Assessing the case against W.H.Bury

[curious]

They do appear to be written in different hands -- and that's the opinion of someone who know NOTHING about such things. The R's are what appear most different to me.

On the other hand, when I'm extremely stressed or upset, my own handwriting varies drastically. so, who can say?

Also, it would be interesting to know if they were written with the same material -- both chalk? Paint? what?

curious

[curious]

The Dundee flat graffiti as reproduced in both Macpherson and Beadle's books...

I would suggest that the "back of this door" graffiti looks to be in a more mature hand than the "sellar" graffiti..

They do appear to be written in different hands -- and that's the opinion of someone who know NOTHING about such things. The R's are what appear most different to me.

On the other hand, when I'm extremely stressed or upset, my own handwriting varies drastically. so, who can say?

[Lechmere]

But the area was also commonly known as Bromley-by-Bow as is seen in this inscription put up in 1929.

[Lechmere]

They were erected in 1888...

[Lechmere]

This area used to be in the Parish of Bromley St Leonard. Inside Bromley Public Hall are two large plaques commemorating the local benefactors of the poor.

[Lechmere]

(I can only stick one picture per page!)
Inside are glass doors etched ‘Poplar Borough Council’ which was created in 1900 and incorporated most of what we would call Bow. Bromley Public Hall was used as council offices. In 1938 a new Poplar Town Hall was built on the other side of the road. The old one was on Poplar High Street in Poplar ‘proper’. When Poplar became part of Tower Hamlets in 1965, the Town Hall on Bow Road became known as Poplar Civic, but it is now a scruffy business centre. The photo of Bromley Public Hall above was taken with my back to Poplar Civic.

[Lechmere]

I was in Bromley Public Hall today obtaining some certificates and made some observations that had a bearing on previous discussions here about overlapping place names.
Bromley Public Hall is currently the Register Office for Tower Hamlets and holds all the birth, death and marriage certificates for that borough and the boroughs that were merged into it. It can be found at Bow Road E3 3AA, on the south side near the Bow flyover (nearest tube station Bow Road - turn right on exit)

[johns]

The Dundee flat graffiti as reproduced in both Macpherson and Beadle's books...

I would suggest that the "back of this door" graffiti looks to be in a more mature hand than the "sellar" graffiti..

[The Grave Maurice]

Maybe. Although I never gave much weight to the scribblings. I still rank him fairly high on the list of known suspects for some of the reasons stated higher on this thread.

[Lechmere]

That pretty much counts Bury out all together

[The Grave Maurice]

Sorry for the delay. Once I get in amongst my books, I'm gone. I invariably stumble across things that I forgot I owned and get distracted.

Anyway, it took me a while to find, but Macpherson (at pp. 30-31) quotes the Dundee Advertiser. Its account says, in part:

The back premises are led to by a dirty stair, at the foot of which on an old door is the following written in chalk - Jack Ripper [sic] is at the back of this door. At the back of this door, and just at the turn of the stair, there is the inscription - Jack Ripper is in this seller [sic]. The handwriting is apparently that of a boy and the authorities will probably attach little importance to it.

Sounds as though Hatchett is dead on the money.

Note to Macpherson's publishers (Mainstream Publishing): For heaven's sake, next time you produce a book, spend a bit more and hire an indexer.

[The Grave Maurice]

You've got me. The A-Z says they were chalked on the door and on the stairway leading to the basement. I assumed they were outside the flat. I'll go and have a look at Macpherson's book and see what he says about it.

[Lechmere]

But weren't the inscriptions on the inside of their property?

[The Grave Maurice]

It's possible that the scrawlings were done by children.

That's quite insightful, Hatchett. I don't recall anyone making that point before.

[Hatchett]

It's possible that the scrawlings were done by children. He had come from the East End of London. The Ripper murders were a National Sensation. The local kids could have associated Bury with the Ripper because of where he had come from.