Timothy Donovan (not the witness)

[Uncle Jack]

Just been looking into an individual on the Old Bailey Online named Timothy Donovan who committed the murder of his wife in 1903 by stabbing her in the throat. He lived fairly close to Jack's murder sites. Maybe worth looking into more. Anyone got any more information on this guy? He was 40 in 1903, which would have made him 25 at the time of the Whitechapel murders.

[truebluedub]

Hi Adam,
there has been some information placed on the forums about him before, try here http://forum.casebook.org/showthread.php?p=21656 and here http://www.casebook.org/forum/messages/4926/14330.html

Chris Lowe

[Uncle Jack]

Cheers Chris

[Uncle Jack]

Was it ever determined whether the Timothy Donovan of Crossinghams was different to the Timothy Donovan who murdered his wife?

[Uncle Jack]

Does anyone know where Timothy Donovan (the wife killer) was living during the murders?

[Roy Corduroy]

Was it ever determined whether the Timothy Donovan of Crossinghams was different to the Timothy Donovan who murdered his wife?

Don Rumbelow in Scotland Yard Investigates 2006 page 268 says, to paraphrase, that his favorite suspect is deputy Timothy Donovan, but for four murders, not Mary Kelly, because Donovan died shortly before her murder.

Roy

[Debra A]

Apologies if this information is repeat, but Timothy Donovan, the 1903 convicted wife murderer did possibly have some link to Whitechapel.

According to the 1891 census, Mary Donovan was born in Whitechapel c 1869.
A marriage entry for a Timothy Donovan appears in the Free BMD index as: St George in the East, Mar qtr. 1892, volume 1c page 4[1]8. In the original index the #1 is not clear.
3 other names that appear on the same page have not been linked by transcribers to Timothy's name. One of the 3 names that appear in the index for Mar qtr. St George in the East volume 1c page 418 is a Mary Bromwich.

Going by the Old Bailey witness evidence of Mary Ann Hogman, said to be the niece of Mary Donovan, the couple had been married 9 years, after living together for 6 years previously.This doesn't fit exactly with a marriage date of 1892, but she could have been mistaken, and the fact that she claimed they lived together as man and wife before the marriage could explain why they appear as such on the 1891 census, even if their marriage year was 92.

There is a Mary Bromwich living in Sun Court Whitechapel in the 1881 census, she fits with Mary Donovan's 1891 details in that she was born in Whitechapel c 1869.

I'm still trying to determine if Mary Ann Hogman (the niece of Mary Donovan) could have been related to a Mary Bromwich if anyone can help? Mary Ann's maiden name was Sullivan and she married Andrew Hogman in 1900.

[Uncle Jack]

Great work as alway Debs. Donovan the wife killer seems to be getting more interesting. He was an "unknown local man" in the right age group with a history of murder. This is the type of suspect I like.