Missing Illustrations - Lost London: The Memoirs of an East End Detective

[Mutt]

I have located an old copy of Ben Leeson's memoir, Lost London: The Memoirs of an East End Detective. Although the binding has seen far better days, the book appears intact, including the fourth chapter, titled "Jack the Ripper". There is a reference to this chapter in Casebook's "Ripper Media" section. The only flaw that I have come across in this former library book is that the images (drawings or photographs) associated with the JTR chapter are missing. The images, all presumably associated with the murder of Francis Coles, are titled as follows.

1) Shovel Alley
2) North-East Passage
3) Arches from Chamber Street to Royal Mint Street
4) Swallow Gardens

Is any one familiar with these images? I am attempting to track them down.

[jmenges]

There were two editions of this book, only the first had the photos, so check to see if you may have the later edition. According to this thread SPE has a first edition with photographs but it looks to be extremely hard to come by.

http://forum.casebook.org/showthread.php?t=61&page=57&highlight=Leeson

JM

[Mutt]

This copy is indeed a first edition, I was lucky to find this book, abused though it may be. As I indicated in my initial post, the photographs were not located where the table of contents stated they should be, page 80; however, a more careful inspection of the entire book led to the discovery of the images further along. Perhaps they came loose or were pulled out and then reinserted into the book - as I stated, this copy is in rough shape.

Thank you for the link to SPE's post, the images located in that thread are indeed the same images found in this copy of the book. At first I assumed that they were taken close to 1934, the date the book was published; however, later in the book there are photographs associated with the Siege of Sidney Street (3 January 1911), so perhaps the Swallow Gardens image was taken decades sooner as well. Thank you JM for the reply.

[The Station Cat]

I've been trying to find a copy of this book for years!!!!!! (I know it's now available on kindle, but it's not the same as holding the book in your hands).

Would be interested to know what Leeson says in chapter 4..... Am I missing out on anything?

[drstrange169]

it's about PC Thompson and Frances Coles.

He ends the chapter with,

"But nobody knows and nobody ever will know the true story of "Jack the Ripper".
He never returned, and was never heard of again after the Swallow Gardens murder, and that as far as we know, was the last of his many crimes."