Executions at Tyburn 1765 – 1774.

 

With special thanks to Mr. Dave Mossop for allowing me to publish the results of his years of painstaking research thus enabling this unique insight into 18th century crime and punishment.  If you would like more detail on some of these cases or wish to view the trial transcripts, go to the Old Bailey on-line website at  http://www.oldbaileyonline.org/

 

686 death sentences were passed during this decade on 630 men and 56 women.  Of these, 282 men and 12 women were duly executed.  Overall reprieve rate : 57.15%.  Male reprieves : 55.24% Female reprieves : 78.57%.

 

A further 6 men who were condemned in 1774 were hanged in 1775 and are not included in the executed figures, nor are people condemned at the Old Bailey but executed other than at Tyburn.

 

1765

There were 7 “hanging days” at Tyburn with 24 men and 1 woman being hanged.

A total of 42 people were sentenced to death in this year, comprising of 35 men and 7 women. 

 

6 men were hanged in January 1765, who had been sentenced at the December 1764 Sessions.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

 

Wednesday 9th January (sentenced in 1764)

John Morton

Stealing in a warehouse

Thomas Strong

Stealing in a warehouse

George Mitchell

Horse theft

William Witton

Stealing in a dwelling house

John Watkins

Burglary

John Weskett

Stealing in a dwelling house

 

The Sessions held on the 16th of January resulted in 7 men being sentenced to death, of whom 3 were reprieved. 

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 13th February

Matthew James

Uttering

John Ward

Highway robbery

Edward Williams

Robbery in a dwelling house

John Rowson

Burglary

 

The February Sessions that began on the 27th, resulted in a further 5 men being sentenced to death, of whom 4 were hanged. 

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 17th April

John Cooke (aka George Miln)

Forgery

Charles Sebrey

Burglary

Richard Perry

Burglary

John Taylor

Burglary

 

The April Sessions resulted in one man receiving the death sentence.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 15th May

John Pickett

Burglary

 

The 22nd of May Sessions also resulted in one death sentence – on Mary Edwards, who was subsequently reprieved.

 

The Sessions on the 10th of July saw 7 men and 1 woman get the death sentence, of whom 3 of the men and the woman were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 31st July

Thomas Carr

Perjury

Francis Attaway

Highway robbery

Barney Carrol

Cutting & maiming

William King

Cutting & maiming

 

The next Sessions began on the 18th of September and resulted in 5 men and 3 women being sentenced to death.  One man and 2 of the women were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Monday 23rd September

Anthony Delaney

Murder

James Grief

Murder

Maria Jenkins

Murder of bastard child

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 9th October

James Haines

Highway robbery

John M’Kenzie

Stealing in a dwelling house

 

Only 2 death sentences were passed at the October Sessions on the 16th of that month with 1 man being subsequently reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 13th November

William Richardson

Forgery

 

The December Sessions opened on the 11th and 8 men and 2 women received death sentences, of whom 2 men and 1 woman were reprieved.  6 men and 1 woman were left for execution in January 1766.

 

1766

31 men and 4 women were sentenced to death during this year. 18 men and 2 women were executed at 6 “hanging days”.

 

The first Sessions of 1766 were held on the 16th of January and resulted in 3 death sentences.
2 men were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

 

Wednesday 15th January
(sentenced in 1765)

Stephen Wheat

Stealing in a river

Robert Tull

Stealing in a river

James Williams

Highway robbery

Robert Scott

Highway robbery

Edward Benson

Highway robbery

Mary Pyner

Stealing in a dwelling house

Thomas Reynolds

Highway robbery

 

4 men and a woman were condemned at the February Sessions on the 19th, of whom 1 man and the woman were later reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 19th March

John Wilson

Uttering

Roger Bryer

Personate

John Jewster

Personate

William Barlow

Highway robbery

 

5 men and a woman were condemned at the 9th of April Sessions, with 3 men being later hanged.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 7th May

William Crompton

Personate

John Slack

Horse theft

Robert Slack

Horse theft

 

The next Sessions opened on the 14th of May and resulted in death sentences on 2 men and 2 women. 1 man and 1 woman were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 18th June

Edward Mc Ginnis

Stealing in a dwelling house

Jane Mc Ginnis

Stealing in a dwelling house

 

The Sessions on the 2nd of July resulted in 4 men being condemned, of whom 3 were definitely reprieved.  Alexander Calton is not showing either as reprieved or hanged.

 

On the 3rd of September, 4 men were condemned, of whom 2 were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Thursday 9th October

Edward Brophy

Rape

Robert Lloyd

Highway robbery

 

3 men were sentenced to death at the October Sessions on the 22nd of that month.  One man was reprieved. 

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 26th November

John Clarke

H/T Coining

James Felton

Stealing in a dwelling house

 

6 men were condemned at the December Sessions on the 17th of that month and as a result, 4 men were hanged on the 14th of January 1767.

 

1767

44 men and 3 women were sentenced to death during this year.  There were 7 “hanging days” at Tyburn this year with 20 men and 1 woman being hanged.

 

As a result of the January Sessions on the 15th of the month, 6 men were sentenced to death, of whom 3 were reprieved.  John Williamson was hanged at Moorfields on Monday, the 19th of January, for the murder of his wife and is not included below.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 14th January
(sentenced 1766)

Samuel Orton

Forgery

William Thornbill

Forgery

William Johnson

Highway robbery

William Walker

Highway robbery

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Tuesday 17th February

Timothy Iredale

Highway robbery

William Collinson

Forgery

 

3 men received death sentences at the February Sessions and all were reprieved. 

The April Sessions on the 29th of that month resulted in 16 men and 1 woman being condemned, of whom 6 men were executed.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Monday 4th March

Francis Gorman

Murder

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

 

Wednesday 10th June

William Elliott

Housebreaking

Samuel Knock

Burglary

Jacob Wood

Burglary

John McDonnell

Forgery

Lawrence Sweetman

Highway robbery

 

The June Sessions opened on the 3rd and resulted in 3 men being condemned, all of whom were reprieved.

 

The July Sessions saw a further 3 men condemned, again all being reprieved. 

 

7 men and a woman were sentenced to hang at the September Sessions on the 9th of the month, of whom 3 men were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Monday 14th September

Elizabeth Brownrigg

Murder

 

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 14th October

William Guest

H/T coining

Thomas Davis

Burglary

John Spires

Highway robbery

William Bryan

Highway robbery

 

7 men were condemned at the October Sessions on the 21st of that month, with 3 reprieves.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 25th November

Joseph Harvey

Burglary

Richard Bitter

Burglary

John Brass

Robbery in a dwelling house

William Edwards

Stealing in a dwelling house

 

The Sessions held on the 9th of December resulted in death sentences being passed on 2 men and 1 woman, 2 of whom were reprieved.  There is no trace of either a reprieve or an execution for the other man.

 

1768

 

There were 10 “hanging days” at Tyburn in 1768 with 18 men and 3 women being executed.  51 men and 7 women were condemned during this year.  A further 7 men were hanged at Sun Tavern Fields, Shadwell for the crime of “shooting at” Mr. John Green outside his house in St. Paul’s Shadwell.  These are not included in the Tyburn total.

 

The first Sessions of the New Year were held on the 14th of January resulting in 7 men being condemned, of whom 4 were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Monday 18th January

Daniel Asgood

Murder

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 10th February

Patrick Swinney

Highway robbery

Timothy Crawley

Highway robbery

 

The February Sessions led to another 4 men and 2 women being sentenced to death, of whom 2 men and the women were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Tuesday 23rd March

James Gibson

Forgery

Benjamin Payne

Highway robbery

 

4 men and 1 woman were condemned at the April Sessions on the 13th, of whom 3 men and the woman were reprieved.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 11th May

James Simpson

Stealing in a dwelling house

 

The May Sessions on the 18th saw a further 3 men and a woman condemned.  Of these, only the woman was hanged.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 29th June

Mary Hindes

Murder

 

12 men were sentenced to hang at the 6th of July Sessions.  Of these, 2 were reprieved. 7 were the ones condemned for shooting at John Green and hanged near the scene of their crime at Sun Tavern Fields, Shadwell.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Monday 11th July

James Murphy

Murder

James Dogan

Murder

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Wednesday 27th July

Phillip Blake

Shot at

 

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

 

Tuesday 26th July
(hanged at Shadwell)

John Grainger

Shot at

Daniel Clark

Shot at

Richard Cornwall

Shot at

Patrick Lynch

Shot at

Thomas Murray

Shot at

Peter Flaherty Nicholas

Shot at

Nicholas MacCabe

Shot at

 

8 men and 1 woman were condemned at the September Sessions which opened on the 7th.  3 men being subsequently reprieved and 1 died in gaol.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

 

Wednesday 12th October

Hannah Smith

Stealing in a dwelling house

Richard Slocombe

Personate

Robert Paterson

Highway robbery

James Mace

Highway robbery

Richard Holt

Forgery

 

8 men were condemned at the October Sessions on the 19th.  Of these, 5 were executed.

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

Monday 24th October

John McCloud

Murder

 

Date of execution

Name

Crime

 

Wednesday 23rd November

Edward Williams

At large

John Urquart

Highway robbery