Tweet
During the week after the Nichols murder, it was believed by some of the press that a seafaring man was under surveillance;-
More information can be found in this article;-
During the sessions at the Old Bailey beginning on 12 Dec 1887 Charles Edward Hammond stood trial for the murder of John Brown. The incident concerned took place on the night of the 5 November 1887, near Radcliffe highway, when a group of Spanish sailors got involved in a knife fight, the victim John Brown, had died from the result of a stab in the thigh.
On the night of the murder, Hammond was staying in a boarding-house in Pell street. When charged, he gave his address as the Sailor home, Well street. Some of the press reports of the incident state that Hammond was employed as a seamen, some as a joiner ( though the ships of the day would have provided vast amount of work for joiners)
Hammond, aged 22, was tried before Mr Justice Stephen but the case against Hammond quickly collapsed when one of the witnesses for the prosecution claimed the man in dock wasn't present at the scene, at the time of the offence. The Judge stated that he "considered that it was impossible to convict the prisoner upon this contradictory evidence." Mr Poland, for the prosecution withdrew the case and the Jury found the prisoner not guilty.
Lopez Fernandoz, a Spanish sailor, was also tried for feloniously wounding John Driscoll, as part of the same incident and was also acquitted.
Just who was the seafaring man ? Well we may never know, but I think this man, Charles Edward Hammond, is a strong contender. He was a sailor, an inhabitant of local lodging houses and had been previously charged with murder.
".... considerable activity is quietly being exercised in keeping a watch on suspected persons. It is believed that their attention is particularly directed to two individuals, one a notorious character known as "Cather (sic) Apron" who has been the terror of women in the neighbourhood for some time, and a seafaring man who has already stood his trial for a crime not far short of murder." - The Nottingham Evening Post 6 Sept. 1888
"the police are also acquainted with the movements of a seafaring man, who is alleged to have already stood his trial for a serious crime. This man, it is stated, has been seen in the neighbourhood with a large sheath knife, and he is known to be a frequenter of common lodging houses. Not much importance is, however, attached to this individual, but nevertheless he is being kept in view." - Morning Advertiser 6 Sept. 1888
On the night of the murder, Hammond was staying in a boarding-house in Pell street. When charged, he gave his address as the Sailor home, Well street. Some of the press reports of the incident state that Hammond was employed as a seamen, some as a joiner ( though the ships of the day would have provided vast amount of work for joiners)
Hammond, aged 22, was tried before Mr Justice Stephen but the case against Hammond quickly collapsed when one of the witnesses for the prosecution claimed the man in dock wasn't present at the scene, at the time of the offence. The Judge stated that he "considered that it was impossible to convict the prisoner upon this contradictory evidence." Mr Poland, for the prosecution withdrew the case and the Jury found the prisoner not guilty.
Lopez Fernandoz, a Spanish sailor, was also tried for feloniously wounding John Driscoll, as part of the same incident and was also acquitted.
Just who was the seafaring man ? Well we may never know, but I think this man, Charles Edward Hammond, is a strong contender. He was a sailor, an inhabitant of local lodging houses and had been previously charged with murder.
Comment