Saturday 14th July 2018
I have recently been looking into a supposed matter of Birmingham 'ghostly history'.... namely the alleged haunting of Edgbaston Old Church (St. Bartholomews), by suicide victim, Thomas Jackson. Local legend has it that the unfortunate Jackson entered the church one night and - for whatever reason - 'put an end to his life' with a cut-throat razor!! It was widely said that Jacksons 'ghost' then haunted the site.... not only being seen in in the church and churchyard, but also in the surrounding streets!?
No doubt you will notice the usage above of words like 'supposed' and 'alleged', as - in coming to recently chase up details of the actual suicide itself in contemporary, newspaper archives, it appears the case of the self-destructive Jackson is wholly 'conspicuous by its absence'?
The suicide is said to have taken place at some point during the 1840's and the above is a story that I've personally seen numerous references to, over the space of literally decades, in a number of different sources. Well-known, local, historian, the late Chris Upton, wrote an article on the matter for a Birmingham-based newspaper in the early 90's, seemingly as an aspect of bona-fide 'history'. Another piece, from a short-lived periodical called 'Midland Murders, Mysteries and Legends' (released in 1995) also mentions the 'case'.... though pretty much all references that I've seen contain exactly the same details, so, I guess, they probably all originate with the same references?
The only, moderately 'historical', piece that I have managed to find (so far) that even touches on the subject is an article from a local newspaper for the mid-1800's: a ridiculously over-the-top 'ghost story' that basically sounds 'cheesier' than a wheel of Stilton! Intriguingly, despite the suggested 1840's date for the suicide, the piece - only around a decade after the supposed tragedy - seems to already treat the topic as an aspect of 'distant history' or even 'folklore' at very best.... which perhaps suggests that the suggested date is pure fantasy, on behalf of some storyteller or other?
Interestingly - during the aforementioned newspaper searching - I did happen to discover that a number of suicides from the Edgbaston area were actually committed with straight razors..... a reasonably higher figure, it seems, than any other place (locally, at least) that I've happened to look at in the same vein!? (Canals and other bodies of water seem to have been the 'No.1 favourite' - by far - when it came to self-destructive Victorians!!) Not that these statistics could possibly have any bearing on the matter in question, of course, but I did find it rather peculiar that Jackson was said to have ended his life in such a manner in a place that is (in comparison) fairly 'rife' with suicide by similar method!?
As is suggested in many searches, 'going to the source' is frequently the best course of action and, as a result, I wrote to the authorities at St. Bartholomews Church itself. Kindly, - and somewhat surprisingly, I must add - I received an immediate reply on the topic. Unfortunately, however, they seemingly have no record of the supposed suicide, though the aforementioned piece by Chris Upton does reside in their files....
In speaking on the matter elsewhere, the vicar of another Birmingham church suggested that I contact the Birmingham Diocese to ask if St. Bartholomews had ever been 'reconsecrated' at any point? He said that this would have certainly had to occurred if someone had committed suicide inside the building!? As a result, I immediately typed an email to the diocese, though - apart from advising me to contact other, 'historical' sources - they could offer no help at all in this search.......?
It should go without saying that I shall certainly be adding to this matter, here on the blog, if I unearth any further detail..... though, in the meantime, I would like to take the chance to ask if any page readers had ever come across word of this most perplexing topic previously!?
No doubt you will notice the usage above of words like 'supposed' and 'alleged', as - in coming to recently chase up details of the actual suicide itself in contemporary, newspaper archives, it appears the case of the self-destructive Jackson is wholly 'conspicuous by its absence'?
The suicide is said to have taken place at some point during the 1840's and the above is a story that I've personally seen numerous references to, over the space of literally decades, in a number of different sources. Well-known, local, historian, the late Chris Upton, wrote an article on the matter for a Birmingham-based newspaper in the early 90's, seemingly as an aspect of bona-fide 'history'. Another piece, from a short-lived periodical called 'Midland Murders, Mysteries and Legends' (released in 1995) also mentions the 'case'.... though pretty much all references that I've seen contain exactly the same details, so, I guess, they probably all originate with the same references?
The only, moderately 'historical', piece that I have managed to find (so far) that even touches on the subject is an article from a local newspaper for the mid-1800's: a ridiculously over-the-top 'ghost story' that basically sounds 'cheesier' than a wheel of Stilton! Intriguingly, despite the suggested 1840's date for the suicide, the piece - only around a decade after the supposed tragedy - seems to already treat the topic as an aspect of 'distant history' or even 'folklore' at very best.... which perhaps suggests that the suggested date is pure fantasy, on behalf of some storyteller or other?
Interestingly - during the aforementioned newspaper searching - I did happen to discover that a number of suicides from the Edgbaston area were actually committed with straight razors..... a reasonably higher figure, it seems, than any other place (locally, at least) that I've happened to look at in the same vein!? (Canals and other bodies of water seem to have been the 'No.1 favourite' - by far - when it came to self-destructive Victorians!!) Not that these statistics could possibly have any bearing on the matter in question, of course, but I did find it rather peculiar that Jackson was said to have ended his life in such a manner in a place that is (in comparison) fairly 'rife' with suicide by similar method!?
As is suggested in many searches, 'going to the source' is frequently the best course of action and, as a result, I wrote to the authorities at St. Bartholomews Church itself. Kindly, - and somewhat surprisingly, I must add - I received an immediate reply on the topic. Unfortunately, however, they seemingly have no record of the supposed suicide, though the aforementioned piece by Chris Upton does reside in their files....
In speaking on the matter elsewhere, the vicar of another Birmingham church suggested that I contact the Birmingham Diocese to ask if St. Bartholomews had ever been 'reconsecrated' at any point? He said that this would have certainly had to occurred if someone had committed suicide inside the building!? As a result, I immediately typed an email to the diocese, though - apart from advising me to contact other, 'historical' sources - they could offer no help at all in this search.......?
It should go without saying that I shall certainly be adding to this matter, here on the blog, if I unearth any further detail..... though, in the meantime, I would like to take the chance to ask if any page readers had ever come across word of this most perplexing topic previously!?
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