Unsolved Murders in Victorian and Edwardian London

by Jonathan Oates

Unsolved crimes have a particular fascination, none more so than unsolved murders. The horror of the crime itself, the mystery surrounding it, the notion of a killer on the loose, the insight into primitive police work, the chance to speculate about the identity of the killer after so many years have passed - all these aspects of unsolved murder cases make them compelling reading. For this collection, Jonathan Oates has selected over 20 varied and intriguing cases from the late 1830s to just before the Great War. Among them are the headless body found in a bag at Waterloo Bridge, the pregnant maid who was bludgeoned to death, the blackmailer whose corpse was discovered in the gutter, the shooting of the night watchman at the Cafe Royal, the barmaid whose corpse rode the train from Hounslow to Waterloo, the dead girl packed in a parcel, and the enigmatic case of Frances Coles, the Whitechapel prostitute who may have been Jack the Ripper's ultimate victim. Each of these case histories is recounted in precise, sometimes shocking detail.The inadequacy of the detection and forensic techniques employed over a century ago is revealed, as is the corrupt and brutal side of life in the Victorian city.REVIEWS will appeal to fans of true crime and general readers interested in nineteenth century British police work. Books News, 11/2010"

Genres: True Crime, History

160 pages, Paperback

Published September 19, 2012

About the author

Jonathan D. Oates is a historian and prolific author on the subject of the Jacobite campaigns from 1689-1746. His focus is on military matters, the British Army and its commanders, and especially the English dimension of the period. This is his seventh book on the topic and he has also written about thirty articles on aspects of Jacobitism, anti-Jacobitism, and the military campaigns. He has also edited three volumes of relevant material; the memoir of a loyalist Scottish officer, the letters of the Duke of Cumberland, as well as a memoir of an eighteenth century Leeds schoolmaster. There are a number of other similar books in the pipeline, including one on sieges of the 'Forty Five. The author studied History at Reading University in 1988-1991, obtaining a First Class degree with a thesis about the 'Fifteen, and then a doctorate from the same place in 2001, covering responses in north eastern England to the two major eighteenth century rebellions. He has been employed as Borough Archivist for the London Borough of Ealing since 1999. He has also had books published about criminal, local, and family history, especially in and around London.

Reviews

[Doug Lamoreux · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gobble period true crime. (I'm far less a fan of modern true crime; to close to home, I guess.) Unsolved Murders in Victorian and Edwardian London is a book I should have loved. But the author, Jonathan Oates, did everything he could to make me hate it.

I have no comment regarding Oates' expertise on old England. His is an Ealing Archivist, an expert on Jacobite history, and an author of many true crime books. I cannot argue with either of the first two (the chosen crimes are well researched) ... and can't believe the last (Oates writes like he's never seen a keyboard before).

Without meaning to offend, the details of each crime are hap-hazardly presented, chronology tossed to the wind, pronoun usage indecipherable. I found myself having to constantly reread segments to figure out what the author was trying to say - or to whom he was referring. And typos seemed to pop up at the worst of times; he wrote p.m., but surely he meant a.m.? Oates confuses further by routinely referring to victims as 'bodies' before they're dead, ie; "Jane's body was taken to Dr. Michael Harris of Guy's Hospital. She was unconscious and very cold." Wait, she wasn't dead? Nope, died three days later. Then why not say, Jane was taken...? It's quite disconcerting. And he does it a lot. It is also, for a relatively short book (180 pp), incredibly wordy. The author never uses one word if three or four will suffice ("lacking any clothes" instead of naked or even unclothed). Picking nits? Maybe, but the wordiness exists throughout. The book could easily have been a third shorter, much more concise, and far more interesting.

Finally, the moving hands of time have done dirt to the author. Many of the public establishments, residences, and even streets where the murders occurred have disappeared. While there are some nifty turn of the century pictures throughout, there are also a good many present day photos that add nothing to the pursuit of the crime or criminal. An 1837 murder in a pub on Frederick Street, just off the Hampstead Road, is illustrated by a 2006 photo of the Hampstead Road. This is hardly Oates fault, but the pub and Frederick Street are both gone. So what's the point of the picture?

Mind you, I understand the author was behind the eight ball from the start. All twenty-five murders covered in the book went unsolved. There is not, and never will be, a satisfying solution to any of these crimes. But, with the way the material is presented here, the reader has little opportunity to play amateur detective. And that is the book's real failure.

[Katherine Addison · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is well researched but poorly written. Oates has no feel for how to organize his facts into something either compelling or, frequently, comprehensible. My favorite is this passage: "There was certainly much to show that the boy had been deprived of food. This was due to the fact that the lungs were severely inflamed and cut to pieces."

If you're interested, as I am, in the crimes of Victorian London that nobody writes about (like the Thames Torso murders, for instance), I will recommend Oates, because he does write about crimes that otherwise, at best, get a glancing mention from Ripperologists. But, given how poorly it's written, it is definitely a book for the fanatic.

[Jenny Elise Hauge Waters · Rating 2 out of 5]

If you’re interested in short summaries of unsolved murders in Victorian and Edwardian London, there you go. I had hoped his introductory reflections upon 19th century metropolitan police work and its limitations would be an indication of further reflections and discussion following in the cases to come. Alas. Cases are explained, not explored. A few explanations of historic circumstances and context did also occur, but so did invalidated assumptions that should have been elaborated upon if written at all.

[Slmstanley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gripping tales of unsolved crimes from the 19th Century; fascinating and thought-provoking, if ultimately unsatisfying (they're *unsolved*, what did I expect?) An interesting look into early London policing and the problems of crime-solving before modern forensic techniques.

[H.L. Stephens · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a strong reference of true unsolved crime. Well researched and a tremendous source of inspiration for the mystery writer.