The Histroic Environment: Whitechael c1870-c1900

What are rookeries?

Rookeries - an area filled with lodging houses in which some of London's poorest people lived in terribly overcrowded conditions.

Describe the conditions of Flower and Dean street.

It was a well known rookery in 1870. There were 902 Lodgers staying in 31 of the ‘doss houses’ on the street in 1871.

Their yards had been built over to provide more rooms. Some lodgings there were settled, but many families only lived there for a few days before moving on, either due to lack of work or unable to afford rent.

They had a terrible reputation of thieves, drunkards and prostitutes.

Some of the houses dated back to the 1600s and were in terrible conditions.

What can the workhouse and casual ward tell us about causes of crime in Whitechapel?

Due to the strict rules and hard labour in the workhouse, people may have been more likely to turn to crime.

What colour was flower and Dean street on Booth's map?

Black - ‘viscious, semi-criminal area.’

What did a report from the board of works say about flower and Dean street in 1880?

There were 2 cases of overcrowding there.

Why were people reluctant to go to workhouses?

There were strict rules that dictated what people ate, how they worked, when they went to bed and got up. Parents and children and families were separated.

Describe the casual ward in Whitechapel.

For those who wanted a bed for the night, could hold up to 60 people.

Rules were very harsh - inmates expected to work to earn their bed for the night, eg made to pick oakum (picking apart fibres of old rope) or cleaning.

What is the background of the Peabody estate?

In 1876 the Metropolitan board of works bought the area for slum clearance.They then sold it in 1879 to the Peabody trust, a charity set up by a wealthy American banker.

Describe the new improved conditions of the Peabody estate.

By 1881, 287 flats had been built. Each block was seperate from another and surrounded by a yard to improve ventilation. They were built from brick and had unplastered walls so lice couldn’t live in the plaster.

They had bathrooms, kitchens and and were more pleasant.

What was the problem with the Peabody estate built in 1880?

When the rent was increased (compared to the previous lodgings), many people couldn’t afford it, resulting in higher numbers of people living in more overcrowded lodging homes, or homless.

Why didn't people move from Whitechapel?

There were places to work in Whitechapel such as tanneries, sweatshops and tailors. The low pay meant workers never had enough money saved to be able to move from London without facing homelessness or unemployment.

What were the biggest problems in housing and overcrowding in Whitechapel?

Overcrowding, unsanitary conditions, crime, poverty and unemployment.

What is ‘residuum’ and how did it increase the fear of crime?

Meaning the lowest class, often associated with criminality - people born to steal, lie and rob. It was though the residuum were attracted to the hard working people of London and lived off of them like criminal parisites.

People may have been more wary of the poor, increased suspicion of them and less likely to be sympathetic or help them.

how did lodging houses and pubs increase the fear of crime?

People believed unhealthy living conditions would spread criminal behaviour. This means lodging houses and pubs were seen as places where crime could be eaily transmitted.

How did immigration increase the fear of crime?

In 1801, Russian Jews came to England in large numbers - around 30,000 arrived between 1881 and 1891. Jews found it harder to integrate due to language barriers and different religious holidays and Sabbath rituals.

As a result, many Jewish immigrants worked for more established Jewish employers in sweatshops. They were often segregated because of this and targeted for prejudice.

When did Irish people immigrate to Whitechapel?

Irish immigration had been happening in large numbers since the early 1800s and there were now well established Irish lodging houses with irish workers dominating many of the docks.

Define fenian

Someone committed to establishing an independent Irish Republic in the 19th century.

What is the home rule?

The right to local self government

What is anarchism?

The belief that opposes all forms of state government and favours a voluntary and cooperative government.

What is socialism?

A system in which most forms of property / resources are owned by the state.

How did Irish immigrants cause an increased fear of crime?

The Irish were targets of prejudice because of their Roman Catholic religion and because of the rise in Irish fenian nationalism. At the time ireland was ruled by britain and many at least wanted the home rule, preferably independence.

There were a series of attempted assassinations and bomb attacks labelled as anarchist outrage.

The english press saw this as threatening.

How did Jewish immigrants cause an increased fear of crime?

Some politicians emphasised the threat of Jewish radicalism from eastern Europe. Many were worried about the activities of the Jews, especially since they spoke Yiddish so many didn't know what was going on, and began to become suspicious of them.

What occured in 1867?

Irish fenians planted a bomb, the police ignored warnings.

What happened in 1877?

'The trial of the detectives’: Police detectives were found to be gambling and committing fraud, as well as accepting bribes from a gang. Were tried in court.

What happened in 1885?

Fenian bombs exploded on houses of parliament and tower of London.

Briefly describe the role of commissioner Edmund Henderson.

He was forced to resign from his position in 1886 following a series of scandals. He was accused of relaxing disciplines - he allowed officers to grow beards and reduced the amount of military drill officers had to do, as well as failing to stop Irish fenians bombing and being unable to control riots in Trafalgar square.

What were sir Charles Warren's biggest mistakes?

Making the police force an army to control people

1887: protest in Trafalgar square seen to use excessive force.

1888: Jack the ripper seen as fooling the police.

Doesn't communicate well with the home secretary.

Who was sir Charles warren?

A commissioner appointed in 1886 after edmund Henderson was forced to resign.

What was the ratio of police force in H division to people living in whitechapel?

1:350

What was the main police station for H division?

Leman Street police station

What was the role of the beat constable?

Prevent crime by being an obvious presence and arrest those caught committing a crime.

What was the beat?

A police crime prevention method that involved officers walking around a set circuit at specific times in a set area to miniitor and prevent crime. After a month, officers were rotated to a knew area to avoid corruption. Some shopkeepers gave them tea so they would be extra vigilant around that area.

What are disadvantages of the beat system?

A criminal could work out the routine and plan their crime when an officer was not nearby.

Why were beats shorter at night?

So criminals had less time in between circuits to committ crimes and they would have a higher chance of being caught.

What were attitudes like towards detectives during this time?

They were suspicious of detective work as it was considered quite intrusive. They were also skeptical since the trial of her detectives which sparked uneasieness about them.

What difficulties did alcohol cause?

Made people lose inhibitions - more likely to be a victim of crime and a perpetrator.

Contributed to violence and abuse in families.

In a mile of the whitechapel road, there were no less than 45 buildings serving as pubs or gin palaces.

What did the police do to try and solve problems cause by alcohol?

Made sure landlords of pubs stuck to the terms of their licenses.

After 1870, it was illegal to sell a drunk person alcohol.

How did gangs cause difficulties?

Such as the bessarabian tigers. They ran protection rackets which threatened the owners of Jewish businesses.

Police did nothing to prevent this.

How did prostitution cause difficulties?

With no contraception, many women did from illegal abortions.

For many women it was necessary to earn a living.

By 1888, it was estimated there were 62 brothels in Whitechapel and 1,200 brothels.

How did police try and solve problems caused by prostitution?

After 1885, keeping a brothel became illegal.

How did police try and solve problems caused by tensions between immigrants?

In 1904, super intendent of Whitechapel division wrote to the home office to ask for funds for language lessons in Yiddish.

What are protection rackets?

A system of taking money from people in exchange for agreeing to not hurt them.

Jack the Ripper Case: Describe the case of Mary Nichols

First victim, her throat had been cut. They didn't realize her abdomen had been cut open until she was examined at the mortuary.

31st August 1988

Jack the Ripper Case: Describe the case of Annie Chapman

Prostitute, signs of strangulation, found in backyard of flats near to Whitechapel road. She had missing organs. - Trophy killer?

Jack the Ripper Case: Describe the case of Mary Kelly

9th November

Her murder had taken place inside her room at Miller's court in Dorset street. Most badly ‘ripped’. Her abdomen was emptied with parts of it strewn around her room.

Jack the Ripper Case: Describe the case of Elizabeth stride

Her throat had been cut, but nothing else had happened - it is thought the killer was interruptedbefore they could mutilate her body.

30th September (same night as Catherine eddows)

Jack the Ripper Case: Describe the case of Catherine Eddows.

Her body was found hours after Stride’s on the 30th of September. Parts of her face had been cut.

Jack the Ripper Case: Describe the case of Martha Tabram

Allegedly victim, not canonical. Stabbed at least 39 times.

How did police use careful observation to help track down Jack the Ripper?

It came into use in the 1980s and is where the police carefully observe a crime, with the inspector making detailed notes of everything, for example where bruises and marks were on the victim’s body.

They could not take pictures in the early cases so this was crucial.

How did police use autopsies to help track down Jack the Ripper?

All of the victims had autopsies. This helped them conclude the ripper was left-handed.

They could record the body temperature which helped them work out the time of death.

Gave them clues such as how the ripper was fairly skilled with knives.

How did police use photography and sketches to help track down Jack the Ripper?

They were often taken of bodies before and after the post mortem.

It has been argued the ripper cases gave the Met a chance to improve their use of photography in police cases.

Sketches were used at the start before photography and were useful as they could include a lot of detail.

How did the press make it harder for the police to solve the cases?

The newspapers often sensationalized stories by exaggerating details, with some listing up to eleven victims.

Papers were filled with apparent witnesses and in detail descriptions of events, making it seem incredible that the killer hadn’t been found.

Letters were published at the request of the police to see if anyone could identify the people, however this lead to an influx in more supposed letters being written in. This was a problem as the police had to follow up any possible evidence and false letters wasted their time.

What did the Whitechapel vigilance comitee do and who were they?

George lusk, a builder from Whitechapel felt there was not enough being done to catch the killer and set the comitee up.

The committee published posters offering a small reward as the police refused to do this. This created lots of allegations made on suspicion or even completely made up and this would take up police time.

What were some of the required quality of police recruits?

Over 21, under 32,no less than 5’’9 without shoes, no more than 2 kids, good testimony to character, certified as physically fit.

How did Charles Edward Howard Vincent develop the CID?

He centralized control of it and increased the pay of dectives in order to attract the best constables.

He encouraged detectives to wear plainer clothes during operation and investigate crimes they suspected would happen rather than waiting for them to be reported.