In the year 1902, Ada Charlotte Galley, a domestic servant at Stanley Villa in Finchley, found herself pregnant. Since she had only ever slept with one man, there was no difficulty in determining who the father was but, various circumstances prevented them from getting married. Miss Galley decided that the child, when it was finally born, would have to be taken for adoption.
In August of that same year, Ada Galley saw an advertisement in Dalton’s newspaper. It read:
Accouchement before and during. Skilled nursing. Home comforts. Baby can remain. Nurse. Claymore House. Hertford Road, East Finchley.
For Ada, the most important part of that advertisement was the phrase ‘Baby can remain’, meaning that Claymore House wasn’t merely a safe place that she could go to give birth, but that the baby could remain behind whilst the owners of the house found a suitable home for it. It appeared to be the ideal solution.
Ada wrote to the given address and soon received a reply. In due course, Ada visited the house where she met a woman, who said she was the owner, and gave the name of Amelia Sach. She explained that Miss Galley could come to stay there whenever she wished, at a fee of £1 1s per week. However, during the confinement itself, the fee would rise to £3 3s. Ada Galley said that she found those terms acceptable and moved into Claymore House, on 24 September 1902.
Ada hadn’t been at the house for very long when Sach approached her and asked what she intended doing with the child after it was born. Ada explained that her circumstances meant that she would be unable to care for it herself and would welcome Amelia Sach’s help with an adoption. Sach explained that she could find a high-class home for the child, where it would be well cared for and loved, but that the fee would be between £25 and £30, a considerable sum of money (c.£1,700 today). Ada said she did not think that she could afford that much, but Sach said she would write to the lady she had in mind to take the child, and see if she would take a lesser amount.
Ada Galley admitted that she was rather confused about this arrangement. Sach had told her that the lady she was going to write to was very wealthy. Ada then said that if she were wealthy, why would she need a sum of money to take the baby? Surely she didn’t need the cash. Sach explained that it was the usual arrangement and was to buy clothes and presents for the new baby. Ada said she would write to her baby’s father and ask him to pay the money.
On Saturday 15 November, at 8.00 am, Ada Galley was delivered of a healthy baby boy. That same day, she sent a telegram to the father, and at 7.30 pm that evening, he called at Claymore House to see his son. Having done so, he then handed five £5 notes to Amelia Sach, the agreed fee for the forthcoming adoption. As was customary at the time, since banknotes were somewhat rarer in circulation, he had noted the serial numbers 09978 to 09982 inclusive, and that each note was dated 3 September 1902.
Unbeknown to Ada Galley, or the father of her child, a telegram had been sent, by Amelia Sach, on 15 November, the same day the baby was born. The telegram was addressed to ‘Walters. 11 Danbury Street, Islington, London’. It was received by the owner of the house, Minnie Spencer, who gave it to her son to pass on to Annie Walters, one of the lodgers.
There had been some very curious occurrences of late at 11 Danbury Street. Mrs Walters had come to lodge there on 29 October 1902, saying that she was a nurse at St Thomas’ Hospital. For the first few days, Minnie Spencer’s new lodger proved to be little trouble but soon she said that in a few days time, she might well be receiving a baby from a friend of hers, who she named only as Maude. This baby would then be taken to a rich lady in Piccadilly, who would pay her no less than £100. For providing this simple service, Mrs Walters would receive some thirty shillings commission. This seemed rather curious to Mrs Spencer. She knew, of course, that such things went on, but the rich lady and the £100 seemed rather too far fetched to be true.
On Wednesday 12 November, though, a telegram had arrived at the house. Addressed to Mrs Walters, it simply read: ‘Tonight at five o’clock’. The sender’s address was only given as Claymore House. Mrs Walters left the house almost immediately and did not return until 6.30 pm. When she did, she had a baby with her, a child which she said, was a girl.
From that moment on, Mrs Walter’s behaviour became rather strange. She asked Minnie Spencer to go to the shops for her and purchase a bottle and teat, some milk, and, rather strangely, a bottle of Chlorodyne. This was a patent medicine, made from chloroform and morphine, used to aid those who had trouble sleeping. Still, it was nothing to do with Mrs Spencer, who duly purchased the items and handed them over to Mrs Walters.
On the morning of 13 November, Mrs Walters gave Minnie Spencer a letter to post. Though the envelope was, of course, sealed, the address on the front read: ‘Mrs Sach, Claymore House, Hertford Road, East Finchley.’ Minnie did indeed post the letter but by now, a number of things were making her grow more and more suspicious of her new tenant.
To begin with, the new-born baby Mrs Walters had brought to the house, seemed to be a very quiet child. She never cried. Further, when Minnie asked if she might hold the child, Mrs Walters rose quickly to her feet, as if in a sort of panic, to prevent her from touching the child and said that she was asleep.
On Saturday 15 November, a second telegram arrived for Mrs Walters. Soon afterwards, Mrs Walters left the house, carrying a bundle, which Minnie Spencer assumed was the baby girl. However, when she returned to the house that evening, at 9.30 pm, Mrs Walters had a different baby, a boy, who she said she was going to take to a woman in South Kensington.
The arrival of these telegrams, the two different babies, and Mrs Walters behaviour had, by now, made Minnie Spencer very suspicious indeed. Fortunately for her, she had other lodgers, two of these were a young couple, Henry and Alice Seal. Even more fortuitously, Henry Seal was a police constable and Minnie took her suspicions to him. He, in turn, reported those suspicions to a superior officer, Detective Inspector Andrew Kyd. On his orders, another constable was set to watch 11 Danbury Street, with instructions to follow Mrs Walters wherever she went.
On Tuesday 18 November, Detective Constable George Wright, was the officer watching the house at Danbury Street. At 9.00 am, he saw Annie Walters leave the house, carrying a bundle with her. Wright then followed her along Knowles Street, and down Rosebery Avenue, where she caught an omnibus. Constable Wright climbed on to the same vehicle and sat some way behind his quarry.
At South Kensington station, Mrs Walters left the omnibus, followed, of course, by Constable Wright. He watched as she paced up and down for a few minutes and then saw her go into the ladies lavatory. Feeling that something might be amiss, Wright then alerted the Station Master, who said that his men would offer whatever assistance the officer might need.
After a few minutes, Annie Walters came out of the lavatory, still carrying the bundle. Fearful that she might have harmed, the child in some way whilst she was inside the toilet, Wright stepped forward, identified himself as a police officer and demanded to see the baby.
Annie asked why he wished to see the child and Wright replied, ‘I have reason to believe it is not as it should be.’ Annie Walters was then escorted back into the lavatory, where she was seated on a bench, whilst the bundle was unwrapped. Inside, Constable Wright found the dead body of a male baby. Turning back to Walters, he announced, ‘I shall now take you in custody on suspicion of murder.’
Annie Walters was taken to King’s Cross police station. At 11.00 am, Dr Gaunter was called to the station to make an examination of the baby. Later still, after Annie’s lodgings had been searched, Amelia Sach was interviewed, arrested and also taken to King’s Cross police station. There, at 10.00 pm that same night, both women were charged with murder.
The trial of twenty-nine-year-old Amelia Sach and fifty-four-year-old Annie Walters opened on 15 January 1903, before Mr Justice Darling, at the Old Bailey. Throughout the two days the proceedings lasted, the case for the Crown was led by Mr Charles Mathews, who was assisted by Mr Bodkin. Amelia Sach was defended by Mr Leycester, whilst Annie Walters was defended by Mr Guy Stephenson.
Some of the early witnesses were called to show that Annie Walters had moved around a good deal and used false names, possibly to impede any potential police investigations. Harry Mann now lived in Roman Road, Ilford but in the autumn of 1902 he had lived at 20 Church Road, Upton Park. From the end of August, until late September 1902, Walters had lodged with him, but at that time she was using the name Mrs Laming.
Elizabeth Lane lived at 7 Crossley Street, Islington. She testified that Annie Walters had lodged with her from 2–29 October, and was then calling herself Mrs Merith. Annie had told her that she worked at Claymore House in Finchley and might be expected a baby to be brought to her by a Mrs Sach.
Thomas William Hood said that he had once lived at 149 Queen’s Road, Plaistow and had been a frequent visitor to 20 Glasgow Road. He knew Mrs Laming who lived there, from May 1901 to June 1902. Now, in court, he was able to confirm that Mrs Laming was, in fact, Mrs Walters.
When she had first been arrested, Amelia Sach had denied any knowledge of Annie Walters. The next witness, Eva Brooksby, was the manageress of the Scottish Laundry on Market Parade, Finchley. She knew Sach as a regular customer, when she had lived at 4 Stanley Road, and again when she had moved to Claymore House. Each customer of the laundry had their own reference number, which was written onto the items they brought it. Sach’s number was F236. That same number was written on the clothing in which the dead baby was wrapped, showing that it had, at some stage, been with Amelia Sach.
Ada Galley told the court that she had recently given birth to a baby boy. During the birth, which had been a most difficult one, Dr Wylie had been called in to assist and he had used forceps to deliver the child. The following day, Sunday 16 November, Dr Wytlie had returned to examine her again. During the course of that examination, at which Sach was present, he had asked about the baby. Sach had said that Miss Galley’s sister had the child, in Holloway. Miss Galley had not corrected her, thinking that perhaps the doctor should not know about the adoption arrangements which had been made. After the doctor had gone, Ada asked Sach where the baby really was and she replied that it had already left the house for its new home.
Rosina Pardoe, like Ada Galley, also worked as a servant at Stanley Villa. She too had become pregnant in 1902 and she too had gone to Claymore House. On 12 November, at 8.30 am, Rosina gave birth to a baby girl. She too had contacted the man who had fathered her child, and he had paid Amelia Sach £30 in the form of two £5 notes and two £10 notes. The two fives were numbered 33192 and 33193, dated 25 August 1902. The two tens were numbered 49172 and 49173 and dated 12 May 1902.
The suggestion of the prosecution was that the baby girl Annie Walters had had with her at Danbury Street, from 12–15 November, was the daughter of Rosina Pardoe and the baby boy she had had from 15–18 November, was the son of Ada Galley. It had been this latter child that Constable Wright had found wrapped in the bundle at South Kensington station.
Dr Alexander Wylie confirmed that he had attended Ada Galley at Claymore House. He also confirmed that he had used forceps to aid the delivery and these may well have left some bruising on the child’s head. On 18 November, Dr Wylie had been shown the dead body of a male child. He noticed that there was some bruising about the head and this, along with other factors, led him to believe that the body was that of Miss Galley’s son.
After Minnie Spencer had given her evidence, the prosecution called Alice Seal, the wife of the policeman who lodged at Danbury Street. She had fallen into conversation with Mrs Walters soon after she had come to lodge there. Walters told her that she was a nurse, working for Mrs Sach of Finchley.
Alice Seal also recalled the two babies Mrs Walters had at the house. When the first one was there, Alice had remarked that she seemed to be particularly quiet. Mrs Walters told her that she kept her charges quiet by giving them one or two drops of chlorodyne in their bottles. To this, Alice had exclaimed, ‘Oh, be careful. You cannot give a baby as young as that chlorodyne.’
There seemed to be other evidence showing that Annie Walters drugged her charges, possibly killing them soon after she received them. Ethel Jones worked at Lockhart’s Coffee Rooms in Whitechapel and she testified that Walters had come into her establishment, on Friday 14 November. She was carrying a bundle and at one stage, part of the shawl fell away to reveal what looked like a child.
The face was very pale indeed and Ethel asked Annie if it were a doll. Annie replied that it was a baby girl under the influence of chloroform, as it had just had an operation. There was no movement whatsoever and, thinking back, Ethel now believed that the child was probably already dead. That child, the prosecution claimed, was the daughter of Rosina Pardoe.
Witnesses were now called to prove the link between the two prisoners. Jessie Bertha Davis was a wardress at Holloway prison and, on 24 November, she had given Sach a piece of paper and asked for a sample of her handwriting. That sample had been given to the next witness, Thomas Henry Gurrin, a handwriting expert, who had compared it with the writing on the two telegrams sent to Annie Walters. In his opinion, the writing was identical, showing that the telegrams had been written by Sach and sent by her.
After constable George Wright had told the court of his arrest of Annie Walters, Detective Inspector Andrew Kyd was called to the stand. He testified that after Walters had been arrested, he went to her lodgings to search them. He had found some items of baby’s clothing, a feeding bottle and a small bottle of chlorodyne. From there, he had travelled to Claymore House, with Constable Wright, to see Amelia Sach. Kyd had announced, ‘We are police officers. A woman giving the name of Walters is detained at King’s Cross Road police station on suspicion of murdering an infact. I have reason to believe that you have given her the baby.’
Sach had replied; ‘I do not know Mrs Walters and I have never given her any babies. I take in ladies to be confined. There is one in my house at present. She was confined last Saturday morning of a baby, a girl. It is with its mother now.’
Sach was then taken to the police station where she saw Walters. She immediately admitted, ‘I know the woman. She worked for me but I have never given her any babies.’
Joseph Nespa was the police constable who had charge of the cells at King’s Cross, on 18 November. At one stage Walters had called him forward and said she wished to speak to him. Nespa, quite properly, cautioned her and made a note in his pocketbook of what Walters then said. Reading out from his book, Nespa said that Walters had claimed:
The child was so cross. I put two drops in its milk and when I woke up in the night, I found the child dead. As for killing that baby, I never did, and if I had got away, I would have drowned myself.
The last two witnesses were two medical gentlemen. Dr Augustus John Pepper and Dr Richard Lawrence Caunter had performed the post-mortem on the dead boy. They agreed that the child was well nourished and free from any disease which might have caused its death. There was some slight swelling and bruising on the head, almost certainly caused by the use of forceps in the delivery. The child’s hands were tightly clenched, suggesting some form of asphyxia. The larynx was congested and the cause of death was suffocation. This would have been due to either the ingestion of a narcotic drug or from direct pressure of a hand over the mouth.
The jury retired to consider their verdict and when it came, it was that both women were guilty of murder, though they did add a recommendation to mercy, on account of the two defendants being women. The law, however, only had one penalty available and both women were sentenced to death.
There was to be no reprieve, and on Tuesday 3 February 1903, Amelia Sach and Annie Walters were hanged at Holloway prison, by William Billington and Henry Pierrepoint. They were the first ever executions at Holloway and this was the only occasion in the twentieth century, where two women were hanged together.