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Newspaper Abstracts - Sentences of Transportation

Transcribed by Michael Coomber, graciously provided to the Kent OPC for display.   Contributors of additional abstracts are noted by their initials placed in square brackets at the end of the source citation.

22 Jul 1758

      Thomas SNELL, John ATKINSON, William BRADLEY, William HUNT, Thomas SMITH, and William PALMER, who were capitally convicted at the last Lent assizes for the county of Kent, and reprieved, were called to the bar, and received sentence of transportation for 14 years.

Source:  Universal Chronicle or Weekly Gazette ( London, England ), Saturday, July 22, 1758; Issue 17.

10 Jan 1759

      On Tuesday eleven convicts, nine men and two women, were removed from Maidstone gaol, and put on board a ship at Gravesend for the plantations in America.

Source:  Gazetteer and London Daily Advertiser, Wednesday, January 10, 1759; Issue 5392.

Source:  Oracle and Daily Advertiser ( London, England ), Saturday, December 8, 1798; Issue 21849.

Source:  The Morning Chronicle ( London, England ), Saturday, March 24, 1821; Issue 16202.

25 Aug 1821

      E. WILLIS and J. CABLE were indicted for a burglary in the house of the Rev. Dr. PIGGOTT, at MOREWORTH, and stealing coins, medals, and other property, estimated at 250L;  and J. FRIEND was indicted for receiving some of the property, knowing it to have been stolen.  The case against the prisoners was made out principally by the testimony of an accomplice named N. FORD, who deposed, that on 1st of May last he came into Kent from London, with the prisoners WILLIS and CABLE, the first of whom he had known for 12 months, and the second for three.  Witness was a butcher by trade.  On the 6th May, in the evening, they all came to MOREWORTH [MEREWORTH?], and went all round Dr. PIGGOTT's premises.

      They had a crow-bar and a spike-bit, and a chisel with them;  they went into the farm yard, and lay down there;  they returned to London the next day.  They all agreed to go to Dr. PIGGOTT's on the 14th May;  they met in the Mile-end-road, and went to the Isle of Dogs, and were joined by another man named BELL, where they crossed into the River to Blackheath, and struck into Maidstone Road, Eltham, and thence they went to MOREWORTH, stopping at different public houses on the way.  They lurked about in a wood close to the prosecutor's house until it was quite dark.  Witness loaded two pistols, one of which he gave to WILLIS.  They had a crow-bar and three centre-bits, and phosphorous in a bottle.  When they got to Dr. PIGGOTT's, there were two lights in the house.  Soon after the lights were put out, they commenced operations.  They took two panes of glass out of the area window, and a piece out of the shutter with a centre bit.  Witness put in his arm and touched the alarm bell, which made a little noise.  He took it off, opened the shutter, and got in.  The others gave him a light, and he went round and opened the area door.  WILLIS and CABLE stopped outside to watch.  They all had crape with them.  The other man, named BELL, went in with witness.  They took four coats out of the hall, and then went into the kitchen, where they took one silver spoon.  In the next room they took some tea spoons, and some victuals, which they ate.  In another room they took some bottles out of a hamper.  They then went into the library, opened several drawers, and took some gold and silver coins.  WILLIS pocketed them.  In the same room they took two watches and several rings.  They took 30 shirts and a great many handkerchiefs in another room.  They also took three umbrellas and two pairs of pistols, the latter of which were thrown by CABLE into a pond in the garden.  They then went back into the kitchen, and made bundles of what they had got.  CABLE then came in, and they all ate and drank and went away.  The other three put on a great coat each, it being a wet morning.  They had taken candles with them.  Their companion BELL had a stick, which he left in the house.

      They came back towards WROTHAM.  They went into a wood there, and left the great coats and some shirts there.  They put on six shirts a piece, and had several handkerchiefs.  WILLIS tied up the gold and silver articles, and carried them off.  The witness had one watch and a ring.  They went to NORTHFLEET, and waited for the Passage-boat, which they went in, and landed at LIMEHOUSE.  They went to a Jew there about twelve o'clock, and sold all they had brought with them for 60L. which they divided among them.  They kept one shirt each, and two handkerchiefs.

      Next day witness saw the prisoner J FRIEND, and on several subsequent days.  They proposed to him to go to the wood, at WROTHAM, to fetch away what they had left there;  they did not tell him how they got the things;  but he knew their course of life.  He agreed to go;  and he accompanied the rest to WROTHAM, on Friday week after the robbery.  They went to GRAVESEND by water, and from thence to WROTHAM, where they found the things, and divided them.  All the prisoners were apprehended at MEOPHAM on their return to WROTHAM.  On his cross-examination, the witness said he was asked to turn King's evidence, and told it would be better for him.  He had followed the life of a thief for a long time.  He was engaged in one robbery at BELSHAM, SUFFOLK;  one at OTTLEY, KENT;  one at RAYLEIGH, ESSEX;  and several in other parts of ESSEX.  He had robbed two or three Churches;  the last was MOREWORTH CHURCH;  he had originally proposed this robbery.

      The prisoners made No Defence.

      The Learned Judge then proceeded to sum up the evidence to the Jury;  and concluded by leaving the case entirely to them, as one peculiarly within their province.

      The Jury, after Five Minutes deliberation, found all the prisoners--GUILTY.  Sentence of death was immediately passed on the prisoners WILLIS and CABLE;  and no hope of a milder punishment was held out to them.  The prisoner FRIEND was sentenced to 14 Years' TRANSPORTATION.

Source:  Jackson's Oxford Journal dated Saturday, August 25, 1821, issue 3566.

Source:  The Times March 13th 1833 [condensed report]

14 Apr 1838

      RUNGER Peter, 43 yrs, sentenced to transportation for 7 yrs at East Kent sessions, for stealing 18 fowls at Northbourne.

Source:  Dover Telegraph, April 14, 1838, p.8 col.3.