Victoria Working Men's Home, Commercial St East

[Ben]

Here’s an interesting article from the Walthamstow and Leyton Guardian, 20th July 1889, concerning the Alice McKenzie murder:

At about five o'clock in the morning a man was seen lurking about the scene of the murder, and his movements attracted the suspicion of the police he was arrested and brought to Commercial-street Police Station, where he was searched. In his possession was a common butcher's knife and other small things. He, however, referred the police to the keeper of the Victoria Lodging House, who came and identified him as a man he had known for years. Owing to this and other accounts received by the police he was ultimately discharged.

Interestingly, the Victoria Lodging House is specified, and on first glance, this would appear to refer to Thomas Sadler’s 1891 lodgings in East Smithfield, near the docks. This building is often confused with the Victoria Home on 39-41 Commercial Street, and I wonder if this “confusion” may have occurred in reverse on this particular occasion. It seems too “coincidental” somehow that a man from one “Victoria” lodging house (located some distance away) just happened to have been “lurking” in extremely close proximity to another. Another article from the East End News, 19th July 1889, simply referred to the “Victoria” when describing the same incident. This article also includes the detail that the man was found lurking four hours after the murder.

I’m sure someone with a better grasp of the geographical specifics will put me right here if necessary, but another possible reason for the presence of Victoria Home lodgers in Castle Alley (whether lurking there or otherwise) is that it may have facilitated access to the building. North of Castle Alley was the narrower Old Castle Street, and branching off from the latter in an easterly direction was the cul-de-sac “Castle Court”. This led directly to the rear of the Victoria Home after a few seconds walk, according to contemporary maps, and possibly a back door (used for depositing waste?).

I could be way off, of course, but this is what struck me when reading the above accounts and consulting the maps. I haven’t seen a Goad map of this particular spot, which may shed light on the issue.

All the best,
Ben

[Sally]

Interesting.

This from the good old Daily News:



18th July 1889

There seem to have been one or two escape routes off Castle Alley - yet I think whoever killed McKenzie must have had intimate knowledge of the immediate locale to have disappeared that quickly. It would be interesting to know if there was access to the back of the Victoria Home, given its very close proximity to the murder site.

[Ben]

Hi Sally,

Thanks for that. Here's a the location in question:

http://www.casebook.org/official_documents/map/images/12.gif

The northernmost court leading off from Old Castle Street terminated in a small yard area, in the far corner of which was the corner of the Victoria Home. Was there just a brick wall separating Castle Court (as it was then known) from the Home, or a back door?

All the best,
Ben

[Lechmere]

An interesting tale that illustrates several things:
The keeper clearly was on familiar terms with long term residents.
The police trusted the bona fides of people who could be vouched for.

The was of course yet another Victoria Home on Whitechapel Road, but I suspect you are right and the article refers to the Commercial Street one.
There does seem to be an ally leading to the rear of the premises but I tend to doubt it would be accessible as it would somewhat defeat the object of having controlled entry.

[Sally]

No.2

You are referring, of course, to the 2nd Victoria Home for Working men at 77 Whitechapel Road, Lechmere, which, as you know, was part of the same philanthropic venture as the first.

I am not sure, however, whether the 2nd VH had opened by this date - perhaps you could confirm?

If not, I would think the No.1 home on Commercial Street was probably the one referred to in this report - which appears in several publications other than those mentioned above. It seems to me that the 'Victoria Lodging House' which several versions have as in the 'locality' must have been closer to Castle Alley than the Victoria Lodging House on East Smithfield.

And I think you are right - it is an interesting tale that illustrates several things - not least of which being that the deputy of a reputable (?) lodging house could successfully vouch for a lodger who had been lurking at a murder site at 5 o'clock in the morning carrying a butcher's knife. And in the heart of the murder district, too.

Curiouser and Curiouser....

[Ben]

I sometimes wonder if these brief "suspects" may have been sent on their way rather too hastily, and ostensibly on the basis of positive character references as opposed to concrete alibis. In cases where the latter were provided, such as that of William Wallace Brodie (also in connection with the McKenzie murder), the press tended to state as much. No such revelation appeared in connection with this lurking man, and a deputy knowing him for years is of very little "exonerating" value. Whoever the killer was, there must have been people who had known him for years, and had positive impressions of him.

I doubt very much that the Castle Court entrance (if such there was) was well known about, although there were several deputies on hand if it needed guarding.

All the best,
Ben

[Lechmere]

Yes if I may speculate - the deputy probably told the police that the man was a butcher and that he consulted his registers that he kept up on a daily basis and noted that he was in bed at the time of the darstardly act.

There are references to Victoria Home No 2 on Whitechapel Road in the 1891 census.

This account from the Hornsey And Middlesex Messenger, Friday July 19, 1889, sheds a slightly different light on the episode and suggests that the Castle Ally was a potential trap for the perpetrator.

...One arrest had taken place in connection with the latest of the East-end murders. At about five o'clock in the morning a man was seen lurking about the scene of the murder, and his movements attracting the suspicion of the police he was arrested and brought to Commercial-street Police Station, where he was searched. In his possession was a common butcher's knife and other small things. He, however, referred the police to the keeper of the Victoria Lodging House, who came and identified him as a man he had known for years. Owing to this and other accounts received by the police he was ultimately discharged...

...The scene of the crime. Castle-alley is a thoroughfare about 170 yards long, and for about 160 yards is about 35ft. wide; the other ten yards, which forms the entry from Whitechapel High-street, is about 3ft. wide, and runs under and between Nos. 124 and 125, Whitechapel High-street. Through this narrow, dark, covered entry the wider portion of the alley is entered. On either hand are fenced-in spaces where rookeries have lately been demolished, on the left for about 40ft. and on the right for something over 140ft. The remainder of the right side is a dead wall, beside which stood on Tuesday night some dozen 4-wheel vans and 20 costermongers' barrows. On the right side are rather dilapidated factories of a firm of wheelwrights and van makers, a builder's yard, a fruiterer's place, and the Castle-alley Wash-houses and the Board School. Thus it will be seen that in this 170 yards of thoroughfare completely shut off from the public view by the narrow passage connecting it with the High-street at one end and the projection of the Board School, which narrows it to about 16ft. at the other...

...One of these named Larkin, a man who has seen better days, was thought to be hurrying away with undue haste. He was seized and taken to the Commercial-street Station, but the deputy of the Victoria Home was sent for, and he was able to clear the man of all suspicion. He was then released, and it is this incident which is probably giving rise to the rumour which is so exciting some of the people that an arrest of importance has been made...

As was common in this case it is also stated:
“All the lodging houses in the vicinity, as well as the dwelling houses, have been thoroughly searched, but nothing of a suspicious character has been found.”

[Ben]

he probably told the police that the man was a butcher and that he consulted his registers that he kept up on a daily basis and noted that he was in bed at the time of the darstardly act.

Almost certainly not, Lechmere.

The Victoria Home would have made a note of a lodger's name when he purchased a pass (once a week for those in possession of a weekly pass), but not every time every lodger entered and exited the building. This was impractical and barely possible to police, as we've discussed elsewhere. It isn't very surprising that nothing of a suspicious character was found at the lodging houses. Unfortunately, they enabled their occupants to behave as needles in a haystack if and when necessary.

All the best,
Ben

[Lechmere]

I think Ben may have hit the nail on the head. I think the police did indeed send ‘leads’ away too quickly if they seemed to ‘check out’ on the basis of a superficial positive character reference. As I have often said, if the ‘suspect’ ticked the right boxes then they barely had time to become a suspect and were sent on their way. But let's not digress on this thread...

[Garry Wroe]

One of these named Larkin, a man who has seen better days, was thought to be hurrying away with undue haste. He was seized and taken to the Commercial-street Station, but the deputy of the Victoria Home was sent for, and he was able to clear the man of all suspicion.

So we have the man's name and confirmation that he was indeed resident at the Victoria Home. Excellent find, Lechmere.

[Ben]

Hi Garry,

I'm pretty sure the Larkin arrest was unrelated to that of the man with the butcher's knife, as they were both mentioned in the same edition of the Walthamstow and Leyton Guardian on 20th July 1889. It would mean, of course, that the poor hassled deputy was called in twice to account for his lodgers, but given the proximity of the Victoria Home to the murder scene, ths is hardly surprising.

http://www.casebook.org/press_reports/walthamstow_and_leyton_guardian/w890720.html

All the best,
Ben

[Garry Wroe]

Thanks, Ben. I'll have to re-read the various posts when I have a little more time. Well done, though, on spotting the (possible) Victoria Home connection. Anything thus related is always welcome as far as I'm concerned.

[Garry Wroe]

I’m not so sure, Ben. First, the report states:-

‘Up to later on on Wednesday only ONE ARREST had taken place in connection with the latest of the East-end murders. At about five o'clock in the morning a man was seen lurking about the scene of the murder, and his movements attracted the suspicion of the police he was arrested and brought to Commercial-street Police Station, where he was searched. In his possession was a common butcher's knife and other small things. He, however, referred the police to the keeper of the Victoria Lodging House, who came and identified him as a man he had known for years. Owing to this and other accounts received by the police he was ULTIMATELY DISCHARGED.’

Much later, it reveals:-

‘When the cordon was drawn round the spot by the police, several persons were seized for examination, and called upon to explain their business in the street at the time. One of these named Larkin, a man who has seen better days, was thought to be hurrying away with undue haste. He was seized and taken to the Commercial-street Station, but the deputy of the Victoria Home was sent for, and he was able to clear the man of all suspicion. He was then released, and it is this incident which is probably giving rise to the rumour which is so exciting some of the people that an arrest of importance has been made.’

Thus it would appear that there was only one arrest – the detention of Larkin which seemed for a time to have been ‘important’. On the face of it, it seems as though Larkin was the man found with the butcher’s knife at 5:00am, and that his personal details were only fleshed out later in the report as the story moved on and additional information surfaced.

Like I said, I’ll make a more detailed analysis later when I have more time.

[Lechmere]

The accounts in the two papers are more or less identical. Both refer to an arrest twice. It is fairly obvious that the two references to arrests refer to the same arrest. For a start it says that only one arrest has been made...

Walthamstow and Leyton Guardian and across the River Lee the Hornsey and Middlesex Messenger both say:

Up to later on Wednesday only one arrest had taken place in connection with the latest of the East-end murders. At about five o'clock in the morning a man was seen lurking about the scene of the murder, and his movements attracted the suspicion of the police he was arrested and brought to Commercial-street Police Station, where he was searched. In his possession was a common butcher's knife and other small things. He, however, referred the police to the keeper of the Victoria Lodging House, who came and identified him as a man he had known for years. Owing to this and other accounts received by the police he was ultimately discharged.

and

When the cordon was drawn round the spot by the police, several persons were seized for examination, and called upon to explain their business in the street at the time. One of these named Larkin, a man who has seen better days, was thought to be hurrying away with undue haste. He was seized and taken to the Commercial-street Station, but the deputy of the Victoria Home was sent for, and he was able to clear the man of all suspicion. He was then released, and it is this incident which is probably giving rise to the rumour which is so exciting some of the people that an arrest of importance has been made.

[Ben]

Well done, though, on spotting the (possible) Victoria Home connection.

Many thanks, Garry.

Here's another interesting account from the East End News, 19th July, one day earlier than the W&L report:

Some four hours after the murder a man was arrested in the district and taken to the Commercial-street station, on suspicion of being the murderer. On being searched, a butcher's knife, amongst other things, was found in his possession. When questioned, he without hesitation referred the police to the keeper of the Victoria, a lodging-house in the neighbourhood. This person was accordingly sent for, and identified the prisoner as a man he had known for some years. Other statements made by the man having been ascertained to be correct, he was at once discharged.

Usefully, this clinches the identification of the Victoria Home beyond any doubt. It doesn't mention Larkin, although it contradicts the other papers in stating that:

"Several arrests were made on Wednesday, though it would not seem that they were productive of any good results"

I wonder if Larkin was one of these? The W&L article also mentioned that several persons were seized for examination, and it is possible that this group included more than one Victoria Home lodger. It would be interesting to ascertain whether or not Larkin was a butcher.

All the best,
Ben