Part 1 – Dickens’ London
Francis Foote – The Convict
Francis Foote, aged about 17, arrived in the Colony of New South Wales on the convict ship ‘Bengal Merchant’ 23 July 1838, one of 270 male prisoners. All the prisoners’ physical descriptions were recorded in detail. Francis was noted as 5 feet 2 1/2 inches tall, with hazel eyes and brown hair. His complexion was recorded as ruddy and a little pock marked with a scar over the inner corner of his left eyebrow, two small scars outside his right eye and a scar on his right jaw. He had a small mole on the left side of his chin, another on his throat and the back of his neck. His tattoos are described as follows, “two tobacco pipes, bottle and two glasses inside lower right arm, mermaid with comb & glass in hands on upper, four dots, W. F x F S N W I heart I I M heart pierced with two darts on lower left arm”. There is more than one transcription of these tattoos with some minor differences. One from his Certificate of Freedom shows an ‘x’ after W.F and the other from his Indent records has a ‘+’. The initials also differ in the indent records as “W.F + FS.NWI, heart, LTM, heart pierced with two darts on lower left arm.”
There has been some research into the hidden meanings of tattoos particularly convict tattoos as these accounts have provided a rich database of information. Dots were common and several theories abound as to their meaning from purely decoration to a gang tattoo. His mermaid tattoo is typical for sea farers and some records noted his occupation as a mariner and fisherman. There are theories of pipes (which are usually crossed) and glasses, again often associated with seamen. It’s not known what the letters stand for, but they are likely to include, either or both close, family members and a love interest.
This biography has been put together from research, with information gathered from convict records, his marriage registration, children’s births records, Qld State Archive records, various documents, books, and newspapers in New South Wales, Queensland, and England.
Two Brothers of Yarmouth
Francis was born about 1821 and according to his convict records his native place was London. However, research shows he believed he was born aboard the brig ‘Two Brothers of Yarmouth’ in the English Channel.[1] This was a common ship’s name, as were similar names – Three Brothers, Two sisters, Two Friends etc. The ‘of Yarmouth’ indicates it was built in the town of Yarmouth, Norfolk. There were over a dozen ships named ‘Two Brothers’ with a few built in Yarmouth that were around at the time of Francis’ birth – a Schooner built around 1802; a Brig of about 121 tons with a single deck; and another Brig built about 1815, with a single deck of 79 tons, A1 class. This last brig was owned and captained by Robert Forster Binnington.[2] This is the ship that seems mostly likely to be the one Francis was born on; it was in the ports of London, Falmouth, and Plymouth during 1821.
Binnington captained his ship on its journeys from the English ports of Gravesend, London, Liverpool, Falmouth, and Plymouth to those in Spain and Portugal and as far as Messina. On 4 January 1822 it sailed from Liverpool for Madeira, where it was due to arrive 2 days later the 6 January, but it never arrived.
The ship departed from Liverpool, Lancashire for Madeira, Portugal. No further trace, presumed foundered with the loss of all hands.[3]
The only mention of Francis’ father is on his death registration, his father’s name is given as Francis Foot, mariner. Was Francis’ father aboard this ill-fated brig? His mother’s name was given as Elizabeth Foote.
Another clue to Francis’ origins is in a workhouse record. A child by the name of Francis Foot is recorded in late 1825 as the “illegitimate child of Elizabeth Foot” in the St George the Martyr Workhouse records. A few years later, in 1828, possibly the same Elizabeth Foote, aged 41 years, died in the St George the Martyr Workhouse. St George the Martyr was a parish of London and part of the Borough of Southwark. The original workhouse, dating from 1729, was located on Mint Street; and a new building in 1782.[4]
If this is Francis, and his mother Elizabeth, then his father may be Francis, mariner, but Foote is a maternal surname. Francis was about seven years of age at the time of this Elizabeth Foot’s death, a scenario which fits Francis’ life in London as an orphan.
Francis Foote’s London
English author Charles Dickens lived in London from 1822 until 1860. His novel Oliver Twist (originally serialised) was published from 1837 – 1838.
The novel was the first of the author’s works to realistically depict the impoverished London underworld and to illustrate his belief that poverty leads to crime. … [Dickens] was well versed in the poverty of London, as he … was a child worker after his father was sent to debtors’ prison. His appreciation of the hardships endured by impoverished citizens stayed with him for the rest of his life and was evident in his journalistic writings and novels. Dickens began writing Oliver Twist after the adoption of the Poor Law of 1834, which halted government payments to the able-bodied poor unless they entered workhouses. Thus, Oliver Twist became a vehicle for social criticism aimed directly at the problem of poverty in 19th-century London.[5]
Street Urchin – London
All indications are that Francis was an orphan in London from a young age. As early as 1833, aged about 12 or 13 years, he was charged, alongside Joseph Butcher 14, with stealing 100 pounds of old iron from a barge at Bankside which is on the southern bank of the River Thames, London. The following newspaper article from 1833, headed ‘Extraordinary cases of Juvenile Delinquency’ is transcribed mostly in full. It describes Francis as a well-known river thief and foreman to a gang of 50 to 60 ‘urchins’.[6]
“Yesterday, two boys named Francis Foote and Joseph Butcher, aged 13 and 14 years, were charged with stealing 100 pounds of old iron from a barge at Bankside.
Mr A Mitchell, an Inspecting Surveyor of Thames Police, stated that he saw the boys loitering about a barge laden with old iron, and kicking some of it overboard. Soon afterwards they put the iron in a bag, and took it ashore, He landed and detained them with the property upon them. He was sorry to state that there were not less than one hundred boys constantly lurking about the shore, and the barge owners were often complaining of their depredations. Those young thieves were as numerous as rabbits in a warren. The prisoners were two of the worst among them, and though young in years were old in crime. They had been twice convicted, and Foote was only liberated from Brixton gaol on Thursday last.[7] In fact they were so well known as the thieves on the river, that on his way with them to the office, the bargemen saluted them with cries of ‘they are gone at last, it is high time,’ and the boys in reply abused them and exhausted all the slang phrases they had a knowledge of. Joseph Butcher was known as the Captain and Foote as the foreman of a gang of fifty or sixty urchins who subsisted by pilfering, and no person’s property was safe. The lad Butcher had a ‘fancy girl’ in keeping, and he was the most incorrigible young scoundrel he ever had in custody.
Mr Crome enquired where the young thieves disposed of the property?
Mitchell replied that the boys disposed of their plunder at those receiving houses for stolen goods called marine store shops; and when they had a bad day’s work, they obtained sixpence or a shilling advance upon the next article they stole and brought to the shop.
Mr Combe said the marine store shops, as they were improperly called, were nuisances of the worst description, and the keepers of them held out an encouragement to commit crime. He was obliged to dispose of the case under the Police Act, as no person attended to identify the property. He convicted the prisoners as reputed thieves, and sentenced them to three months imprisonment and hard labour.[8]
Richard Strong, Charles Wade, James Hatt, James and Jeremiah Griffiths, five boys, between the ages of 10 and 15, were charged with plundering the same barge, and a Thames Police constable stated that he saw four boys kicking up the iron, and putting it on the ground. He waited until they had got enough to satisfy themselves, and went across the barges and remained on Bankside until they came ashore. Wade came right into his arms with a cap full of iron, and that finding his companion detected threw what he had about him overboard. Strong and the two Griffiths made their escape, but he subsequently found them in a coffee shop, where they were assembled with 30 other boys.
Mitchell said he had been to the owners of the iron, who said it was sold and would not send any one down to prosecute.
The boy James Griffiths, whose brother was only 10 years old, was a very bad fellow, and he said he did not care a d—n for three months if the Magistrates would give the others seven years for ‘snitching’ upon him.
The father of Hatt, a respectable man, who said he was an umbrella maker, stated that he took every care of his son, and brought him up in the paths of virtue and inusstry. He had been inveigled by the other boys to join them.
The officers said they believed this to be correct, Hatt was not known.
Mr Ballantine said that in nine cases out of ten, children became thieves through the neglect of their parents. He allowed the father of Hatt to take care of his son, on condition that he would give him a sound chastisement, and he warned the parent to take care of him in future, for nothing could save him from being hanged or transported if he was allowed to mix with the young thieves.
Mitchell said the other prisoners were connected with the gang of which Butcher and Foote were the principals, and they disposed of the property they stole for a trifling sum.
Mr Ballantine – The dealers in marine stores as they term themselves, buy the stolen property of these children at small price, and live upon their crimes. But for the facility which stolen property of all kinds can be disposed of at a marine store shop, and to … receivers there would not be one half the robberies committed. What was worth 2s, the receivers gave 2d or 3d for, and the boys expected no more – was that not so?
Mitchell – That is it, your worship, and they draw money on their next robbery.
Mr Ballantine – It is shocking – money is advanced on the expertness in committing robberies.
The mothers of Waite and Strong begged of the Magistrates to forgive their sons, but on their own showing it appeared they paid no attention to the morals of their children, and allowed them to mix with bad characters.
Mr Combe said the boys would receive correction in prison, and concurred with his colleague in not restoring them to their parents.
The prisoners were sentenced to a month’s imprisonment and hard labour.
The officers were directed to look after the receivers, and Mitchell said he should like nothing better than to bring a few of them to justice.
It’s clear by the age of 12 or 13 that Francis was well known to the London police; he was illiterate, an orphan on the streets of London, eking out a living stealing and selling items in a well-known system which seemingly was allowed to flourish.
Marine Stores
By now Marine stores were well known for dealing in stolen goods and fostering crime in London. In 1835 an article titled Thames Office a recounting from court records mentions the issue.
“The legislature knew that those persons who called themselves marine-store-dealers were receivers of stolen goods, and had wisely passed a law rendering it imperative upon them to keep a book and enter the names and addresses of all persons of whom they purchased articles, which book they were bound to produce before the magistrate, and they were also bound to ascertain previous to receiving any metal or stores whether the person offering the property for sale was authorized to dispose of it, and had come by it fairly and honestly. A bone fide marine store dealer was a person who supplied ships with stores and received the old in exchange, and they were generally very respectable, honest, and wealthy persons; but the keepers of those shops, so numerous in the metropolis, who wrote over their doors, as they were compelled to do by law, “Dealers in Marine Stores,” were no other than receivers of stolen goods, and whether it was a brass cock, a pinial, the lock of a door, type, a pewter pot, or a book, they called it a “marine store.” Any thief could enter one of those infamous receptacles with property, and, on giving a fictitious name and address, and often without giving any at all, dispose of his booty without any questions being asked. A tradesman could not employ a labourer without being robbed of some article lying about his house, which soon found its way to the receiver or “marine store dealer,” who bought the property for about one-fifth of its value. … They were, in fact, promoter of an extensive system of petty larceny. … Marine-store-dealers foster half the crime in the metropolis.” [9]
Another article in 1836 for the trial of William Adams, a keeper of a marine store, who was charged with possessing suspected stolen lead and copper details how notorious they were for dealing in stolen metals. Yet all Adams received was a fine of 3d for unlawful possession of the metal.
Mr Ballantine did not believe one word of the defence, and described in forcible language the evils of these receptacles miscalled marine-store ships, which he said were depots for stolen goods. Half the crime in the metropolis was fostered by the dealers who purchased anything brought to them without asking any questions. There was not a building, public or private, in the course of erection or repair but what was plundered of lead and other metal, which found its way to the receiver, and was called marine stores.[10]
In Dickens series ‘Sketches by Boz, Illustrative of Every-Day Life and Every-Day People’, Chapter 21 is titled ‘Brokers’ and Marine-Store Shops’.
Look at a marine-store dealer’s, in that reservoir of dirt, drunkenness, and drabs: thieves, oysters, baked potatoes, and pickled salmon—Ratcliff-highway. Here, the wearing apparel is all nautical. Rough blue jackets, with mother-of-pearl buttons, oil-skin hats, coarse checked shirts, and large canvas trousers that look as if they were made for a pair of bodies instead of a pair of legs, are the staple commodities.[11]
Harsh Punishment
The next appearance for Francis in criminal records was 9 February 1835 in Surrey Sessions; he was noted as 14 years of age. He was charged with Larceny for which he received “6 months imprisonment and Whipped”. It’s hard not to notice that on this record of entries that of all those all charged with Larceny, only Francis was punished with the additional whipping. All other sentences were between 3 and 12 months. He was one of the youngest on this page and the other boys aged 14 received 3 months.
Stealing on the River
On 11 April 1836, aged 15 years, Francis was indicted for stealing 100lb of iron. A newspaper article titled Stealing on the River is transcribed below:
Francis Foot, aged 15, was indicted for stealing on the 11th of April, 100lb of iron, on board a barge on the River Thames, the property of Henry Chantler.
The prisoner was met not far from the barge carrying a bag containing something heavy, which, on being inspected by the officer, turned out to be an iron roller, which corresponded with that which had been lately removed from the vessel – Guilty.
The Recorder inquired if the prisoner was known?
The policeman replied that he was a noted thief.
The Recorder immediately sentenced the prisoner to be transported for seven years.[12]
Newgate and the Trial at the Old Bailey, Central Criminal Court
Francis waited for his trial in Newgate prison which was located at the corner of Newgate Street and Old Bailey Street.
Charles Dickens visited Newgate in November 1835, and wrote his “A Visit of Newgate” essay in Sketches by Boz. His visit to the prison infiltrates many of his works. The prison is mentioned in several of Dickens stories, including Little Dorrit, Oliver Twist, A Tale of Two Cities, Barnaby Rudge: A Tale of the Riots of ‘Eighty and Great Expectations.
Francis’ trial was held at London’s Central Criminal Court, also known as the Old Bailey. The following is a transcript of the proceedings at the Old Bailey on 9 May 1836 where Francis Foot was charged with theft from a specified place.
- FRANCIS FOOT was indicted for stealing, on the 11th of April, 100lbs. weight of iron, value 5s., the goods of Edward Henry Chantler, in a barge, on a navigable river.
JOSEPH JOHN LEWIS . I am a Thames police-surveyor. On the morning of the 11th of April, I was in Guildford-street, Southwark, and saw a boy assisting the prisoner with a bag on his back—I went towards them—the prisoner threw the bag down and ran away—I pursued and brought him back—I looked into the bag, and saw it contained this iron which I now produce—also some iron rollers and other iron—I asked where he brought it from—he said he had taken it or picked it up (I am not certain which) from Bankside—this was at eight o’clock in the morning as near as could be—he told me he was going to sell it either in the Mint or in the Borough—Mr. Sutton came up while I was standing along-side the prosecutor’s barge, and said, “This fencing was torn from the front of my house”—I walked up to Mr. Sutton’s, and found the rails had been torn out, and the iron fencing corresponded in colour and size, with the pieces of bars in the bag—this iron roller was in the bag, and I found some similar to this on board the barge, which is Mr. Chantler’s, and was about 100 yards from Mr. Sutton’s railings.
EDWARD HENRY CHANTLER . I had a barge lying at Bankside, on the Thames, near the shore, under the wharf. I cannot say whether I had such a roller as this on board—I have no other piece like it—there was a quantity of iron in the barge—I cannot say whether the roller was there.
JAMES BENBOW . I am an iron-founder, and live at Bankside. On Sunday morning, the 10th of April, I was by the side of Mr. Chantler’s barge—I took particular notice of this roller being on the head of the barge—I had some thought of buying it, and when it was shown to me again I was positive it was the one I saw on board the barge—the policeman and I looked over the iron in the barge, and found another roller like it, but I can swear this one was in the barge on Sunday morning—I did not see the other roller on that occasion—I noticed this particularly on the first occasion.
Prisoner’s Defence. Mr. Lewis met me, and asked me where I was going—I said, to the corner of St. George’s church, and a man gave it me to carry—I was to wait there till the man came—he said, “You must come with me, that iron is stolen”—I gave him the bag and ran away—he then took me to the office—he did not take me near Mr. Sutton’s house—he took me in a boat, and rowed me up the river, and then down to the Thames Police—he took me down to Barclay’s brew house and down Park-street—Mr. Sutton said at the office, that the fencing came from the front of his house, but he did not see me before.
JOSEPH JOHN LEWIS . Mr. Sutton saw it by the side if the barge at Bankside.
JOSEPH SUTTON . I saw it there, but I did not see the prisoner at the time.
Prisoner. He took me to the Thames Police, and then said he would go down and make inquiries—a lad of the name of price was taken with me, and he could say that he never showed it to any body till he got to the office—it was 600 yards from the place that I was taken.
ROBERT PRICE . On Monday, the 11th of April, about eight o’clock, I was passing Park-street—the prisoner was sitting on the seat of public-house—he asked me to give him a life up, which I did—the officer and a gentleman came up and took us—I was taken up the river and then down below to the office—I went on with another officer down Park-street, and to Horse-shoe-alley-stairs—the prisoner was behind—whether he stopped or not I cannot tell.
GUILTY .* Aged 15.— Transported for Seven Years. (There was another indictment against the prisoner.)
The places and people mentioned in the trial at the Old Bailey
Bankside – “Bankside is an area of London, England, within the London Borough of Southwark. Bankside is located on the southern bank of the River Thames … ”
St George’s Church – This would be St George the Martyr, Southwark. Bankside to St George the Martyr is less than a 15 minute walk.
St George the Martyr is a church in the historic Borough district of south London. It lies within the modern-day London Borough of Southwark, on Borough High Street at the junction with Long Lane, Marshalsea Road, and Tabard Street. St George the Martyr is named after Saint George. …
The church has strong associations with Charles Dickens, whose father was imprisoned for debt in the Marshalsea prison. The surviving wall of the prison adjoins the north side of the churchyard. Dickens himself lived nearby, in Lant Street, lodging in a house that belonged to the Vestry Clerk of St George’s. This was during the darkest period of his life when, as a teenager, with his father in prison, he had to work in the ‘blacking factory’, and his literary career must have seemed an impossible dream. Later, he was to set several scenes of the novel Little Dorrit in and around St George’s Church. [13]
St George the Martyr Workhouse – The workhouse is not mentioned in the trail but it’s the workhouse of the St George church and is where Elizabeth Foot was recorded. This Workhouse was on Mint Street, Southwark.
Horseshoe Alley stairs – R Horwood map (1799) shows Horseshoe Alley Stairs off Horseshoe Alley on the Bankside of the Thames. This ancient alley ran parallel to Southwark Bridge approach on its east side. The map of the time shows this adjacent to Corbetts Iron Wharf.
Barclay’s brewhouse – this is mentioned in relation to Park Street. It’s like this was the Anchor Brewery in Park Street, Southwark. “The brewery was established in 1616 by James Monger Sr. in Southwark, on land adjacent to the Globe Theatre […] by the early nineteenth century it was the largest brewery in the world. From 1781 it was operated by Barclay Perkins & Co. …” [14] The current Anchor Pub is part of the complex of buildings that were the Anchor Brewery.
Edward Henry Chantler – Prosecutor, owned a barge at Bankside (along the Thames)
- 1841 census living in Bankside, Southwark, Surrey
Joseph John Lewis – Thames Police-surveyor, saw Foote on Guildford St., Southwark
James Benbow – (a witness); an iron founder living at Bankside
Joseph Sutton – claims part of iron was from his front fence – 100 yards from Chantler’s barge
- 1841 census living in Bankside, Southwark, Surrey
Robert Price – witness, helping Foote carry the bag of iron. Met up with him in Park Street while Foote was sitting in a public house
- 1841 census living in Bedford Row, Southwark, Surrey
- Born 1821, Surrey; Occupation: Boilermaker
The Hulks
Francis was convicted in May 1836, yet his arrival in the Colony wasn’t until July 1838. As he was about 15 years of age, he was too young to be transported and spent the next two years of his seven-year sentence on Hulks. These decommissioned ships held prisoners before their transportation to Australia as prisons were overcrowded. They had been used since Britain was no longer able to transport their convicts to the United States.
On 28 May 1836 Francis was received on the Hulk ‘Euryalus’ moored on the Thames at Chatham, Kent. The HMS ‘Euryalus’ was a Royal Navy frigate that served in both the Battle of Trafalgar and the War of 1812. It was decommissioned and converted to a hulk in 1825; and was specifically intended for juvenile males.
Over 400 boys were packed into the ship ranging in age between 8 and 17. The chaplain Thomas Price lamented his charges’ lack of moral and social restraint. He reported that his efforts to combat their ‘depravity’ were hampered by the lack of a system of separating boys into different categories to assist with discipline. With such levels of overcrowding, disease spread quickly: scurvy and ophthalmia were two common complaints. The boys were employed in making clothing for the convict establishment and were not allowed to make any noise. Two hours’ exercise was allowed daily. On Saturdays the boys were washed all over with tepid water and soap. Relatives were allowed to visit under supervision, and escapes were rare. [15]
Here is the daily routine for Euryalus:
- 00 Wake up call. Ports opened, hammocks lowered. Boys washed and examined.
- 30 Chapel – hymn and prayers.
- 00 Breakfast.
- 30 Elder boys report complaints to be investigated. Ship cleaned.
- 00 Work in silence.
- 00 Commander hears complaints and decides punishments – e.g. stopping dinner; caning ‘moderately’; solitary confinement on bread and water.
- 00 Dinner.
- 30 Air and exercise on deck in silence.
- 30 Work.
- 00 One third of boys sent to chapel for lessons in reading and writing.
- 00 Stop work. Boys clean ship and wash themselves.
- 30 Supper, air and exercise on deck.
- 30 File up and take hammocks down.
- 00 Chapel.
- 00 Muster. Hang up hammocks.
- 00 Absolute silence throughout ship.
There were voices against the cruel penal system at that time. One of these was Edward Pelham Brenton (1774 – 1839), a Captain in the Royal Navy. During his later years he publicly criticised and drew attention to the cycle of poverty, crime, and the penal system particularly in London. He established the Society for the Prevention of Juvenile Vagrancy in about 1830. The Society apprenticed children abroad to the Colonies (although these early child migration schemes had their own flaws).
The following is an excerpt from his letter in 1834, referencing the ‘Euryalus’.[16]
What profit can be expected from such a system as that on board the Euryalus, at Chatham? and yet the expense of that ship far exceeds what it would have cost to have received as many poor boys on board of a clean, well-aired, and well-disciplined ship of war. I have a right to say, having proved it from experience, that iron bars, tread-mills, and instruments of torture, are not necessary to eradicate crime, but, on the contrary, harden and make youth more ferocious, cunning, and desperate.
Francis was aged 15 at the time of his trial and at the time of his imprisonment on the Hulks in May 1836. A quarterly return of the Euryalus that year lists Francis Foot as 19 years of age. The surgeon’s report recorded him as ‘Healthy’ and his behaviour as ‘indif’ [indifferent]. Francis has suddenly aged by 4 years; so despite his age still being under 17 years of age he was removed from the designated boys hulk.
Francis, purportedly 19, was transferred to the Hulk ‘Fortitude’ on 19 June 1837, also moored at Chatham. The HMS ‘Fortitude’ was previously named the HMS ‘Cumberland’, becoming a prison ship in 1830 and renamed in 1833.
His next mention in of Prisoners in Convict Hulks quarterly return in September 1837 records his age as 20; the surgeon’s report notes he is ‘Healthy’ and his behaviour as ‘Good’. He remains on the ‘Fortitude’. He next found on the Hulk Registers as being disposed of on the Bengal Merchant on 20 March 1837, but this is an error, possibly as most of the other prisoners listed were disposed of to the ’James Patterson’ in July 1837 and the ‘Waterloo’ in September 1837. Other records show he was transferred on 24 March 1838.
The Benghal Merchant left Sheerness on 28 March 1838, arriving at Port Jackson on 21 July 1838. According to the convict indenture records, by the time of his arrival in Australia Francis’ age increased to 22 years.
[1] On two of his children’s birth registrations his place of birth is given as Yarmouth, England. On his admission to Dunwich Asylum, he was recorded as born “on board ship ‘Two Brothers’ of Yarmouth in the English Channel’. On his death certificate his place of birth is “on board ship ‘Two Brothers’ off Yarmouth, England, this information would have been taken straight from his admission though they have ‘off’ rather than ‘of’.
[2] Variations of his name include Foster and Bennington. He was the son of Robert and Judith, nee Copland, born 26 January 1796 and baptised the following month at both Greenwich and Minster, Isle of Sheppey, Kent. He was married on 12 July 1817 in Great Yarmouth to Mary Ann Fulchar.
[3] The Marine List, Lloyd’s List (5693), 26 April 1822
[4] St George the Martyr, Southwark, Surrey, London https://www.workhouses.org.uk/Southwark/
[5] https://www.britannica.com/topic/Oliver-Twist-novel-by-Dickens
[6] The term street urchin or urchin in England was used to describe poor, dirty, raggedly clothed children who usually lived on the streets of city slums.
[7] At this time the Brixton gaol would have been the Surrey House of Correction, Brixton, built in 1820 it had a reputation of being one of the worst prisons in London.
[8] Extraordinary cases of Juvenile Delinquency, Public Ledger and Daily Advertiser, Thursday 21 November 1833
[9] Thames Office, Public Ledger and Daily Advertiser, Saturday 11 April 1835
[10] ‘Thames Police Office’, Morning Advertiser, 12 November 1836
[11] The Highway or Ratcliff Highway a sit was known then is just on the other side of Bankside.
[12] True Sun – Friday 13 May 1836
[13] St George the Martyr, Southwark, entry in Wikipedia
[14] Anchor Brewery, entry in Wikipedia
[15] Untold Lives Blog https://blogs.bl.uk/untoldlives/2012/10/a-phantom-burglar-and-the-hulk.html
[16] ‘Connexion between impressment, drunkenness, and flogging in the Navy and Army’, by Edward P Brenton, Capt R.N., The Naval and Military Gazette and Weekly Chronicle of the United Service, 30 August 1834 , p 649.