First man executed at Norwich Prison

[Olleyke]

This is a long shot, but in 1898 George Watt murdered his wife Sophia Watt (nee Marston) who is my 3rd great grand aunt, and according a book I recently purchased named 'Heroes, Villains and Victims of Norwich by Pamela Brooks', "George Watt was buried in the south-west corner of the prison grounds where he lies to this day."

Does anyone think that he may have a memorial or gravestone of some sort marking where he is buried or noting that he was the first man executed there?

OlleyKe

[shoeman]

Have you checked Norwich Casle Museum to see if there is a death mask of him?

[Olleyke]

Yes, and unfortunately there isn't one of him

I'm not sure whether to contact the Castle Museum or the Prison about any records they may hold.

[shoeman]

I think castle Museum would be your best bet.

[Yorkslass]

Hi Olleyke,

The Norfolk Record Office hold many prison records - some of them relate to the period you are interested in -

http://nrocat.norfolk.gov.uk/Dserve/dserve.exe?dsqServer=128.60.0.31&dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqCmd=show.tcl&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqPos=8&dsqSearch=%28%28text%29=%27Norwich%20prison%27%29


Yorkslass

[Yorkslass]

Hi again,

I had a look at the Historical Newspapers website, but the various reports didn't give much information.  You may have already seen this - I was amazed that an execution at Norwich should reach a newspaper in Auckland!!

http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&d=AS18980902.2.17&l=mi&e=-------10--1----0--

Yorkslass

[Jeuel]

There will be a record of where he was buried but I doubt if there would ever have been a memorial. Being executed was a cause of shame and prisoners weren't entitled to burial elsewhere.   

I went to the Castle Museum earlier this summer - in the basement there's an interesting  display about the castle's use as a prison, though I don't recall seeing anything about this crime.

Curiously, I think that Robert Browning, the first prisoner executed at Cambridge Gaol, having murdered a 15-year-old prostitute on Midsummer Common, may be related to my gt x 2 grandmother.

[flipflops]

http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org have him as James - 12/07/1898   James Watt       Norfolk, Norwich, Wife murder.

[Olleyke]

Yorkslass - Wow thank you! I know that it was in papers in Belfast, Bristol, London, but not Auckland!

Jeuel - I didn't mean a memorial, wrong choice of words  I mean something such as a plaque saying he was the first executed

flipflops - Thank you for the website. Several places he has been referred to as James rather than George :S

OlleyKe