Beverley Borough Gaol, active from 1810 until 1856, was located on Register Square in Beverley, East Yorkshire in the Guildhall[1]. The gaol was used primarily to confine those committed for trial in the East Riding Quarter Sessions, held in the same building [2]. When the East Riding House of Correction, active from 1611, moved to New Walk in 1809, Beverley Guildhall was used as a gaol instead and was rebuilt for this purpose in 1832[3]. The building was closed as a borough gaol in 1856, but not for long, as only a year later it was then reused as a lockup for the adjoining police office, before being converted into a police station in 1863[4].
The East Riding Quarter Sessions
The East Riding Quarter Sessions were held in Beverley Guildhall from 1703 to 1810, during the period of transportation where convicted criminals were relocated to penal colonies for a fixed term[5]. As the name Quarter suggests, the trials were held four times a year to convict those on trial for petty crimes, particularly larceny, poaching and violence[6]. The sessions were run by local Justices of the Peace (JPs) who were members of the public of good social standing appointed to enforce the law in their area. One notable JP family in Beverley were the Constables, who resided in Burton Constable Hall which is open for public access today.
‘Awd Simmon Beeather’
According to A Glossary of Words Used in Holderness (1877), ‘simmon’ was a term used to describe the pounding of bricks or tiles by bricklayers in order to colour mortar[7]. The inmates at Beverley Borough Gaol were subjected to this hard labour also as part of their punishment. Supposedly, a phantom referred to as ‘awd simmon beeather’, who was thought to be the spirit of an inmate at the gaol who had committed suicide, haunted the prison and its prisoners, acting as a deterrent to criminals who dreaded him more than the idea of confinement[8].
[1] “Beverley Borough Gaol – 19Th Century Prison History”, 19Th Century Prison History, 2021 <https://www.prisonhistory.org/prison/beverley-borough-gaol/> [Accessed 15 June 2021].
[2] “Beverley, Yorkshire In 1835”, Oldtowns.Co.Uk, 2021 <http://www.oldtowns.co.uk/Yorkshire/beverley.htm> [Accessed 15 June 2021].
[3] “Beverley Police Lock-Up”, Prisonhistory.Org, 2021 <https://www.prisonhistory.org/print/?lid=19837> [Accessed 15 June 2021].
[4] “Beverley Borough Gaol – 19Th Century Prison History”, 19Th Century Prison History, 2021 <https://www.prisonhistory.org/prison/beverley-borough-gaol/> [Accessed 15 June 2021].
[5] “Local Connections”, Eastridingmuseums.Co.Uk, 2021 <https://www.eastridingmuseums.co.uk/museums-online/convict-connections/local-connections/> [Accessed 15 June 2021].
[6] “Criminal Justice”, Eastridingmuseums.Co.Uk, 2021 <https://www.eastridingmuseums.co.uk/museums-online/convict-connections/criminal-justice//#er-convicts-cj4> [Accessed 15 June 2021].
[7] “Haunted England By Westwood, Jennifer — Read — Imperial Library Of Trantor”, Trantor.Is, 2021 <https://trantor.is/read/YNSGJEkk6hZt1kTB/xhtml/chapter039.xhtml> [Accessed 15 June 2021].
[8] Ibid.
Written by Danielle Yates