Treasures in the Institute Library

A selection of reviews by Lesley Haldene published in the September 2009 magazine

'The Genealogist'

Why not visit the library and examine our Treasures?

ENGLAND GENERAL
Criminal Ancestors, A Guide to Historical Criminal Records in England and Wales
David T Hawkings 364.942 HAW

Do you have criminal ancestors in your family?  This book is an interesting essay on convict life, prisons, courts, and criminal registers.  As the blurb says ‘many of our ancestors were obliged to steal for mere survival and suffered imprisonment for the most trivial offences’.   Annual registers in the county of Middlesex, which included the City of London, were first compiled in 1791.
Criminal records are not largely used by historians, but there is a wealth of information in this book regarding not only the ‘perpetrator’, but also family members on the right side of the law as jurors, witnesses, parish constables or victims.
There are tragic stories of those who found themselves at the mercy of the criminal justice system.
There are Chapters devoted to the prison registers, prison hulk records, and prison books and journals.   Some reports even include complete lists of all prison inmates with details of crimes, a useful source if the prison records are missing.
The Eureka Partnership – a series of little books transcribed and published by the Eureka Partnership.
Some examples of these booklets for the county of Warwickshire show an Index of Marriages (1838-1861) which gives details of the bride and groom’s name, occupations (although the bride’s occupation is not listed), age, place of birth, where married, and the date of the marriage.  There is a full index of surnames in the back of the book.  Another example is an index of Bastardy cases for Atherstone Division (1845-1910).  From the 16th century, the authorities made provision for maintenance for these children, always seeking contributions from the child’s father.   This little publication is a transcript of the bastardy applications from the mother of the child for maintenance from the father.   She had to sometimes go before two justices where, on oath, she would give the name of the father, and the circumstances of conception of the child.  Imagine having to do that today.  The Justices would then decide whether or not the father should pay any maintenance for the child.  Each entry gives the names of the mother, date of summons, date of court hearing, father’s name and result of application.
Boats, barges and other vessels used on navigable rivers and inland navigations in Great Britain from 6/5/1795 had to be registered to sail on these waters.
All vehicles exceeding 13 tons were to be registered by 15/6/1795.  Another example of these informative books details boats that were registered in 1795-96 (ref: QS95/4) giving the name of the agent to the Canal Companies, or the names of the owners, how far they would travel, how many crew, what the vessel was to be used for.  For those with canal boats in their family would find this an interesting read, and a useful resource for research.
These are only a few examples of what is available from the Eureka Partnership.  In Buckinghamshire there are booklets on a vast array of subjects from People of Buckingham, Poor Law, some Parish Registers and Non-Conformist Registers.  It is worth checking your County for these great sources of information; you never know what you may find.  Other Counties covered include Berkshire, Oxfordshire, Northamptonshire, Surrey, and Gloucester.



Chapters on Transportation to America (1615-1775) and Transportation to Australia (1787-1868).

Letters and documents relating to criminal matters from the PRO criminal papers are also included.  Some of the courts featured include the Old Bailey, Central Criminal Court, and Courts of Great Sessions of Wales.
In the back of the book there are detailed Appendices including one on how to use the Records, plus all documents are listed.  A full index has place names, prison hulks and ships, plus a separate index of personal names.   This fascinating book is a great research and reference tool, and should be a must for those researching their family history in England and/or Wales, perhaps you may find a criminal ancestor in your family.   Written and compiled by David T Hawkings, a  Fellow of the Society of Genealogists in the United Kingdom, he is apparently well known for finding in the UK Archives ‘undiscovered’ sources for family history.
Microfiche and CD-ROM
On the same subject, check out the microfiche detailing criminals prosecuted in Hertfordshire who received transportation to Australia 1784-1866. The Victoria Police Gazette (1853-1870) is also on microfiche detailing various cases from the court records of Victoria.
The South Australian Police Gazette is on 4 CDs detailing police records between 1862-1900.