|
 |
 |
|
|
|
| Author |
Message |
    
Tricia Barrett
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Saturday, April 16, 2005 - 7:59 am: | 
|
Why did MJK have 'prostitute' as her occupation on her death certificate ? She is the only one.
As the informant was presumably Joe, as she is named as Marie Jeanette, and he was very fond of her, it seems strange to list her as a prostitute. Many prostitutes said they were seamstresses or washerwomen to give them a bit of respectability so why didn't Joe ?
Perhaps Joe was not as fond of her as he made out or he was very angry over the other prostitutes moving in.
All this might seem trivial but there is something wrong somewhere.
Tricia Barrett |
John Savage
Inspector
Username: Johnsavage
Post Number: 364
Registered: 2-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 20, 2005 - 11:11 am: |
|
Hi Tricia,
On the death certificate will be the name of the informant, that is, the person who informed the registrar of her death. This would have been the person responsible for putting her occuptaion as a prostitute. I am not sure, but would guess that as there was an inquest, the coroner would have been the informant.
Rgds
John |
David O'Flaherty
Chief Inspector
Username: Oberlin
Post Number: 815
Registered: 2-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, April 20, 2005 - 1:45 pm: |
|
Hi John,
That's right--section 18(3) of the Coroners Act 1887: The coroner after the termination of an inquest on any death shall send to the registrar of deaths whose duty it is by law to register the death such certificate of the finding of the jury and within such time as is required by the Registration Acts (I don't have a copy of the R.A., but the 1988 Act provides a period of 5 days after the inquest reaches its finding).
And if you look at the certificates on each victim's page, the informant is the coroner.
Baxter seems to been charitable towards Nichols, Chapman, and Stride, describing their occupations as wives and widows; Langham's a little more skeptical when he describes Eddowes as a "supposed singlewoman" (I think that's how it reads). Macdonald is blunt: "prostitute". An example of the individuality of each coroner!
I wonder if Baxter and Langham's using victim marriage status as an "occupation" might have been a small mercy since the registrar's certificate, I think, would also have been provided to the relevant cemetery (although I think most if not all the victims were buried before the inquests adjourned). I understand Mary Kelly was buried in a Roman Catholic Cemetery--anybody know if that's consecrated ground? She was buried a week after Macdonald's abbreviated inquest so I wonder if Macdonald's description of her certificate might have caused her a potential problem, not that her means of living was a big secret. Maybe public sentiment overcame any possible stodginess on the part of the cemetery.
Cheers,
Dave |
Tricia Barrett
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Thursday, April 21, 2005 - 7:36 am: |
|
Hi,
Thanks for your replies John and Dave.
I have a copy of MJK's death certificate which was issued on the 18th November, the inquest being on the 12th, and as you say the informant was the coroner.
I would still like to know who informed the coroner that MJK was a prostitute. It must have been Joe who informed him that her name was Marie Jeanette formerly Davies (on the certificate) as only Joe referred to her as this. Everyone else called her Mary Jane so the coroner must have taken Joe's word. Who told him she was a prostitute. This profession does not seem to have been mentioned at the inquest.
Her address is written as 1 Millers court on the certificate so they didn't even get that right.
According to the account of Mary's funeral in Paul Begg's book she seems to have received full
Catholic rites at her funeral. |
John Savage
Inspector
Username: Johnsavage
Post Number: 365
Registered: 2-2003
| | Posted on Friday, April 22, 2005 - 8:15 pm: |
|
Hi Tricia,
From Stewart Evans & Keith Skinners Book "The Ultimate JTR Sourcebook".
Joe Barnett, in his statement at the inquest said the he left Mary Jane, "in consequence of [his] not earning sufficient money to give her and her resorting to prostitution". This was supported by the statements of Caroline Maxwell and Julia Venturney.
So in recording Mary's occupation as a prostitute, the coroner made that statement on the evidence before him.
Hope this helps.
Rgds
John |
Greg James
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Sunday, April 24, 2005 - 6:17 am: |
|
What I find peculiar about Kelly's death certificate is that the address where she died is clearly stated as 1, Miller's Court, Christchurch. Firstly it was no.13 and secondly the district in question was Whitechapel. Has anyone ever been able to find an answer to this?
A smaller error can also be found in the date quoted under "Signature, description and residence of informant" which reads "12th November 18" In other words the exact year has not been written properly. |
John Savage
Inspector
Username: Johnsavage
Post Number: 366
Registered: 2-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, April 24, 2005 - 6:19 pm: |
|
Hi Greg,
I can't help with two of your questions, but I would sugest that Christchurch would have been a sub district of the Registry. Hawksmoor's fine Church, Christchurch, Spitalfield is only a minutes walk for Dorset Street.
Rgds
John |
Greg James
Unregistered guest
| | Posted on Saturday, April 30, 2005 - 7:01 am: |
|
One small mistake in my last entry, the district in question was actually Spitalfields and not Whitechapel... Whoops, sorry!? Having looked into the matter further however there was actually a Christ Church adjacent to the end of Dorset Street but this was a church as such and Miller's Court was in no way connected to it.
So the question still remains, why no. 1 and why Christ Church and not Dorset Street? For such an important case this question cannot be overlooked. |
|
Use of these
message boards implies agreement and consent to our Terms of Use.
The views expressed here in no way reflect the views of the owners and
operators of Casebook: Jack the Ripper.
Our old message board content (45,000+ messages) is no longer available online, but a complete archive
is available on the Casebook At Home Edition, for 19.99 (US) plus shipping.
The "At Home" Edition works just like the real web site, but with absolutely no advertisements.
You can browse it anywhere - in the car, on the plane, on your front porch - without ever needing to hook up to
an internet connection. Click here to buy the Casebook At Home Edition.
|
|
|
|
