Kingston Upon Thames

1/ Surbiton, December 1883 (Mangled Remains)

The remains of a man and woman, completely mangled to bits, were found on the railway lines of the London and South Western Railway, between Surbiton and Ditton. The woman’s arms had been severed from her body, and the pair had massive head trauma. Nearby was a wicker basket, with a couple of rabbit skins in; it is believed they were rag and bone collectors.

2/ Kingston-upon-Thames, August 1872

A laundry woman on her way to work at 7 a.m., spotted a body of a young lady in the mill-stream at Kingston-upon-Thames. The police pulled the body out and identified it as that of a domestic servant who worked locally.The stream runs close to the property she worked at, and it believed she went out one night, and simply dropped into the water. The girl was also pregnant by a local lad whom she’d been seeing. Her sister passed out on seeing her sister’s corpse removed from the water’s edge.

3/ Kingston-upon-Thames, January 1876 (Two Brothers Commit Suicide)

43-year-old John Rule was found dead in his bedroom with his hands around his throat. His mother found the body and found a cord tied around his neck, double-knotted at the front. He had been depressed of late having had no work for nearly a month. Things were to get a whole lot worse for the mother, as the next she would receive news that her other son, Robert, had been so affected by his brother’s suicide, that he drowned himself in the mill-stream.

4/ Kingston-upon-Thames, June 1844

A 60-year-old ex-customs and excise man, by the name of Adkey, put a gun in mouth and blew the top of his head of, while sat up in bed.The place was a mess, with blood spatter and parts of the brain decorating the walls. He had been in financial difficulty and despite a pension, he was discovered living like a pauper.

5/ Near Kingston-upon-Thames, August 1885

6/ Kingston-upon-Thames Suicide, June 1851

The wife of a Hammersmith cheese-monger, left the house one morning and plunged into the Thames near Kingston. The pair had only been married ten weeks and the suicide explains why she felt the need to drown herself. It went as follows:

“Dear Mr and Mrs Nutt (Her late guardians) -I have left my husband under the most dreadful circumstances; he has accused me of being seduced by my father when I was only seventeen years old and also allowing Mr Nutt the same improper intercourse. Last night he seized me by my hair, drew my head back and held a razor to my throat. He then jumped on me and tried to strangle me with his bare hands. I still persisted in my innocence of such dreadful crimes; but feeling certain he would murder me, I owned, although every word I spoke was a lie, that all was quite true. I hope God will forgive me for being so wicked, and saying what I knew was not right of my dear father and Mr Nutt. I felt so hopeless, I did not know what to do; indeed, I am almost out of my mind, and what I shall do with myself I do not know. Accept my love, and thanks very much for the greatest kindness I received from you. I got away from home whilst at the market. He left me in bed, and I promised I would remain there, but I could not. I am at Kingston. How long I shall stay here I do not know. I write in such distress of mind I hope you will excuse all my errors. With kindest love to you both and the dear children, believe me, to remain yours most affectionately-Mary R.Pratt”

The other letter found, was to her brutal husband, and it read:-

“James- For the last time I address you. May God forgive you as I do for the wicked accusations you have brought against me. When I took an oath to you last night, it was quite true, and all I said afterwards a lie, prompted by the fear of being murdered. May every wife do her duty as well as I have done, even though she has a drunken husband. Goodbye! I never expect to meet you again, your broken-hearted wife -Mary R.Pratt”.

The jury gave a verdict of “Temporary derangement”, but under the threat of violence, the poor woman deserved better than this.