George Henry Matthews 1894

[Debra A]

Does anyone know if the case of George Henry Matthews, accused of cutting the throat of Marie Martin at 5 Thomas Street Whitechapel in November 1894 been discussed on the boards before? I can't find any archived discussion but I'm aware that doesn't always mean something hasn't been mentioned before. I have several newspaper accounts of the case but wondered if there was an old thread lurking somewhere.

The address the murder took place in was a coffee-shop owned by the accused, and police were also aware that the address (sometimes given as 7 Thomas Street) had been run as a brothel for many years.

George Henry Matthews (possible alias John Bailey) had been an inmate of Clabury asylum some time in his past. He doesn't appear to have actually stood trial for this particular 1894 murder, his case was taken out of the hands of the Worship street magistrates when Matthews was deemed dangerous, violent and certified a dangerous lunatic and sent to Broadmoor asylum. This caused a bit of a legal wrangle as to what should be entered into the court records. "Removed to an asylum by secretary of States Order" was finally recorded.

Has anyone come across this case before ? Or this particular term used in court records?

Thanks for any help
Debs

[Robert]

Hi Debs

I don't know if it's been discussed, but there is an article for 23 Nov 1894 in the Press section that might be about the case.

[Debra A]

Hi Robert,
Thanks, which paper is it in? I can't seem to find it using the full text search of the press reports or using google.

[Robert]

Sorry Debs, it's the London Times.

[Debra A]

Got it, thanks Robert

[Rob Clack]

Hi Debs, Robert

Number 5 and 7 were right next door to each other and should still be there.

1890


Rob

[Debra A]

Thanks for that, Rob
Short of nowt you've got, see, even maps! I wonder if both 5 and 7 were the coffee-shop premises?

Robert, that Times snippet was really interesting.

" I may add that I have seldom known of an important prosecution conducted at any stage by the police without some irregularity in criminal law or procedure being committed, and the Whitechapel case certainly does not form an exception to this experience. "
E. H. Pickersgill, House of Commons, Nov 12

In this case, the accused apparently committed the murder, went off for a soak for a couple of hours, turned up at his sister's house ranting and raving that he had 'ripped up' his wife and Marie, his sister reporting the facts soon after (already reported in Whitechapel) and the police didn't turn up at his sister's house until two hours after she'd reported him, to arrest Matthews.

[Robert]

Hi Debs and Rob

Here's 5 and 7 in 1891.

[Rob Clack]

Hi Debs, Robert

Thanks Robert, that matches up with the 1895 Directory:



And this article from Reynolds Newspaper, Sunday 18 November 1894 mentions that the two houses were connected.






And this one from The Illustrated Police News, Saturday 8 December 1894 mentions what Debs (better post it, don't want to leave nowt out )has said about the police knowing the premises was used as a knocking shop.








Rob

[Debra A]

Thanks Robert and Rob,
George Moffat? maybe another alias?

I still find it interesting that Mr Pickersgill mentioned that the Police didn't stick to exact lawful procedure in this case, ...or any other in this guys eyes.

[Robert]

Hi Debs and Rob

Pickersgill seems to have taken a special interest in such things. The Hansard site has him questioning the state of police cells, and he was a Radical Liberal. Here's his obit Oct 14th 1911.

[Robert]

He had a moustache, and apart from standing for Parliament he also stood like Sgt Wilson in Dad's Army.

http://www.vanity-fair-prints-company.com/khxc/gbu0-prodshow/Edward_Hare_Pickersgill.html

[Rob Clack]

Hi Debs, Robert

An interest bit of information is that in the 1882 directory at number 5 Thomas Street is a Charles Reeve, Wardrobe Dealer. He is listed in the 1881 Census at the same address as 'Comedian, Actor'. This is the same person who later joined the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee and who's daughter Ada Reeve wrote in her memoirs 'Take it for a Fact' that her father was a member of the Vigilance committee. She was 7 in 1881 and listed as Adelaide. In 1891 they and the rest of the family are living at 209 Jubilee Street where she is listed as Ada Reeve, Burlesque actress.

Rob

[Debra A]

Hi Debs and Rob

Pickersgill seems to have taken a special interest in such things. The Hansard site has him questioning the state of police cells, and he was a Radical Liberal. Here's his obit Oct 14th 1911.

Hi Robert,
Thanks for this, he seemingly wasn't happy because the reforms in the criminal justice and penal system that were being made by people like himself, that he thought were being ignored by the police, and had been for a while.
Didn't Robert Anderson have a lot to say on penal reform and the subject of cells and such? I wonder if he also had a similar opinion to Pickersgill on the subject of imprisonment for non payment of fines etc. Didn't Anderson once say that half the prison population should not be there at all and the other half should never be let out? ...something like that anyway.



I'm surprised that Matthews managed to committ a murder, was obviously stained with some blood as he had mentions going to wash it off at the White Hart or lea Bridge, walk through the streets of Whitechapel and other districts to his sister's house and went completely unchallenged, only three years after the unsolved murder of Frances Coles, the last crime in the Whitechapel murders.

[Debra A]

Hi Debs, Robert

An interest bit of information is that in the 1882 directory at number 5 Thomas Street is a Charles Reeve, Wardrobe Dealer. He is listed in the 1881 Census at the same address as 'Comedian, Actor'. This is the same person who later joined the Whitechapel Vigilance Committee and who's daughter Ada Reeve wrote in her memoirs 'Take it for a Fact' that her father was a member of the Vigilance committee. She was 7 in 1881 and listed as Adelaide. In 1891 they and the rest of the family are living at 209 Jubilee Street where she is listed as Ada Reeve, Burlesque actress.

Rob

Hi Rob,
Thanks, I'd certainly never heard of Ada Reeve before, an interesting little story about her father and the vigilance committee, did she mention anything else JTR or VC related in her book?


Just going back to George Matthews' wife Sarah .
Sometime in 1895 and not long after the murder, Sarah Ann Matthews was prosecuted, along with Mr Martin (husband of the woman George murdered?) and a woman with the surname Hyams, for running a brothel at #5 Thomas Street. It seems like she picked up a fair amount of money from her husband after he was sent to Broadmoor, he had quite a bit in the bank. I think sarah was imprisoned for the offence but I'm not sure, maybe it was just a fine like the other two.