Frederick Best

[lynn cates]

update

Hello Jeff. Thanks.

For T P try "The Star." Parke went up, if I recall properly, in conjunction with libel over the Cleveland st business.

Cheers.
LC

[Mayerling]

T. P. O'Connor

I notice his connection to at least one or two of the Bests here. O'Connor was a very prominent newspaper editor in the late 1880s, a supporter of Parnell and the Home Rule movement. Certainly his papers must be available somewhere to look through regarding these Bests.

As for Ernest Parke, he served some time in prison (like six months or so) and then resumed his editorial work. At least that is what I recall reading.

Jeff

[nashwan]

All the Best men or women found using the keywords 'author' and 'journalist'

1901 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
Prospect Villa, 1, Leigh Hill, Leigh, Rochford, Essex, England

George A Best Head Married Male 36 1865 Accountant Author & Journalist Brecknockshire, Wales
Mary L Best Wife Married Female 30 1871 - Hackney, Middlesex, England
Stanley G Best Son - Male 10 1891 - Little Ilford, Essex, England
Leslie G Best Son - Male 6 1895 - East Ham, Essex, England
Desmond R Best Son - Male 4 1897 - Leigh, Essex, England
Terence H Best Son - Male 2 1899 - Leigh, Essex, England
Kathleen L Best Daughter - Female 1 1900 - Leigh, Essex, England
Kathleen Lawrence Servant Single Female 20 1881 General Servant Domestic Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England

1911 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
23 Lytton Avenue Cheetham Manchester, North Manchester, Lancashire, England

Richard Edward Best Head Married Male 41 1870 London Md CR Journalist Author
Elizabeth Annie Best Wife Married Female 38 1873 Liverpool Lancs Domestic
William Thomas Best Son - Male 13 1898 Liverpool Lancs Scholar
Emily Florence Best Daughter - Female 8 1903 Heywood Lancs Scholar
Edward Russell Best Son - Male 6 1905 Manchester Lancs Scholar

1901 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
34, Burton Crescent, St Pancras, London, England

Edward Best Head Married Male 50 1851 Journalist -
Annie Best Wife Married Female 37 1864 - Cornwall, England
Elsie Best Daughter Single Female 12 1889 - Kennington, Surrey, England

1911 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
26 Framfield Road Highbury N, Islington, London, England

Edward Frank Best Head Married Male 67 1844 Germany Resident Sice 1871 Writer Journalist
Mary Frank Best Wife Married Female 47 1864 Cornwall Penweathers -

1911 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
50 Northumberland Place Paddington W, Paddington, London, England

Florence Maud Best Head Single Female 45 1866 Hellesdon Norfolk Writer Of Fiction Journalist

1891 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
Stamford Street, Lambeth, London, England

Frederick Best Head Married Male 33 1858 Journalist Westminster, England
Henrietta A Best Wife Married Female 23 1868 - Whitechapel, England

1901 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
40, Apsley Street, Ashford, West Ashford, Kent, England

Stephen B Best Head Married Male 76 1825 Retired Working Engineer Stepney, Middlesex, England
Jane Best Wife Married Female 71 1830 - Ashford, Kent, England
Walter Best Son Single Male 32 1869 Journalist Ashford, Kent, England
Olive Best Grand Daughter Single Female 13 1888 - -

1911 England, Wales & Scotland Census Transcription
14 Edinburgh Road Ashford Kent, Ashford, Kent, England

Walter Best Head Married Male 42 1869 Ashford Kent Journalist-Newspaper
Matilda Jane Best Wife Married Female 39 1872 Maidstone Kent -
Elsie Mary Best Daughter - Female 8 1903 Ashford Kent -

[lynn cates]

Parke

Hello All. It would also be interesting to know if anything new has been unearthed about Parke.

Cheers.
LC

[lynn cates]

Best

Hello All. Does anyone have an update on the status/understanding of the Brunner/Massingham letter regarding Best and his "relationship" to the CNA?

It would be interesting to find out more.

Cheers.
LC

[Simon Wood]

Hi Chris,

Of nothing more than incidental interest, one of Frederick Best's fellow 1891 lodgers at 111 Stamford Street, St Mary, Lambeth appears to have been Joseph Peter Keegan (1840–1901), actor and music-hall artiste, whose wife's name is variously reported elsewhere as Annie [nee Delaney]. Keegan's son [also Joseph Peter, 1862–1935] appeared under the name Joe Elvin as a comedian and music hall entertainer and was a founder in 1889 of the Grand Order of Water Rats, a show business charity. He also appeared with Marie Lloyd who, as we know, had connections with John Cooney and John McCarthy.

Strange how things inter-connect.

Regards,

Simon

[Stewart P Evans]

I Agree

It's curious, because as Cook has traced Frederick Best's family, he is presumably in a position to say whether or not he matches the man Morland says he met in 1931. The age is roughly right, but did Frederick Best live in the locality indicated by Morland at that time? In fact, was he still alive at all?
If the details match, surely that puts it completely beyond coincidence, and the two Bests must be the same person. If the details don't match, then there's something very strange going on, which surely needs to be investigated further.

I agree Chris. Presumably the authors of the A To Z made contact with Andrew Cook in an effort to resolve this matter. However it appears that the mystery only deepened.

On receipt of a copy of the Cook book in May 2009 I endeavoured to assess the strength of the claim that Best wrote the 'Dear Boss' letter but the vagueness of the reference and the lack of precise sourcing made this difficult. What 'evidence' there was seemed very weak and unconvincing. I did not accept the handwriting 'evidence' and noted that Lincoln Springfield (who worked for the Star newspaper) made no mention whatsoever of 'Best' in his book Some Piquant People (1924). Springfield did, however, mention the Ripper story and Harry Dam.

I also noted that the letter written by John T. Brunner to Henry Massingham of the Star, dated 7 July 1890, did not clarify whether or not it referred to 'Jack the Ripper' letter hoaxing in the sentence, "Furthermore Mr Best's attempt to mislead Central News during the Whitechapel murders should have led to an earlier termination of his association with the newspaper." I was also not happy with the 'Brunner letter'.

Therefore the earliest reference to 'Best' hoaxing Jack the Ripper letters did not appear until June 1966, and that story is from a dubious source.

[Chris]

According to the authors Cook 'does not connect Frederick Best with the journalist Best.' They also state that in a letter to them (in September 2009), Cook had explained that although aware of Best's confession [i.e. the Morland story] he had omitted it from his book for fear it would 'interrupt the flow of his narrative'.

It's curious, because as Cook has traced Frederick Best's family, he is presumably in a position to say whether or not he matches the man Morland says he met in 1931. The age is roughly right, but did Frederick Best live in the locality indicated by Morland at that time? In fact, was he still alive at all?

If the details match, surely that puts it completely beyond coincidence, and the two Bests must be the same person. If the details don't match, then there's something very strange going on, which surely needs to be investigated further.

[Stewart P Evans]

The Complete Jack the Ripper A To Z

The brand new The Complete Jack the Ripper A To Z now has two 'Best' entries, as follows -

BEST, -
Journalist. Alleged author of 'Jack the Ripper' letters.

and

BEST, FREDERICK (b. c.1858)
Journalist working for the Star.

According to the authors Cook 'does not connect Frederick Best with the journalist Best.' They also state that in a letter to them (in September 2009), Cook had explained that although aware of Best's confession [i.e. the Morland story] he had omitted it from his book for fear it would 'interrupt the flow of his narrative'.

Make what you will of that.

[Stewart P Evans]

The Andrew Cook Book

There was quite a detailed discussion on this subject over on JTRForums starting in May 2009 and prompted by the then new book by Andrew Cook.

I described the genesis (in June 1966) of the Best story and the presentation of Best in the A-Z. It is, of course, the A-Z entry on Best that brought the name, and Nigel Morland's 1966 article, to the attention of Ripperworld in general on its first publication back in 1991. Certainly this was the first time that I took notice of it.

I described the new material presented by Andrew Cook in his new book and his contention that one Frederick Best was responsible for the communications sent to the Central News Agency in September 1888. I also pointed out the dubious nature of some of Nigel Morland's writing.

At the time I wrote, 25 May 2009, I had not seen a copy of Andrew Cook's book but I was very concerned that any mention of the seminal Nigel Morland article was missing from the impending book.

[Stewart P Evans]

Excellent Work

After some initial, and as usual excellent, work by Chris this thread fizzled out. That is a pity in light of the recent discussion, on another thread, about 'Best'. Perhaps in light of the circumspect entries on Best in the new A To Z it might be nice to revive this discussion about the mysterious 'journalist Best'.

[Chris]

Chris- where did you find this census as I would like to take a closer look? From the section you have posted it appears that Frederick Best was sharing the room with two women and I would like to check this out.

The census is from www.ancestry.co.uk. I'm afraid it's a pay-per-view service, though they do offer a free trial.

I see what you mean about it appearing that Best was living with two women, but the end of each household is indicated by a diagonal stroke on the right hand side of the second column shown. So actually Elizabeth Hallett is in a separate household of one. Her relationship to the head was initially written as "Wife", and then altered to "Head and Wife". It's not clear whether she was a married woman living alone or whether her husband was just away from home on the night of the census.

[Louise0988]

Chris- where did you find this census as I would like to take a closer look? From the section you have posted it appears that Frederick Best was sharing the room with two women and I would like to check this out.

[Chris]

There might be a possibility of Frederick Best being a "compatriot" of T.P.O'Connor.

This possibility is not directly connected to F.Best, but to another mr. Best; I've read, that Pete Best (the former Beatle drummer) has Irish ancestory.

Well, the surname Best is certainly not unknown in Ireland. I can think of an even more famous example from the North...

[j.r-ahde]

Hello Chris!

There might be a possibility of Frederick Best being a "compatriot" of T.P.O'Connor.

This possibility is not directly connected to F.Best, but to another mr. Best; I've read, that Pete Best (the former Beatle drummer) has Irish ancestory.

How seriously one can take this statement, is naturally another question!

All the best
Jukka