year old regulations as alot of the old rule of regulations have been changed since then
my brother inlaw was was murderd down in longnuke rd afew years back the poeple whom was responible was never brought to justice
but we have appied to the coronors office in brum we are still awaiting to hear from them ;but looking at what as been said its unlikely
we will get the report but the death certificate will tell you the reaon of death
also what got me thinking about mr downes reading this thread that he committed sucide at salford bridge which i know very well as i lived on the lichfield rd
and brought up there so i know there was loads of incidents over the years down there but anywaythe name of downes rings a bell with me
i hope you will parden me asking but was this mr downes from the victoria rd aston where is abode was as a kid growing up i knew a doewnes family from up a big yard on the victoria rd whom there neibours was the douglas,s family was he connect to this downes family
best wishes astonian;;
 
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