| No. in Admissions Register: | 30 |
| Date of admission: | 20 May 1853 |
| Weekly payments: | - |
| Age: | 14 |
| Education: | None |
| Previous employment: | None |
| Crimes, how often and in what prison: | Birmingham, 3 |
| Training in reformatory: | Farm labour |
| When left reformatory: | 5 May 1856 |
| Parentage and family: | Mother living |
| Residence: | - |
| Trade of father: | - |
| With whom the boy is placed: | Mr Plimer?, builder |
| Address: | 8 court, Aston Road [Birmingham] |
| Trade: | apprenticed to iron finisher for 3 years |
12 September 1853 In an extensive report of an inquiry into brutal treatment in Birmingham Gaol in Aris’s Birmingham Gazette, Monday 12 September 1853 p.6 col.3, is the following: …boys from the Reformatory School were then examined as to the state of discipline at the time they were in the gaol:- …William Parker, aged fifteen, was in prison last Christmas for stealing. He said – I was punished a day or two before Christmas day for not doing my work on the crank, because it was hard. I was put in the strait jacket for ringing the bell, because they would not give me any water to drink. The tap was dry, and they would not give me any water all day. I was put into the strait jacket the next morning at ten o’clock, and remained in it till three or four o’clock in the afternoon, when they took it off to put me on the crank. The jacket hurt my arms and pinched me, and the collar hurt me, and prevented me moving my head. I was put in the jacket again after that for six hours, for talking in Chapel; but it did not hurt me then, because Brown slackened it when I called out murder. I said I would not do it again if they would take it off me. They would not give me any dinner that day. I worked at the crank regularly when not in the jacket. On one occasion I did not do my work, and I had the jacket on again from eight o’clock in the morning till ten at night, and the Governor said if I did not do my work I should not have any food. The crank was so hard I could not turn it. They took me into a crank cell on Wednesday and gave me a task. I told them I would not do it. The Governor ordered the strait jacket to be put on me, and I had nothing to eat from Wednesday night till Friday morning. I had water, but neither bread nor gruel. I will take my oath on that. I made no complaint about it. I got my food about half past ten on Friday morning, consisting of eight ounces of bread and cold gruel, having done my work that morning after the Governor had made the crank easier. The Governor had been to see me on the Thursday.
| ← Prev | Next → |
|---|
This web page © 2020 Fred Miller