The Quarter Sessions records are largely
unindexed. I am starting to go through some of the rolls, extracting Towcester
entries, and will post my finds here.
QSR1/34 19
Oct 1675
William Henceman of Towcester yeoman, George
Tomkins yeoman, Francis Webb, Richd Blacknell labs all of Towcester in £5 each
for their appearance at the next Quarter Sessions to prefer a bill of
indictment and give evidence against Thomas Hill, seaman re a breach of the
peach
QSR 1/528 Easter 1788
None
QSR1/535 Epiphany 1790
Pauper removal order – Thomas Morris & Ann his
wife from Towcester to Quinton 9 Dec 1789. Appeal, order quashed.
List of prisoners in
Joseph Muddiman of Towcester, servant in
husbandry, committed 30 Sep 1789, charged by Ann Timbs of Towcester with having
begot a child on her, likely to be born a bastard and chargeable to the parish
Thomas Webb, labourer of Towcester, committed 23
Dec 1789 on the oath of Ann Watson of
QSR 1/536 Easter 1790
Pauper Removal order – Richard Saylors & Judy
his wife & Elizabeth their daughter, from Slapton to Towcester 9 Apr 1790.
Appeal next Sessions
QSR 1/538 Michaelmas 1790
Removal order Richard Saylors etc quashed, there
being no defence.
QSR2/560 Easter 1796
Jury presentment that Ann, wife of Thomas Welford
of Towcester, labourer & Barbara Mason of Towcester, sp, stole one
whalebone whip belonging to William Adams from George Claridge, servant to
William Adams, on 15 Mar 1796. True bill. Ann Welford & Barbara Mason
committed to Northampton Goal to be tried 7 Apr 1796.
QSR 1/563 Easter 1797
Pauper Removal Order – Mary Ann Frances Darse,
wife of Sham Darse from Towcester to St James Middlesex with statement she was
born at sea on her mothers return from
QSR 1/565 Thomas a Becket 1797
Filiation Order – Robert Wooding of Towcester,
grocer was the father of two bastard children by Jane Ashby, widow. 27 Apr
1797. Appeal next Sessions.
QSR 1/566 Michaelmas
1797
Jury presentment of John Pollard late of
Towcester, hostler for assault on Thomas Turst. 27 Aug 1797. True bill.
QSR 1/569 Thomas
a Becket 1798
Pauper Removal Order – Mary Collins, wife of John
Collins, from Gretton to Towcester. 20 Apr 1798. Appeal next sessions
QSR 1/570 Michaelmas
1798
Jury presentment of John Padbury of Towcester,
butcher, for assault on Thomas Basford, bailiff of the Sherrif of Northampton.
4 Sep 1798. True bill.
QSR2/49 & QSR2/50 1806 Epiphany
Samuel Powell of Towcester, cordwainer, on 3 Dec
46 year of George III attacked Thomas Draper so that his life was greatly
despaired of. Witnesses Francis Kay, Edward Aburn. True Bill
16 Jan
Gregory Lever of Towcester, Linen Draper and others charged with various
unspecified offences
Recognisance:
Samuel Powell, John Powell and Stephen Short all of Towcester,
cordwainers, bound as sureties for Samuel Powell to appear at next Quarter
Sessions
QSR 2/108 & 109 1813 Easter
None
QSR 2/136 & 137 1816 Michaelmas
None
QSR 2/140 & 141 1817 Easter
George Adams & Thomas Ashby both of Towcester
labs 21 Jan 1817 with force & arms at Towcester upon Samuel Carr did make
an assault & did beat wound and ill treat so that his life was greatly
despaired of True Bill
QSR 2/150 & 151 1818 Thomas a Becket
22 May 1818 Elizabeth
Faulkner of Towcester single woman that she is with child and that the child is
likely to be born a Bastard and chargeable to the parish and that George
Snedker, turner, is the father of child, Bond Henry Snedker & James May £10
QSR 2/152 and 153 Michaelmas 1818
Thomas Ashby of Towcester Lab 20 Sep 1818 with
force & arms one House Brush value 12d from William Earl did steal
Wits William Earl, William Linell, Thomas Bull True Bill
Thomas Ashby 21 Sep 1818 who saith that he has
nothing to say on the subject of the Brush, that he might have taken it or he
might not have taken it. He was very drunk and does not recollect what he did
William Earl of Towcester 21 Sep 1818
That about 8 o’clock in the evening of Sunday the
20 Sep the Prisoner Thomas Ashby accompanied by a man of the name of Job Hales
came to the House of the Complainant and drank [Four? Five?] pints of Beer,
that being refused more Beer he went out of the House, that this complainant
followed him and saw him standing against the Window of Thomas Chadwick next
door with a Brush in his hand. When next he returned and asked his wife if she
had lost a Brush. She said she did not know, but looking in the place where her
brush was usually placed found it gone. That the Complainant immediately
pursued the Prisoner and found the Brush in a Cart that was repairing at Thomas
Osborn’s a wheelwright and that William Linnell of Towcester Horsebreaker saw
the
Prisoner put the Brush in the Cart. That with the assistance of the said
William Linnell they took the Prisoner to the Constables House
William Linnell said he saw the Prisoner with a
long brush Thomas Ashby put the brush in the cart, went into a Pub, appeared rather intoxicated
but not much so
QSR2/154 and QSR2/155 Epiphany 1819
Deposition of Joseph Shackleton of Towcester
Glover & Breeches Maker taken 7 Jan 1819
Who saith that he is by trade a Glover and
Breeches Maker and buys Rags. That last Night the 6th inst he had a
quantity of Rags in his Storeroom which were put up in 5 bags to be sent to the
paper Mill, and when he locked them up last he particularly examined them and
found all safe. That about 7 o’Clock this Morning he went into his Storeroom
& found the Window broken open and the Bags lying on the Ground and one of
them missing.
That he had cause to suspect the prisoner had
stolen the Rags and went with the constable (Thomas Bull) to search his house.
That in a Closet adjoining the prisoners bedroom he found the sack now produced
and a large quantity of Rags. That he is sure the sack is his property from the
different marks upon it, that there are several places in the bag which the
Informant has mended.
Deposition of Thomas Bull, who said he was applied
to, to watch the house of John Borfin for some rags. Took the prisoner into
custody, who said “that if you have the rags again, you will say nothing about
it, and hoped he’d forgive him”
Deposition of John Borfin of Towcester Laborer, 7
Jan 1819, Who saith he is Guilty. He went for the purpose of stealing a small
quantity of firing, saw the Bags, and took one , not knowing what was in it.
Examination of William George of Hanley 13 Jan
1819
About 12 o’Clock yesterday William Middleton who
was at work for this Informant came and told him that a man had taken a
Handkerchief off the Gooseberry bush in the Garden, That 3 other men went in
pursuit of him. That when they took him into custody he said he had nothing of
the Informants about him, and that the handkerchief produced was delivered to
him by his wife.
Deposition of William Middleton of Gayton, that he
was thatching Mr George’s house at Hanley about 12 o’clock yesterday (the 12th)
when he saw John Peach take a handkerchief and run away
That he ran down the ladder and told his mistress,
then his Master. That he picked up the handkerchief from the ground in the
direction John Peach had gone.
William George case True Bill
Witnesses Ann George, Mary Ann George, William
Middleton, John Gibbs
QSR2/156 and QSR2/157 Easter 1819
About half past nine o’clock this morning One
Sheet, the property of her husband (ill and unable to attend) was stolen from a
Hedge where it was hung to dry in Towcester. She hath good cause to suspect
James Ashby of Towcester Labourer. Signed (x)
Benjamin Gibbins of Towcester saith that he saw
James Ashby of Towcester labourer take a sheet from a Hedge in the Garden in
the occupation of William Harris in Towcester and run away with the said sheet
James Ashby otherwise James Southall of Towcester
Labourer true Bill
Wits Hannah Harris, Benjamin Gibbins, Joseph Key,
John Gibbs
QSR 2/160 and QSR 2/161 Michaelmas 1819
Ann Eales of Towcester single woman that she is
with child and that the child is likely to be born a Bastard and chargeable to
the parish and that John Reid is the Father. John Reed of Greens Norton serving
man, George Reed of Towcester labourer & Joseph Basford of Towcester
cordwainer sureties. George Reed & Joseph Basford bound for £20 each bail
for John Reed
QSR 2/162 and QSR 2/163 Epiphany 1820
James Ashby otherwise James Southhorn of Towcester
lab on 4 Dec 1819 with force and arms at Towcester upon John Newman did make an assault, did beat,
wound and illtreat so that his life was greatly despaired of
Guilty
William Smart of Towcester on 7 Jan 1820 upon
complaint of William Clarke of Whittlebury Under Keeper that William Smart did
on the night of 3 Jan inst hunt, course & kill in
QSR2/331
Apr 1841
Nothing
QSR2/333
Jun 1841
Nothing
QSR2/341
Jun 1842
14 Jun
Joseph Eales, Edward Clarke, John Clarke, Shoemakers & John Wilcox,
Labourer, all of Towcester, did on 8 Jun inst break a window of John Martin,
butcher.
Fined 1/3d each, and costs of window 7/3d each. If
payment was not immediate, to be imprisioned in the House of Correction at
29 Jun James
Evans of Towcester, labourer, stole a part of an iron vice screw of the value of
2d, a head of one sledgehammer of the value of 3/-, one iron cleaver of the
value of 3d and one iron ladle of the value of 1d, belonging to John Jarvis, on
21 Jun 1842
Witnesses George Shackleton, Joseph Shackleton,
Thomas Hogg.
True Bill