Criminal Records

[Jan65]

Hi all

I have been browsing Ancestry's Criminal Records and have come across a possibility for one of my ancestors, William Heslop. The William Heslop in these records was tried, along with a Reuben Reed, for robbery in December 1855, at the Guildhall of the City of York. The two men were both acquitted.

My own William Heslop lived, in 1855, in Stockton on Tees, Durham, and moved the following year to Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire.

Is it feasible that the William who was tried at York could be my own William? I don't know anything at all about courts or their procedures. If William allegedly committed a crime in Stockton or Middlesbrough, could he be tried at York, or would he be tried in his own town?

Many thanks for any suggestions or advice!

[Peter Goodey]

I'm afraid "Ancestry's Criminal Records" doesn't mean much to me.

However I've checked and see that they seem to be a version of National Archives series HO 26 and HO 27.

This research guide may help you to take this further.

[Jan65]

I'm afraid "Ancestry's Criminal Records" doesn't mean much to me.

Hi Peter, sorry I should have been more specific. The records on Ancestry are the England and Wales Criminal Registers, 1791-1892.

I'm in the middle of looking at the link you've given me to TNA; unfortunately I get a bit confused on TNA's site with the wealth of information given, and am not sure where to look to find a possible answer to my question.

I suppose the gist of my question is really whether people were tried locally or tried in a "bigger" court elsewhere - would it depend on the seriousness of the crime for instance?

I really have no idea whether the William I've found could possibly be mine, and can't think how I might go about trying to find out!

[Peter Goodey]

I don't have access to that database. Would it be the Assizes at the Guildhall?

Really if you've got a suspicion that it might be your man, you would get to the bottom of it by chasing up the court records. Otherwise I'm sorry that I'm not knowledgeable enough about Yorkshire Assize courts. Does the Guildhall in York sound right for a crime committed in the North Riding? Perhaps someone knows.

[Geoffers]

Does the Guildhall in York sound right for a crime committed in the North Riding? Perhaps someone knows.

But then there is nothing to say the crime was committed in the North Riding, just that William lived there at some point in time. William may have travelled further south to commit a crime, or been party to a crime which ws committed closer to York. It is quite possible for your chap to have been tried there.

The level of court which dealt with an offence, depended on the seriousness of the crime and which court has authority to hear the case and/or pass a sentence.

But as Peter previously wrote:

Really if you've got a suspicion that it might be your man, you would get to the bottom of it by chasing up the court records

This is the only way of confirming things.

[tony vines]

Hi

I have had some success with these records, finding brief information about an ancestor who committed crimes and another poster on this forum was kind enough to look up the details which were barred to me on my subscription. I later contacted the record office for the county in question and they looked up the reports of the Quarter Sessions and gave me even more information.

I am no expert but each county seems to have had Quarter Sessions, so-called because they were held 4 times a year. Local magistrates would try miscreants and pass sentence for lesser offences such as larceny, theft, fraud etc. Sentences would typically involve a spell in the local prison sometimes "with hard labour" If the offence was deemed very minor the magistrate might deal with it in a summary fashion, even in his own home.

More serious offences would normally be tried at the Assizes presided over by visiting judges. Sentences there could include transportation. I am not sure about this but I believe that the sentence of death had to be passed by the Criminal Court in London.

It really is worth reading the guides the NRO produced. There is some great stuff on crime and punishment and on transportation.

[Jan65]

Thank you all very much for your interest and help! Much appreciated.

I don't have access to that database. Would it be the Assizes at the Guildhall?

My subscription allows me to see the scanned original book, and on the top of the page where William appears it says "City and County of the City of York. RETURN of all Persons committed, or Bailed to appear for Trial, or Indicted at the Special Gaol Delivery held at the Guildhall of the said City on the eighth day of December 1855, shewing the nature of their Offences, and the result of the Proceedings". The words in italics are those that are hand written, with the others being pre-printed. I'm not sure, then if this is the Assizes. (I'm not even sure what an Assize is, exactly!)

Really if you've got a suspicion that it might be your man, you would get to the bottom of it by chasing up the court records.

I'd love to do this, to get more info, but am unsure how to go about it - although see my comment below Tony's quote.

But then there is nothing to say the crime was committed in the North Riding, just that William lived there at some point in time. William may have travelled further south to commit a crime, or been party to a crime which ws committed closer to York.

I'd never thought of that Geoffers. Another thing that's just struck me is that my William did actually live in York briefly, sometime between 1839 and 1841 (his baby son was buried there in 1839, this is the only reason I know that the family lived there; I have the death cert and the burial record - by 1841 they were in Middlesbrough). Although other evidence that I have suggests that he lived the rest of his life either in Stockton or Middlesbrough, he may have returned to York to visit, or even to live again briefly, for all I know. 1855 is a blank year for me in his history as nothing happened that I have been able to find records for.

I later contacted the record office for the county in question and they looked up the reports of the Quarter Sessions and gave me even more information.

Thanks for your info, Tony - maybe this is what I should do? Contact the York record office?

It really is worth reading the guides the NRO produced. There is some great stuff on crime and punishment and on transportation.

Where do I find these, Tony?

Another little interesting snippet is that in March 1859, a William Heslop appeared in the Middlesbrough Weekly News. He had appeared before the mayor for being drunk and disorderly and commiting a nuisance in Suffield Street in Middlesbrough, and was discharged on paying 1 shilling costs. I can't prove that this is my William, but as far as I'm aware, he did live in Middlesbrough in 1859, and I haven't been able to find evidence of any other William Heslop in Middlesbrough at that time (although I know that doesn't mean there weren't any!) I have therefore claimed this William as my own unless I find anything else to prove otherwise! This previous find makes me wonder if he committed other crimes, hence my wondering if the William at York is the same man (although that one was aquitted!)

Once again, thank you everyone for your input.

[Peter Goodey]

I'd love to do this, to get more info, but am unsure how to go about it

Do please read the research guide that I mentioned in message #2.

The modern day Crown Courts replaced Assizes and Quarter Sessions, by the way.

[Kerrywood]

maybe this is what I should do? Contact the York record office?

Hi Jan,

As a general rule, quarter sessions records are held at local record offices, while assizes records are held at the National Archives, Kew. The entry in the criminal registers for your William HESLOP in 1855 (HO 27/112 p540, viewed via Ancestry) indicates that this hearing was at the York Assizes, so any court records will be at Kew.

Have you tried looking for William's co-defendant Reuben REED? Doing so might just give you a clue as to whether this William HESLOP is yours. I say this because in a similar case I found that a co-defendant with a distinctive name was born in the same town as my man and had witnessed his marriage a couple of years later. Just a thought

Kerrywood

[gimmerlamb]

Jan65
to find your Heslop and the Reuben Reed scan through Old 19th century local newspapers using parameters of the year before you came across him and the year of the trial. Old newspapers are online through some library services.