MOSES JACOBS abt 1794-1856;SOLOMON JACOBS

[phillip]

This new thread follows up a range of data recorded on the Jacobstree website which relates to the Jacobs/Letson/Litzen lines with specific reference to Moses Jacobs b abt 1794-1856 and his brother Solomon aka Samuel Jacobs. Currently little was known about Solomon and there was no data regarding his dob. Moses and Solomon were the sons of Henry Jacobs and Kitty Moses. The death of Moses in 1856 was under unusual circumstances and involved a coroner's inquest. In the following posts I will provide a range of data on Moses and Solomon including their involvement in extortion and frauds and their association with their Levy relatives in some of the cases.
The various British Newspaper articles for the period 1800-1900 provide an excellent source for information on Moses and Solomon which can be cross referenced to other records. In the case of Moses Jacobs his original trade was in glass manufacturing but later expanded to include him claiming to be an attorney and law agent. Similarly, Solomon was also involved in the glass and china trade but became a process server in collaboration with Moses and others. Both individuals spent time in prison and Solomon served time for theft as will be described in later posts. What happened to Solomon pre and post the last newspaper article of 1862 remains to be solved and it has proved very difficult to locate him in census or other records.
In the case of Moses Jacobs the reference to him being an attorney is not supported by any evidence and he does not appear in the UK Articles of Clerkship 1756-1874 on Ancestry Com. In the case of Solomon Jacobs it is very likely he adopted at least one alias.
The brothers involvement in extortion was described in various newspaper accounts and involved them submitting bills of indictment against unlicensed clubs and then asking the club owners to pay them money not to serve the indictments. In one trial Moses Jacobs was alleged to have served some 400-500 such indictments. There is no doubting the two brothers were involved with a range of criminals as the court cases suggest and that at one stage the two brothers 'fell out'. There is also evidence that the two brothers were involved with Lawrence Levy their brother in law who was notorious for bills of exchange frauds.
There will be other posts which provide supporting evidence on the two brothers.
Phillip

[phillip]

In this post I will provide data on Solomon Jacobs brother of Moses and son of Henry Jacobs and Kitty Moses. In 1846 Solomon was tried and found guilty of stealing a diamond. He appeared at the Surrey Sessions.. "Solomon Jacobs a strongly marked Jew, surrendered to take his trial on an indictment charging him with having stolen a diamond the property of Mr Hill a glass and chinaman in the Blackfriars Road... the prisoner was a dealer in glass and a regular customer to the prosecutor." Solomon received 21 days solitary confinement. The sentence was lenient because of his previous good conduct- The Morning Post Weds Dec 9, 1846. The UK Criminal Records give Solomon an age of 39 in 1846 suggesting a dob of 1807. He appears in other cases involving his brother Moses but in 1852 he is listed under Jacobs v Mouflet..."The plaintiff described himself as a wholesale china dealer and process server in Lambeth Walk". The focus of the case also involved his brother Moses and appears to have been an attempt to extort money for unlicensed clubs. '...."On cross examination the plaintiff stated he had been convicted of stealing a diamond valued at 3s and had suffered 21 days imprisonment and that he had been in Guildford gaol for carrying on some illicit glass works... an execution was put on his house and all his stock taken under it.The execution was levied by his father in law who had lent him money and was issued by his ( plaintiffs) attorney. His own brother Moses Jacobs though not an attorney acted for the defendant as attorney in the indictment against him; and he attributed all the proceedings to his brother's instigation."
The judge commented strongly on the character and conduct of the plaintiff and indicated that the proceedings involving Solomon and Moses should be further investigated.The Morning Chronicle Tues Dec 21, 1852
The cases suggest that the scam was for Moses to write the bill of indictment and Solomon to serve them and then extort money to cancel the indictment.
The last newspaper post for Solomon is in 1862 ( currently) and shows his involvement with Lawrence Levy. The trial involved the detention of a piano by Lawrence Levy.."Mr Lawrence Levy, a Jew, formerly a sheriff's officer, the manager of a loan office at 31 Brydges St Covent Garden and proprietor of the Garrick Theatre Leman St, charged with unlawfully detaining a pianoforte... Solomon Jacobs a Jew the brother in law of the defendant, signed the usual printed form".

I am still searching for further data on Solomon including whether or not he married and what became of him.
Phillip

[phillip]

In this post I will provide further data on some of the early 'scams' involving Moses Jacobs involving the submission of indictments against unlicensed premises used for gaming; dancing; drinking. The Times Fri August 31,1838 reported an indictment for keeping a gaming house and named Moses Jacobs 101 Berwick St Soho to be ordered to attend the court against the named defendant and produce affadavits for the indictments. The Times Thurs May 2,1844 reported on Moses Jacobs as one of the parties involved in comprising information against a Mr Roberts. The court heard that .." a gang of common informers received annual stipends from the keepers of such houses, and also from hawkers and publicans to refrain from harrassing them with information".
The Central Criminal Court in a case of libel defamation referred to Mr Moses Jacobs solicitor Berwick St Oxford St who was included in the indictments but had not surrendered. The Times August 26,1846 Later, in a case of Gaming House Prosecutions "A person of the name ( as we understood) Moses Hart or Moses Jacobs had been going about to different witnesses advising them not to attend the subpoena". The Times Weds Sept 13,1848. In the case of The Queen v Mary Ann Fletcher reported in The Times Fri Dec 22,1848 .."a person of the name of Moses Jacobs,who has long been raised up in this class of prosecutions.." appeared in court and requested that the indictment against the defendant be removed.

Moses Jacobs appeared in a case of 1844 involving his brother.." Lewis Henry Jacobs a dealer in china lately residing in Tyssen Place Kingsland. Lewis was charged with uttering a forged acceptance for £25 with intent to defraud.. the prisoner was liberated on bail and his brother Mr Moses Jacobs well known china dealer of Berwick St Oxford St entered into bail of £50 for the appearance of the prisoner."
Unfortunately for Moses his brother Lewis absconded and Moses was left to pay the bail.

Further data to follow.
Phillip

[phillip]

Further court cases involving Solomon Jacobs are cited in The Morning Post Weds Oct 11,1843 again involving indictments for keeping improper houses. In the 1843 case " A person named Solomon Jacobs contradicted Hill in as positive a manner as he had contradicted the insolvent. The perjury in the case was dreadful".In an 1851 case Solomon Jacobs of 2 Webber Row with two others at the same address was submitted a writ to recover penalties for permitting music and dance in unlicensed premises. He was referred to as "Jacobs,the Jew"-Daily News Monday Feb 10, 1851. These cases involving grand juries created a significant drain on the judges and the court time as well as considerable costs and penalties for the indicted parties. The scam by individuals such as Moses and Solomon Jacobs in the use of writs of indictment and the payment of sums to prevent such indictments can be clearly seen in the various newspaper accounts.
Phillip

[phillip]

The court cases involving Moses Jacobs in the latter part of his life prior to his death in 1856 suggest he had fallen on bad times. By 1851 Moses was insolvent and appeared in the Debtor's Court. He described himself as a law agent. "It was alleged that the insolvent was a trader as a glass and china dealer. He however stated he was only a law agent against which he explained to mean a person who found business for attorneys and received a certain portion according to the contract.. He had two sons who had been in the trade, but he was not a trader he was a tenant of the house". The court did not believe his comments. The Morning Post Tuesday Nov11, 1851. By 1852 he was accused of misleading the court of bankruptcy and attempting to extort money by issuing indictments. He received 7 months imprisonment. The Era Sunday Feb 8, 1852.
In 1854 he was in trouble again and charged with fraud as a law agent... " Moses Henry Jacobs who described himself as a law agent residing at 17 Charrington St. Somers Town and Henry Phillips clerk 16 Fetter Lane... fraudently obtained money from Sarah Russell Leveson under the pretence of getting her husband liberated from Whitecross Street Prison.." The Morning Post Sat Sept 9, 1854. By the time of his death in 1856 Moses was living alone in one room as a tenant.
Phillip

[phillip]

In an earlier post on this thread reference was made to Lewis Henry Jacobs aka Henry Lewis Jacobs who had absconded from bail in 1844. He was arrested in 1845. The Morning Post Monday July 31,1845. There is currently no indication in the Criminal records of his details and no confirmation of his death.
Solomon Jacobs and two others were charged with running an illicit glass manufacturing factory in Spellors Court,Webber Row, Lambeth and received 3 months in a house of correction plus £30 fine for each person found guilty. There is no reference to Solomon in the Criminal records for this offence.
Phillip

[phillip]

In #3 reference was made in the newspaper accounts of Lewis Henry Jacobs being a brother of Moses Jacobs. The only relevant Lewis Jacobs we have identified on the Jacobs family history site was the son of Philip Jacobs and unknown. This Lewis b abt 1792-and died by 1851 was the husband of Milcah Levy. The Historical Trade records give 2 Lewis Jacobs who were involved in the glass trade- Lewis Jacobs glass dealer 50 Marsham St Westminster PO Directory 1848 and Lewis Henry Jacobs glass and china dealer 111 Kingsland Road PO Directory 1845. The Marsham address of 1848 matches that of the 1841 Census where Lewis and Milcah were living. Unless there is an unknown brother of Moses Jacobs son of Henry Jacobs and Kitty Moses then it maybe the case that the newspaper accounts of Lewis Henry Jacobs of Tyssen Place Kingsland Road being the brother of Moses are in correct. However, as in the case of my Aaron/Crawcour relatives there was evidence of at least one brother assuming the name of another to avoid criminal charges. Similarly, the use of aliases by the various individuals was a common practice in an attempt to escape real identity in court cases where stronger sentences would be given if the individual was already a known convicted felon.
I am keeping an open mind on the names and trade records do not indicate post 1845 Lewis Jacobs involved in glass or china.

I have also speculated that Moses Jacobs who died in 1856 of injuries caused through falling from a chair and damaging his ribs may have actually resulted in someone settling scores with him. There is no proof for this theory but no doubting the numerous enemies Moses made in his role as law agent and adoption of the false title solicitor.
Phillip