Above: The murder stone lies well-hidden beside the back road between Whaley Bridge and Disley. Three young men were soon identified as the killers. But only one was tried, convicted and sentenced to death. I’ve always thought the story of William...
Above: It seems that William Wood’s memorial stone, on the back road between Disley and Whaley Bridge, attracted controversy right from the start. Gail has unearthed a couple of press clippings which show there’s been a fair amount of local opposition to...
Above: This illustration shows Chestergate, one of Chester’s most ancient streets, around the time Dale was incarcerated in the nearby gaol.He may well have passed this way on the back of a horse-drawn cart, through crowds of spectators, to his execution....
Above: In time-honoured fashion, the judge would have placed a black cloth over his wig when announcing the sentence of death on Dale. From the newspaper reports, he was obviously in a very poor health. And even in those far harsher times, there was a great deal of...
Above: Dale was tried in the courtrooms at Chester Castle, a forbidding mass of grey stone buildings squatting beside the River Dee. The castle still houses the Crown Courts, accessed though the impressive portico, which Dale would probably have passed through...
Above: Macclesfield Bank stood at the junction of Chestergate and Market Place. It was here that money stolen during William Wood’s brutal murder eventually ended up. Further testimony from the trial of Joseph Dale for the murder of William Wood. The...
Above: The conditions for prisoners at Chester Castle, where Joseph Dale stood trial for the murder of William Wood, were said to be extremely harsh. The trial of Joseph Dale for the murder of William Wood took place at Chester Castle. One of his co-accused,...
Above: Both suspects were incarcerated within the grim walls of Manchester’s New Bailey Prison. The previous post covered the arrest of one of the murder suspects, 17-year-old Charles Taylor, in a Manchester pub. And the escape of his two co-accused,...
Above: Chestergate is one of Macclesfield’s oldest streets. It was here that witnesses reported seeing the youngest of the three accused purchasing ‘three complete suits of cloathes’. Before moving on to buy ‘shoes &c’ from Mr....
Above: William’s body was taken on the back of a cart to The Cock public house. And this is where the inquest was held, just three days later. By the time this photo was taken it had been renamed The Jodrell Arms. The pub has been in a very sorry state...
