last address

[Chava]

Hello Heartme

Polly had been staying at 18 Thrawl St for six weeks, sharing a room with three other girls, until a week before her death when she was staying at the White House, 56 Flower and Dean St.

As the story goes, when she was ejected from the kitchen at Thrawl St she was far from dispirited, as she turned away laughing and asked the lodging house deputy to keep her bed as she would soon get her doss money, "see what a jolly bonnet I`ve got now".

Just think, if the pawnbrokers were still open that late, she could have popped it for the doss-money. Talking of that hat, I'd love to know how she got her hands on it. She was known to be light-fingered so I imagine she nicked it.

[Jon Guy]

Hello Heartme

Polly had been staying at 18 Thrawl St for six weeks, sharing a room with three other girls, until a week before her death when she was staying at the White House, 56 Flower and Dean St.

As the story goes, when she was ejected from the kitchen at Thrawl St she was far from dispirited, as she turned away laughing and asked the lodging house deputy to keep her bed as she would soon get her doss money, "see what a jolly bonnet I`ve got now".

[heartme]

Peeved Polly

According to author James Tully's book, "Prisoner 1167: The Madman Who Was Jack The Ripper", Polly was more than a little "peeved" at being ejected from Thrawl Street, since she had been dossing there for the past three weeks and was not trusted for the money until morning.

[Jon Guy]

Hello

The Frying Pan Alley was on the corner of Thrawl St, if she was in there around closing time and she had no money she probably knew the "kitchen" where she could sit down with friends was just around the corner.

[KatBradshaw]

It could be that if she was very drunk she was blindly heading somewhere familiar. I once got a taxi back to the wrong house when I was a student for the same reason.

Or maybe she knew somewhere good to pick up a customer that way?

[Sam Flynn]

Would that be the same dorset street where mary kelly lived and died? I mean, obviously not the exact same address, but could this add to the theory that at least some of the victims knew each other?

Yes and no. Polly Nichols was a relative newcomer to Spitalfields - as, for that matter, was Mary Jane Kelly - either way, neither of the two were Dorset Street contemporaries. Liz Stride had spent most of her London life in Poplar and St George's East, whilst Annie Chapman had spent a considerable proportion of her adult life outside the East End. Only Chapman and Kelly lived within reasonable proximity of one another - but at opposite ends of Dorset Street, which housed the best part of a thousand other inhabitants. The chances of any of these women being personal friends is extremely remote.

[iris84]

Hi All,

And on Polly Nichols' death certificate was written "Lodging House, 35 Dorset Street, Spitalfields".

Go figure.

Regards,

Simon

Would that be the same dorset street where mary kelly lived and died? I mean, obviously not the exact same address, but could this add to the theory that at least some of the victims knew each other?

[smezenen]

Possibly a mix up, its also possible that William was staying at the lodging house temporarily during the inquest to avoid travel and that it was the address given to Wynne Baxter at the time. Conjecture but possible.

[John Bennett]

The Nichols and Chapman inquests were taking place during the same period at one point, because Baxter's inquests took so bloody long.

Maybe he got his victims mixed up?

[Simon Wood]

Hi All,

Bear in mind that the deceased's details were provided by Coroner Wynne Baxter.

What did he know that we don't?

Regards,

Simon

[John Bennett]

I believe the address is attributed to her husband, whom she was seperated from. So that would not have been her address at the time.

William Nichols lived in Coburg Road, Old Kent Road (South London), so it's not his address.

The mystery continues.

[smezenen]

Simon,
unless I am also reading the death certificate wrong that column of the certificate says;

Wife of
William
Nicholes
Printing
machinist
lodging house
35 dorset street
spitalfields

I believe the address is attributed to her husband, whom she was seperated from. So that would not have been her address at the time.

[John Bennett]

Hi All,

And on Polly Nichols' death certificate was written "Lodging House, 35 Dorset Street, Spitalfields".

One can only imagine where that came from. Unless there's some bit of info out there I've not seen before!

[Simon Wood]

Hi All,

And on Polly Nichols' death certificate was written "Lodging House, 35 Dorset Street, Spitalfields".

Go figure.

Regards,

Simon

[smezenen]

Thanks JB.
That was where my train of thought should have gone I guess, but I was struck with the thought that the part about returning to 18 Thrawl might be a typo then got confused altogether about how it read.