City of Leicester & Leicestershire - The Good and Historical Stuff

[davieG]

The Market

[davieG]

 

A long read

 

LEICESTER PRISON

The prison was designed by Leicester county surveyor William Parsons to resemble a castle and cost £20,000. The oldest part dates from 1825, and it was opened in 1828. The gatehouse including the adjoining building to north and south and the perimeter wall are grade II listed.

The journalist William Cobbett, who wrote about his journeys around England in the early 19th century, criticised the people of Leicester for being proud of their new prison, feeling that it would be more praiseworthy to have an absence of crime.

The prison's distinctive, red brick perimeter walls are thought to be the highest in the country, with an estimated height of 30 feet.

The only known escape by a prisoner through scaling the wall was an ill-fated one, made by renowned 'safe-blower', Albert Hattersley on the evening of 18 December 1953. Hattersley made his way through a skylight in the prison's workshop and used webbing and a long pipe which he had broken from a wall in the workshop toilets to help him scale the wall. He then chose to drop by his fingertips from a part of the wall which was located above the governor's garden, in the hope that the soft earth would help break his fall. However, Hattersley suffered a broken ankle, with his right tibia protruding the skin. After several hours on the run, he was re-captured the following day.

In 2014, it was reported that prison officers had thwarted a similar plan for an escape over the wall by an inmate who was serving six years for robbery. In describing what was envisaged by the inmate as a "Shawshank Redemption-style prison break", the Leicester Mercury reported that following a search of his cell, prison guards had discovered torn bed sheets tied together "to form ropes", along with mattress covers adjusted for use in negotiating barbed wire. It was reported that they also discovered a "boarded-up section" in the cell, with a panel that could be removed to access a hole the prisoner had been digging.

There have been 23 executions carried out at Leicester Prison, between the years 1829 and 1953. The youngest person executed was John Swift, aged 19 in 1877, and the oldest was Thomas Bloxham, aged 62, in 1887. With the exception of the first four executions (carried out for offences of horse theft and highway robbery), all executions were carried out for offences of murder. All of those executed were male, with the exception of Sarah Smith in 1832 and there have been two triple executions, in 1829 and 1877, and two double executions, in 1903 and 1944.

Executions at Leicester Prison were originally carried out publicly, typically attracting many thousands of spectators.

On 20 April 1829, a triple execution was carried out in front of the newly opened prison when Charles Forrester (21), John Hinton (25) and William Varnam (24) were hanged for horse stealing. In reporting the incident, the Leicester Chronicle newspaper noted that after the executioner had pulled caps over the faces of the condemned men, "a short but painful suspense took place, owing to some difficulty in removing the bolt which causes the platform on which they stood, to fall". It was also noted that about half of the huge crowd that had assembled to watch the event were women and children.

On 7 April 1830, John Watkins (28) was hanged for highway robbery.

On 26 March 1832, a particularly large crowd attended the hanging of Sarah Smith, a 28 year old woman from Mountsorrel. She had killed Elizabeth Wood, a woman in her care, by adding arsenic to her tea. This was the only execution of a female to be carried out at Leicester Prison.

Also in 1832, a prisoner hanged at Leicester became one of the last two men in England to be gibbeted. James Cook (21) was a bookbinder, convicted of the murder of his creditor Paas, a manufacturer of brass instruments, in Leicester. He was executed on Friday 10 August 1832 in front of the prison. Following his execution it was noted: "The head was shaved and tarred, to preserve it from the action of the weather; and the cap in which he had suffered was drawn over his face. On Saturday afternoon his body, attired as at the time of his execution, having been firmly fixed in the irons necessary to keep the limbs together, was carried to the place of its intended suspension."

His body was displayed on a purpose-built gallows, 33 ft high in Saffron Lane near the Aylestone Tollgate and, according to The Newgate Calendar, "thousands of persons were attracted to the spot, to view this novel but most barbarous exhibition; and considerable annoyance was felt by persons resident in the neighbourhood of the dreadful scene. Representations were in consequence made to the authorities, and on the following Tuesday morning instructions were received from the Home Office directing the removal of the gibbet."

Gibbeting was soon after abolished in England, in 1834.

William Hubbard (23) was hanged on 1 April 1846, for the murder of his wife at Leicester, having cut her throat with a butcher's knife.

John Fowkes (45) was hanged on 19 March 1856 for the murder of his 20 year old nephew, John Acres Fowkes, at Snarestone.

The last public execution at Leicester Prison took place on 25 July 1856, when an estimated crowd of 25,000 gathered to watch the hanging of William ("Peppermint Billy") Brown, aged 33, for the murder of Edward Woodward, a 78 year old tollgate keeper of Thorpe Arnold and his ten year old grandson.

19th Century public execution Amendment Act 1868 public executions were abolished and all hangings thereafter were carried out inside the prison, behind closed doors

For a short period between 1876 and 1877, executions at Leicester appear to have been carried out at the Borough Gaol on Highcross, where two hangings are recorded as having been carried out - those of John Thomas Green (41) on 20 December 1876 and John Henry Starkey (28) on 31 July 1877. Both men were hanged for the murder of their wives.

Hanging was resumed at the County Gaol on Welford Road on 27 November 1877, when the last triple execution to be carried out at the prison took place. James Satchwell (28), John Swift (19) and John Upton (32) were executed for the murder of Joseph Tugby, a 65 year old pedlar. Tugby had been drinking with the three men at the Stamford and Warrington public house in Coalville before they had followed him and kicked him to death at a nearby railway bridge. The scaffold upon which Satchwell, Swift and Upton were hanged was specially strengthened for the job by the executioner, William Marwood.

On 16 August 1886, James Banton (27) was hanged for the murder of PC Thomas Barratt at Breedon-on-the-Hill by the executioner William Berry.

On 11 February 1887, Thomas Bloxham (62), was hanged for the murder of his 48 year old wife, Ann, at their home in Fairfax Street, Leicester. Bloxham, who believed his wife had been unfaithful, first attempted to shoot her with a revolver but missed, after which he cut her throat, almost severing the head. Bloxham then tried to commit suicide by turning the revolver on himself, but the gun misfired, at which point he gave up and called the police.

On 10 December 1894, John William Newell (42), was hanged for the murder of his wife at Loughborough. Newell had beat his wife to death with a coal hammer at their grocer's shop on Woodgate, believing that she had been sleeping with a lodger. After killing her, Newell went into the street and confessed of his deed to a patrolling policeman. His executioner was James Billington.

[davieG]

For over 100 years Aylestone Meadows has been a place where the people of Leicester can spend their leisure time in nature.

In the early part of the 20th Century, the attractive rural quality of Aylestone village, combined with its accessibility by horse-tram, gave rise to its development as a “pleasure resort” for city residents. In 1911 a boating centre was set up on the south bank of the River Soar off Middleton Street which included a boathouse, tennis courts, ballroom and restaurant. Aylestone became famed for its “excellent boating”.

Photo: Aylestone Boat House, Leicester & Leicestershire Record Office.

[davieG]

The Firs - Gone.

[davieG]

Made In Leicester
Rob Hubble  · 
It's 1958 the Great Central Line is still in use as this locomotive heads over St Augustine Street and West Bridge.

[kingfox]

For the 90’s guys like myself  

https://www.leicestermercury.co.uk/news/history/gallery/life-before-highcross-36-archive-4050998

[Jimothy]

 

[davieG]

Before the Holiday Inn, possible Jubilee square now.

[davieG]

It's 1947 during a very harsh winter 2000 queue for coke from Boundary Road and along Aylestone Road.

[Free Falling Foxes]

15 hours ago, Facecloth said:

 

Four Greggs? Strewth! Is that true?

I don't know which to choose as one of our greatest assets; that or the Golden Mile.

Edited 25 April 2022 by Free Falling Foxes

[Stadt]

1 hour ago, Free Falling Foxes said:

Four Greggs? Strewth! Is that true?

I don't know which to choose as one of our greatest assets; that or the Golden Mile.

Not really the same street, counting Belgrave gate & Granby street as the one I think 

[davieG]

Granby Street corner with Dover Street.And the Essoldo Cinema.

[davieG]

 

[davieG]

 

Story of Leicester

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Construction of the railway yard at Bedehouse Meadows c1876, with the familiar Victorian scenery of terraced houses and chimneys in the background.

Credit: Leicester & Leicestershire Record Office.

In medieval times the area we now call Bede Island was known as Bedehouse Meadow. A bedehouse, also known as an almshouse, supported the poor, with food and lodgings. The meadow was probably used to raise money for one of Leicester’s almshouses.

Bede Island extends from Braunstone Gate in the north to south of Upperton Road where the River Soar and the Leicester canal diverge near the former gasworks.

Running along the west is the old railway line from Leicester's Great Central station. For many years, the area was used as marshalling yards for the Great Central Railway and by other industries that made use of the readily available transport.

An illustrated history of the Bede Island area can be found on a new heritage panel installed at Bede Park.

#StoryofLeicester #Leicester

[davieG]

Asda 1970s

[davieG]

Nick Clarke
This is on the corner of Belvoir Street out of shot on the left and Rutland Street on the right. In Victorian times it was where Granby Street ended and Gallowtree Gate started.

 

 

 

 

Picture of the Castle and what would be castle gardens. I guess the lack of cars makes in pre1910 and the building date of Newark Bridge would but an earliest date on it.

[Wymsey]

Possible regeneration of the Stocking Farm area.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-61231486

[davieG]

The Bell Hotel

Humberstone Gate 1963.before demolition for the Haymarket Centre

[westernpark]

21 hours ago, Wymsey said:

Possible regeneration of the Stocking Farm area.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-61231486

Beaumont Leys and Mowmacre Hill are also touted for this.

An advance on their historic grouping by the city council in the Abbey Plan of 1976, that means the council largely saw them as the same entity.

[davieG]

 

I had my first taste of alcohol here as a 16 year old going to what was then Charles Keene College, was there on day release from work.

 

One pint of mild.

[westernpark]

4 minutes ago, davieG said:

 

I had my first taste of alcohol here as a 16 year old going to what was then Charles Keene College, was there on day release from work.

 

One pint of mild.

Is this on the site or near to the site of the current Leicester college?

[davieG]

1 hour ago, westernpark said:

Is this on the site or near to the site of the current Leicester college?

Yeah, it was on the corner of the road that runs alongside of the college. Obviously all new since i was there when it was housed in an old electrical power house. which they seem to have demolished.

[davieG]

If you came to the match via Upperton Road from Narborough Rd this is what you would have seen on the left side of Upperton road Bridge which has also gone. Now you'll see the Bede Island development.

 

 

 

 

Vic Berry's scrap yard in the same area, with all the old train carriages piled up!

The business was set up in 1973 on the site of the former Great Central Railway goods yard. It focused initially on breaking up redundant passenger coaches and goods wagons. The company later began scrapping railway locomotives, the first arriving on site in April 1983.

A serious fire broke out in the scrapyard in March 1991 which took firefighters several hours to bring under control. As a result of the fire and after months of financial difficulties, the Vic Berry Company ceased trading in June 1991.

Remember when it used to look this way?

#StoryofLeicester #Leicester

[Free Falling Foxes]

1 hour ago, davieG said:

If you came to the match via Upperton Road from Narborough Rd this is what you would have seen on the left side of Upperton road Bridge which has also gone. Now you'll see the Bede Island development.

 

 

 

 

Vic Berry's scrap yard in the same area, with all the old train carriages piled up!

The business was set up in 1973 on the site of the former Great Central Railway goods yard. It focused initially on breaking up redundant passenger coaches and goods wagons. The company later began scrapping railway locomotives, the first arriving on site in April 1983.

A serious fire broke out in the scrapyard in March 1991 which took firefighters several hours to bring under control. As a result of the fire and after months of financial difficulties, the Vic Berry Company ceased trading in June 1991.

Remember when it used to look this way?

#StoryofLeicester #Leicester

Remember it well.

IIRC, there was a ad for Vic Berry's on the back of every home match day programme in those days.

Edited 27 April 2022 by Free Falling Foxes

[davieG]

Granby St 1950s