Category: crime
John Scott Brown thin-skinned thug!
John Scott Brown was a ‘low-bred’ man with a chip on his shoulder. The violent assault he committed gives an idea of life in 1878. Cumbrian Characters usually tries to be impartial, not to judge p... Read More
Branded, burned, hanged – punishments in the 18th century
Branded for life is a figure of speech; in the 18th Century, branding was a punishment dished out by judges for a range of offences. The old saying ‘may as well be hanged for a sheep as a lamb’ me... Read More
Annie Robinson murder in mind
Here’s to you Annie Robinson..? Annie Robinson was seemingly deserted by her first husband, married the second in dubious circumstances, then tried to poison him after in order to marry his cous... Read More
Catherine Wilson serial poisoner
Catherine Wilson was hanged in London in 1862 after being convicted of one murder. But it’s believed she was a serial killer who poisoned at least another six people, four of them fatally. And at le... Read More
William Horsley: victim of love
William Horsley of Penrith fell under the spell of his mother-in-law, Jane Davidson. And Jane Davidson was prepared to use magic, and ultimately murder (and a painful death herself) to keep him. The d... Read More
Punishments in 1841 – in Cumberland
Punishments in 1841 – in Cumberland This post illustrates a few of the punishments in 1841 for ‘minor offences’. As meted out by magistrates in Cumberland. The 1841 Easter Sessions The Easter Se... Read More
Sarah Nicholson, no merry widow!
Sarah Nicholson ‘had the misfortune to marry a man 25 years her senior’. This seemingly unlucky accident (!) led to villagers trying to drive her out in 1879. But she was no strange to violence he... Read More
‘Most atrocious deed’: the Longburn murders
The Longburn murders of 1808 rocked Cumberland and beyond, for the way a man shown kindness ‘repaid’ it with brutality against two defenceless victims. Recorded in stone A gravestone near ... Read More