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England (Counties as in 1851-1901) => England => Cumberland => Topic started by: lettie on Tuesday 21 July 09 07:24 BST (UK)
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Would anyone know about the murder of a child by Mary Hogg in 1841? Mary, aged 67 and a farm servant, murdered her daughter’s child, by strangling it. She committed the offence to prevent her daughter’s disgrace. Mary was sentenced to death and the sentence commuted to transportation to Van Diemen’s Land for Life. Mary claimed to be from Addingham, north Carlisle. Mary was tried in Carlisle on the 3rd of August 1841. Thanks Lettie.
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Hi Lettie
This is an edited version of the inquest, there is a lot more detail about the crime in the newspaper:
April 24th 1841 Carlisle Patriot - Child Murder
John Hogg of Pateshill, parish of Irthington, farmer, lived with his daughter Mary and grand-daughter named Jane, her illegitimate daughter, whose age is upwards of 30. On Saturday morning last, the farmer who had been in a declining state of health for a considerable time, became much worse, and the neighbours were called in… the old man shortly expired.
During the time the neighbours were in the house, Jane Hogg was in a bed in a room upstairs… she was heard to moan several times during the morning between six and nine o’clock, and her mother remained with her the principal part of that time. Nothing occurred to attract the particular attention of those downstairs, but it being reported that Jane was pregnant, suspicion arose that she had bore a child, and by Monday (the day of John Hogg’s funeral) it was pretty freely talked about. On Monday afternoon, the report was made known to Mr Carrick, the coroner… he accordingly proceeded to Pateshill, accompanied by Mr Graham, surgeon of Brampton…
Mr Graham soon satisfied himself by the most unequivocal proofs that Jane had been very recently delivered…after considerable delay, Mary said that she would produce the body if Mr Graham and Mr Carrick would retire into another room. She accordingly brought the body into the room, and laid it upon a chair. It was without any covering – there were very severe contused bruises upon the forehead, nose and mouth, as if they had been struck with violence against a wall, and a piece of tape was tied round its neck. It was evident that the presence of this ligature had escaped Mary’s attention, for as soon as it was noticed she made a snatch to tear it away… A post mortem examination was made by Messrs Graham and Armstrong, surgeons, who proved that the child had been born with life and had died from strangulation.
After an investigation of several hours, the jury returned a verdict of Wilful Murder against Jane and Mary Hogg – the latter was committed to gaol, and Jane will be removed as soon as she is sufficiently recovered to undertake the journey.
An account of the trial is in the Carlisle Patriot August 7th 1841, if you contact Carlisle library they could copy it for you.
cheers
Bridget
http://longtown19.website.orange.co.uk/
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Thanks so much Bridget. I have been transcribing Mary's convict records in Tasmania for the Female Factory Research Group and her story captured my attention. It is great to know more about why she was transported here. Thanks again.
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Can you tell us what happened to Mary once she was transported? having read the reports of her trial in the Cumberland newpapers, I wondered what had happened to her once she had left this country, and whether she ever returned.
cheers
Bridget
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Mary was sent to Launceston by November 1842, the ship having arrived in Hobart in September of that year. I can find her in Launceston in July 1844, but as she committed no further crime there is little else on her conduct record. She received her ticket of leave on the 19th of January 1847. A Mary Hogg died in Launceston in April 1854, but the age does not quite match, although it is only out by 5 years so it could well be her. It seems sad there is so little about her. Do you know what happened to her daughter Jane, as I cannot find her transported here?
Someone was enquiring of Mary in 1879 through the lawyers in Brampton so it seems she was not forgotten in the colony. I shall keep looking.
She is one of the older women transported so she captured my interest. Lettie
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Thanks, that is very interesting. No, I don't know what happened to her daughter Jane- I don't think she was hanged - the jury found her guilty of murder with a "recommendation to mercy".
I noticed on the A2A website some documents about John Hogg's will, I don't know if he left any money to his daughter or granddaughter, but if they were both in gaol at the time the will was proved, it might have complicated matters.
cheers
Bridget
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Thanks Bridget,
When next I make into our archives I will search the death for Mary and see if it links up.
Thanks for all your help. It makes these women's lives a little more real. Lettie :)
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Hi lettie and bridget,
mary hogg is a relative of my husband,i do have some info somewhere about her,one of her relatives wanted to sell land thats why they were trying to trace her,her brother provided for her daughter on the grounds she had no contact with mary,will hunt out what papers i have,
janice
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OH Janice that is just so exciting. Thankyou very much. ;D
Lettie
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Hi Lettie,
i hired a researcher in tasmania and this is the info i recieved,
Mary Hogg
trade... farm servent
Hight...372
Head...large
Hair...gray
eyes...blue
nose...large at end
mouth...large
remarks...face wrinkled scar on left cheek
transportedd
for murder gaol report bad.single,
they could find no death registered for mary hogg.
ticket to leave jan 1847
enquiry made by ramsay and moll brampton date 13th 1879
single 1 child able to read/ height 5/2 age 67 tried 3rd aug 1841 /life
ramsay and moll request proof of death (1879) indicating the family knew she was dead??
her number given by the home office 39998.
hope this is of some help
janjan
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just reread your original post think it says irthington north carlisle??
janjan
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Dear JanJan
Thanks so much for your trouble. I think your family records are the real treasure! It is so important to know what happened to Jane. :D
lettie
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Hi Lettie,
in john hoggs will(1841) it says he bequests to mary his illegitimate daughter who at this time is my housekeeper and to her heis my freehold estate caller halfway house all bed linen and other household furniture in my house at pateshill ,it also says should mary call on my executors for wages for her services her bequest to be void.the will was written in 1836,janes name isnt on the headstone at irthington.
in marys brothers will (made in 1849/he died 1852)he leaves halfway house to his son he gives his niece jane five pound per annum from fordlands and five pounds per annum from halfway house but should his sister mary return from abroad and disposes my son william of halfway house it is my will and pleasure that both annuities cease,
it would be intresting to know what happened to jane i will look into it,
i havent looked at this branch of family for a while
janice
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;D
Hi Janice,
This is fantastic stuff and I will add it all to Mary's file here. Yes it would be good to know what happened to Jane. Mary certainly had incentive not to return from Van Diemens Land if she wanted her daughter cared for!
Thanks so much for looking out the documents.
Kind regards
Lettie
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Hi Janice,
It seems Jane's death sentence was commuted to 18 months in prison. After that she seems to have returned to the family. She may be the neice Jane on the 1851 census living with her Uncle John at 'Fordlands'. It would be good to know what happened to Jane later on.
Mary’s behaviour in the colony was not enough to bring her to the attention of the magistrate. At the time of the October 1846 Muster, Mary was a third class pass holder and in the employ of the Lock family. By 1847 there were over 70 thousand residents in Van Diemen’s Land and Mary was one of the 34% who were convicts.
Holding a third class pass meant that Mary was among the best behaved convicts who cold work for a minimum wage of 7 pounds per annum. She had achieved this status on the 12th of April 1844. Mary achieved her Ticket of Leave on the 19th of January 1847 having served a portion of her sentence and being well behaved. She could now work for whom she chose, but remained restricted to a certain police district. It was her first step towards freedom.
Lettie
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Better late than never, I am another relative of Mary Hoggs and I'm currently researching the family. Its been really interesting reading your comments. I am looking into the possibility that Jane died still living at Fordlands in 1856 from breast cancer, I cant find any marriage for her and this seems likely though I do still question why she wasn't buried with the rest of the family.
Lettie - if you get this did you ever get any further with Mary Hoggs death certificate?
Thanks
Sally
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Hi Sally,
I would be really interested in knowing what was on Jane's death certificate. I suspect she was not buried with the rest of the family due to her crime and her illegitimacy.
Mary Hogg's death certificate stated she was a widow aged 82 and that she died of natural decay on 24 April 1854. Her death was registered by the undertaker Wm Smith of Launceston. He obviously did not know her well, and made assumptions about her marital status and age. She was not quite that age, but may have looked it. As this is the only death for a Mary Hogg of roughly the right age, I think it is fair to assume it is our Mary. There is no evidence she left the colony. What a sad story.
cheers,
Lettie
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Sally,
Just an observation but the fact that Jane is not on the gravestone does not necessarily mean that she was not buried in the grave. It might be that the relatives just never got round to putting the inscription on the stone. One or two burial registers do have marks in the margin denoting which plot a person was buried in or the parish clerk may have kept a plan.