A
couple of years ago I took an online course from Pharos Teaching & Tutoring Limited about
Victorian
Crime & Punishment. This particular course, that I highly recommend, was part of a certificate program about which I will write later along with
comments on courses in general.
Following
is a summary of some of the sources of information I learned about, with respect to Britain specifically, where
genealogists may find the names of their ancestors. These will include many documents
associated with crimes, even though the family members being searched were not
themselves criminals.
For
family historians, name-rich documents are important sources in unravelling
personal relationships and events that impacted individual lives. Legal proceedings
produced many types of records that are replete with personal references. Such accounts,
if they have survived, help to chronicle the activities of a community and many
of the people in them.
The Courts
Judicial
records are generally thought to deal mainly with the subjects of inquiries – victims
of offenses or those accused of perpetrating them. But within court annals one
might also find the names of presiding officials, court officers, witnesses,
juries, deponents and, possibly, family members of almost any of them.
Higher
courts – in Britain, King’s (or Queen’s) Bench – dealt with most of the more serious legal matters,
both civil, in the Plea Side, and criminal, in the Crown Side, as well as with
appeals from lower courts. One may find named individuals in a number of
different types of records in cases heard – in the indictment and writ files,
controlment rolls, depositions and rule books. Assize court records, dealing
with only the criminal cases, are another source of information although often
not as complete or reliable with respect to identifying people.
The
Court of Chancery was, in many respects, on an equal level of the judiciary to
the King’s Bench, but was charged with meting out decisions based on justice
and equity, rather than summary judgments. It dealt mainly with matters
involving land, estates, trusts and guardianship. Documents, including the
pleadings, evidence, decrees and other reports, contain many references to
people and families who brought or were the targets of suits. Those dealing
with only money concerns, under common law in the early part of the 19th
century, may have been handled in the parallel-operating Court of Exchequer.
Minutes
of the local and regional Petty Sessions and Quarter Sessions courts also contain
many invaluable types of records reflecting communities. In addition to
misdemeanor and criminal cases, they might include information about borough or
parish administrative appointments, matters affecting businesses or social
interaction within the community. Names of individuals granted licenses – as
gamekeepers, alehouse operators, pedlars and hawkers or slaughterhouse owners –
will appear in the transcripts. Persons appointed as Justices of the Peace, Poor
Law Overseers, constables and sheriffs, highway contractors, coroners or almost
any other position of importance in the community will also be listed.
Information
about property and inheritance were also be the subject of court decisions,
especially after 1857 when the probate of wills and estates was moved to the
new, civil Court of Probate.
By
the mid-1800s, as a result of many new laws promulgated by governments, litigation
of most legal matters had moved from ecclesiastical to civil courts with much
of it, resulting in an explosion of claims and suits as people turned to the
courts for the resolution of their disputes. There was a large increase in the
volume of records kept on the populace (to the delight, now, of family
researchers).
The Police
The
1800s also saw the organization and expansion of police services. The Metropolitan Police Act of 1829
established a regional force in the greater London area. It was followed by Rural Constabularies Act of 1839 and County and Borough Police Act of 1856
extending the reach of the national government to the counties who were obliged
to launch their own police departments. New sets of records were created with
details about the individuals involved directly in policing including service
records that give full physical descriptions, as well as birth places, birth
dates, previous occupations, marital status and career information.
Punishment of Offenders
The
names of those convicted of offenses, whether minor or serious, may be found in
any number of records associated with punishment, at a local level – in Quarter
Sessions records – or in prison or transportation lists. Information will also
be available for those who administered or supervised the prisoners on various
censuses or government documents.
Summary
The
positive result for present-day genealogists was the production of a profusion of court-related records,
from Victorian-era Britain, listing
people of all walks of life, along with details about their occupations, places
of residence, family relationships and origins. The latter can be particularly important
for historians whose ancestors apparently disappeared from the areas where they
were born and raised. For those actually convicted of crimes, there may be an
abundance of information. Police, court, prison and/or transport records may
contain details of their physical appearance, general health, literacy, family
members, occupation (or lack thereof), places of residence and other history. Local
newspapers, reporting on the events, are also sources for such information.
Sources of Searchable Data:
Courts
Kings’s
(Queen’s) Bench – records held at The National Archives (TNA) under series KB
Court
of Chancery – records held at TNA under series C
Assizes
– records held at TNA under series HO and ASSI
Petty
Sessions and Quarter Sessions – primarily in local record offices
Search
local record office catalogues, TNA catalogue, Access to Archives (A2A) and
National Register of Archives ( NRA) and other specialty websites.
Police
Police
records are held by TNA – under series MEPO and HO
Search
TNA catalogue, A2A and other specialty websites
Punishment
Records
of those sentenced to prison or transportation held in TNA under series HO,
PCOM, CO or PRIS
Search
TNA catalogue, A2A, NRA, local record offices and other specialty websites
References for Information:
Victorian Era – General
Courts
Police
Punishment
Legislation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Custody_of_Infants_Act_1839
http://www.ehow.com/facts_6781624_child-custody-act-1839.html
Wayne
Shepheard is a volunteer with the Online Parish Clerk program in
England, handling four parishes in Devon, England. He has
published a number of articles about various aspects of genealogy and is a past
Editor of Chinook, the quarterly
journal of the Alberta Family Histories Society. Wayne also provides
genealogical consulting services through his business, Family History Facilitated
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