Tamworth Herald 26th July 1890

[robhouse]

Hi,

Thanks for your compliments on my book. No, I am not working on anything Ripper related. I occasionally dabble in following up a thread or two but that is all.

Cheers.

Rob House

[Abby Normal]

In case anyone is interested, I have looked into the Annie Thompson diary in the Canadian archives in Ottowa. There is nothing there about Jack the Ripper. Annie Thompson's diary is from a much earlier period (1860s).

I had a researcher do this for me (as I couldn't get to Canada myself).

Here is what he wrote:

"Please find attached a sample of what is on the microfilm for John Thompson and Annie Affleck's letters.

The reel is not in chronological order per se and there did not appear to be an entire diary but scattered papers, news clippings and seemingly random correspondence. There was not much in the time frame you were looking for as many records were older or newer. Unfortunately some of the records were barely legible.

The closest thing I could find that was relevant was the mention of Charles Tupper, but nothing on the Parisian or their voyage. Most records are newspaper clippings of John Thompson's death and are dated after 1890. I looked through them anyway in hopes of finding something mentioned in hindsight but to no avail.

Annie Affleck's diary is dated well before the time period in question and is not extensive (page 9).

The other boxes I requested dealt mostly with John Thompson's Father, John Sparrow Thompson unfortunately."


So I am just posting this to let it be known that this "lead" has been followed up, and there is nothing there.

Rob House

Hi Rob
Thanks for posting this. and good to see you on CB!

BTW I just recently reread your book on koz and let me just say it as an excellent piece of work. One of the best "suspect" books on the ripper that's for sure.


you working on anything else?

[robhouse]

In case anyone is interested, I have looked into the Annie Thompson diary in the Canadian archives in Ottowa. There is nothing there about Jack the Ripper. Annie Thompson's diary is from a much earlier period (1860s).

I had a researcher do this for me (as I couldn't get to Canada myself).

Here is what he wrote:

"Please find attached a sample of what is on the microfilm for John Thompson and Annie Affleck's letters.

The reel is not in chronological order per se and there did not appear to be an entire diary but scattered papers, news clippings and seemingly random correspondence. There was not much in the time frame you were looking for as many records were older or newer. Unfortunately some of the records were barely legible.

The closest thing I could find that was relevant was the mention of Charles Tupper, but nothing on the Parisian or their voyage. Most records are newspaper clippings of John Thompson's death and are dated after 1890. I looked through them anyway in hopes of finding something mentioned in hindsight but to no avail.

Annie Affleck's diary is dated well before the time period in question and is not extensive (page 9).

The other boxes I requested dealt mostly with John Thompson's Father, John Sparrow Thompson unfortunately."


So I am just posting this to let it be known that this "lead" has been followed up, and there is nothing there.

Rob House

[Monty]

Ah, stopped.

Stooped was funnier.

Monty

[Phil Carter]

Tamworth (Tamworth Herald)

Hello all,

For those of you unfamiliar with Tamworth.. see here..

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamworth,_Staffordshire

also, I was surprised to see a Tamworth in Canada..

(Tamworth is a small community in Lennox and Addington County, Ontario, Canada. Tamworth is located due North of Napanee, Ontario and Northeast of Belleville, Ontario, near Kingston, Ontario, and is on Beaver Lake.)

source: wikipedia.

and another one in New Hampshire, USA

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamworth,_New_Hampshire

As far as the newspaper itself is concerned, it was founded in 1868 as a broadsheet. More of it's history can be fopund here..

http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/2007/news/a-little-herald-history/

and here...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamworth_Herald

Phil

[Mr Lucky]

Wilfred Pickles was born in Halifax, Yorkshire in 1904, so it's probably his mum who wrote the letter (unless anything else turns up to suggest otherwise). Wilfred was the uncle of Judge James Pickles, who as a Judge, would have known ALL the 'rumours' concerning the Whitechapel murders and not just the ones Wilfred told him. During the 1970's Wilfred starred along with professional Londoner Irene Handl in "For the love of Ada", some of Irene Handl ancestors may have lived in or visited London and therefore probably knew that the Ripper had been/not been arrested at some point, so a likely connection there. Another startling fact - Halifax Town reached the fifth round of the F.A. Cup in 1932-33, only twenty odd years after TLSOMOL was published, and I'm supposed to believe that's just a coincidence?

[Mayerling]

Hi Robert,

Yes, THE Christopher Plummer of "Murder By Decree". Also Plummer's actress daughter Amanda Plummer is a descendant. Now I saw her on stage in PYGMALION with Peter O'Toole in the 1980s. O'Toole played a crazy earl in THE RULING CLASS, who ends up dressing in late 1880s fashion, and thinks he is Jack the Ripper (earlier he thought he was Jesus Christ, but his relatives "cured him" of that delusion).

Talk about coincidences.

Jeff

[Robert]

Thanks Jeff. THE Christopher Plummer of 'Murder by Decree' fame? These coincidences are amazing.

[Mayerling]

Hi Rob and RH,

Interesting that (unless other information pops up) the lady from Halifax may be Lady Anne Thompson. There was a large biography published in the 1980s about Thompson, who had a mere 2 years in power as Prime Minister (1892-94). He (and his wife) were quite fat, and Sir John died comparatively young at Windsor Castle in December 1894 after a ceremony naming him to the Privy Council. However, he was Attorney General under Sir John MacDonald, and was considered the most able man in the MacDonald Government in the late 1880s. Born a Protestant, he loved Anne so much he converted to Catholicism (her religion) to marry her - which was a mark against him in Canada at that time. MacDonald and Lord Aberdeen would have wanted him to have succeeded the Prime Minister (who died in 1891), but the religious issue was (at the time) too hot. Instead MacDonald was succeeded by Sir John Abbott (the great grandfather of Christopher Plummer). Abbott's resignation in 1892 enabled Thompson to come into office. In that book on ranking the Canadian Prime Ministers that I mentioned in an earlier post on this thread, Thompson did pretty well as Prime Minister in his 2 years, and is regarded as the "great might-have-been" who could have kept the Tories in power instead of their slow decline (until the Liberals under Sir Wilfred Laurier beat them in the 1896 election against Sir Charles Tupper, and held onto power until 1911). However, my copy of that book is from 1999. Many Canadians were appalled that Thompson (who most have forgotten) ranked higher than John Diefenbacker (Prime Minister in the late 1950s and early 1960s). A more recent poll put Thompson lower down the list.

Jeff

[Monty]

Yes, it has stooped.

Monty

[Phil Carter]

Yes, in some form or other. Likely the story had then become garbled further in her letter to Halifax.

Hello Rob,

To answer your question, As above. I agree with Mr. Lucky. Most probably in some form or the other (as of this moment) but I won'r say for def.



Phil

[Mr Lucky]

In any case, it is clear that a rumor was going around in July 1890 that a Ripper suspect had been arrested. Do we agree on that at least?

No, the rumour was that a man named 'Jack the Ripper' had been arrested, not a 'Jack the Ripper' suspect. It's only a subtle difference but it is an important distinction.-

'For about two years past there has been a man whose name has never been ascertained, but who has been termed "Jack the Ripper," living in the neighbourhood of Upper Holloway.'

There is nothing to connect this man with the killer, other than people have given him the "Jack the Ripper" nickname.

And if so, do we agree that this is most likely the same story that was told to the Halifax lady?

Yes, in some form or other. Likely the story had then become garbled further in her letter to Halifax.

[robhouse]

Hi Rob

We'd need Annie's diary, or any letters she received from friends in Halifax (i.e. a letter answering her letter about JTR). I don't suppose Annie's letter has been preserved, though it may have been - depends who she was writing to.

Agreed... the diary might be interesting...

[Robert]

Hi Rob

We'd need Annie's diary, or any letters she received from friends in Halifax (i.e. a letter answering her letter about JTR). I don't suppose Annie's letter has been preserved, though it may have been - depends who she was writing to.

[robhouse]

Voila:

"[Annie Affleck Thompson’s papers are in vol.283 of the Sir John Thompson papers at NA, MG 26, D. His letters to her are vols.288–91, and her diary is in vol.293. Contemporary biographical accounts appear in Types of Canadian women . . . , ed. H. J. Morgan (Toronto, 1903) and in the Toronto Evening Telegram obituary of 11 April 1913. [I. M. Marjoribanks Hamilton-Gordon, Marchioness of] Aberdeen [and Temair], The Canadian journal of Lady Aberdeen, 1893–1898, ed. and intro. J. T. Saywell (Toronto, 1960), and Waite, Man from Halifax, both have a good deal of information about Lady Thompson. Sandra Gwyn, The private capital: ambition and love in the age of Macdonald and Laurier (Toronto, 1984), offers insights but is not as well researched as Heather Robertson, More than a rose: prime ministers, wives and other women (Toronto, 1991). p.b.w.]"

http://www.biographi.ca/en/bio.php?id_nbr=7168

RH