UK NETFLIX DARK TOURIST ATTRACTION LITTLEDEAN JAIL, FOREST OF DEAN, GL14 3NL … DEEMED AND FROWNED UPON BY GLOUCESTERSHIRE TOURISM CHIEFS FOR MANY YEARS AS THE SO SAY POOR RELATION TO THE COTSWOLDS, THE FOREST OF DEAN HAS RAPIDLY RISEN TO NOW BECOME ” THE JEWEL IN THE CROWN” WITHIN THE COUNTY. WITH PLENTY OF INTERESTING PLACES TO VISIT, STAY AND EAT. VISITORS FROM AROUND THE WORLD FLOCK HERE & ARE ALWAYS MADE WELCOME IN OUR REMOTE, CURIOUS, BEAUTIFUL & UNSPOILT COUNTRYSIDE.

BELOW: Here’s a brief video trailer to provide you as visitors with a walk-through  insight into our  “Aladdin’s Cave ” of various exhibit material here on display at the jail . And yes this is a very very brief insight

POLITE WARNING,  WE ARE A “DARK TOURISM ” VISITOR ATTRACTION & MOST CERTAINLY NOT SUITABLE FOR CHILDREN, THOSE EASILY OFFENDED, DISTURBED OR OF A SENSITIVE NATURE SO IF THIS APPLIES TO YOU … PLEASE DO AVOID  VISITING  TO THE CRIME THROUGH TIME COLLECTION AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL.

 AS WE SAY ABOVE … THERE IS STILL LOTS TO SEE & DO ELSEWHERE DURING YOUR VISIT TO THE FOREST OF DEAN… WITH PLENTLY OF FAMILY FRIENDLY ATTRACTIONS

BELOW : Here is a brief video trailer to give you a very brief insight into our Dark Tourist Art Gallery, which is intermingled within and amongst our vast and diverse

ABOVE: a short video showing highlights of the spooky cult horror 1974 film ” HOUSE OF WHIPCORD” featuring some of the many scenes shot in  Littledean Jail, Littledean Village,Lydney and other Forest Of Dean areas

Being proud to be based , and living here in Littledean , Forest of Dean ….here is our own brief insight and recommendations on where to stay , eat and enjoy during your visit to our wonderful and truly welcoming Forest of Dean area .Great place to visit and  great friendly people ….

Previously and seemingly frowned upon in The County of Gloucestershire by Tourism Chiefs as the poor relation to The Cotswolds ….  there can be no doubt that The Forest of Dean is continually growing in popularity to be one of the country’s most  picturesque and  interesting area to visit …..with a great many visitor attractions, great places to stay, along with lots to do and see .

The Forest of Dean is has become one of the country’s most  popular film location areas with Hollywood, other film makers and TV Companies all using the Forests natural beauty  …. Recent filming in the area has  included Star Wars , The Huntsman (sequel to Snow White and The Huntsman ), Dr Who and Merlin to name but a few .

Incidentally world famous actress Helen Mirren also used to reside here close to the jail  in Littledean .

Helen Mirren pictured here in TV drama Prime Suspect

---

BELOW : SAINT ANTHONY’S WELL… A SACRED WELL  BUILT BY THE FLAXLEY ABBEY MONKS …. ALSO USED FOR PAGAN , WICCAN , WITCHCRAFT AND THE OCCULT RITUALS . APPROX 1.5 MILES FROM LITTLEDEAN JAIL .

ABOVE: ELLEN HAYWARD ( OLD ELLEN ) THE LAST WOMAN TO BE TRIED FOR WITCHCRAFT IN GLOUCESTERSHIRE , HERE AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL ….. HER HEADSTONE AND  GRAVE CAN BE SEEN AT ST JOHN’S CHURCH , CINDERFORD

ABOVE: PC SAMUEL BEARD … THE FIRST POLICEMAN TO BE KILED IN THE LINE OF DUTY IN GLOUCESTERSHIRE , WHO WAS STATIONED HERE AT LITLLEDAN JAIL  FOR 16 YEARS WITH HIS WIFE AND FAMILY …. HIS HEADSTONE AND GRAVE CAN BE SEEN AT ST ETHELBERT’S CHURCH , LITTLEDEAN .

ABOVE : Andy Jones “The Guv’ of The Crime Through Time Collection here at Littledean Jail ”  …. deemed by many as the ” Marmite Museum ” … you will either love it or hate it.

ABOVE AND BELOW : Just to remind those who have not yet seen our brief Peaky Blinders Exhibition …. worth a peek !!!

When coming to the Forest of Dean either to visit Littledean jail or any of the other great local tourism attractions in the area, we can highly recommend these places to stay , eat and drink ….

Fern Ticket Hotel, family run  pub and restaurant in Cinderford,

 Littledean House Hotel and Indian Restaurant .. family run establishment  in Littledean and undoubtedly one of the best curry houses in the county .

The Belfry Hotel and Restaurant  … another popular local hotel and restaurant

The Speech House Hotel … Family run and one of the most historic hotels in the area

other great restaurants in the area include ….

The Whitehart, Broadoak  …. A riverside restaurant, pub and child friendly play area.

FOREST HOUSE HOTEL & ANDERSENS RESTAURANT , COLEFORD , Top draw food and family run hospitality

Whitemead Forest Park,Lydney  ….A great family friendly place to stay , visit and eat .

Blaisdon House B & B   …. A great family friendly place to stay

Brayne Court … A great family friendly place to stay

Red Hart Inn , Blaisdon … A great place to eat .

http://thelyoninn.com/  Westbury on Severn … another fab place to eat, meet and greet .

There are also many other Camp Sites and Bed and Breakfasts to stay at in the area .

---

For local taxi services we would recommend …

Mark Turner of Onecall Taxi Cinderford

---

Local Tourism attractions to visit include ….

The Crime Through Time Collection at Littledean Jail

Puzzlewood

Clearwell Caves

Stockwood

Go Ape

Beechenhurst  Trail

The Maize and Trecking Centre , Littledean

Pedalabikeaway Biking Centre

Taurus Crafts

The National Diving and Activity Centre

Perrygrove Railway & Tree top Adventure.

Symonds Yat Rock

The International Centre for Birds of Prey.

Forest of Dean Sculpture TrailAlso do take a look at the Explore Gloucestershire Website for further activity information in the Forest of Dean area’s

HERE’S SOME POWER TOOLS FOR THE LADIES PLEASURES ??? (AND MAYBE SOME MEN TOO ???) FLIPPING HELL !!! …NO THESE ARE NOT VINTAGE HAIRDRYERS OR POWER TOOLS..BELIEVE IT OR NOT THESE ARE ORIGINAL & CERTAINLY WELL USED “VICTORIAN VIBRATORS “, OBVIOUSLY FOR OTHER USES TOO ….

  

HERE IS A BIT OF INTERACTIVE TITILLATING  …. “TONGUE IN CHEEK” INSIGHT  INTO SOME OF OUR  INTRIGUING AND THOUGHT PROVOKING TOOLS OF THE TRADE USED ON LADIES SUFFERING FROM HYSTERIA DURING THE VICTORIAN ERA THAT ARE ON DISPLAY AT THE JAIL … IN AND AMONGST OUR VERY CLUTTERED, DIVERSE CURIOSITIES AND OTHER COLLECTIONS

 

Female hysteria was a once-common medical diagnosis, made exclusively in women, which is today no longer recognized by medical authorities as a medical disorder. Its diagnosis and treatment were routine for many hundreds of years in Western Europe. Hysteria was widely discussed in the medical literature of the 19th century. Women considered to be suffering from it exhibited a wide array of symptoms, including faintness, nervousness, sexual desire, insomnia, fluid retention, heaviness in the abdomen, muscle spasm, shortness of breath, irritability, loss of appetite for food or sex, and “a tendency to cause trouble”. In extreme cases, the woman would be forced into the asylum and undergo surgical hysterectomy.

 

Are these power tools? Medieval torture devices? Ancient hairdryers? Vintage egg whisks? No, they are Victorian, er, personal massagers (including one you had to handcrank)

• Late 19th, early 20th century self-vibrators on display in Gloucestershire
• Were originally created by Victorian doctors to cure women of hysteria
• Female patients were treated with ‘pelvic massage’ using plug-in vibrators
• On display at Littledean Jail, former courthouse, in the Forest of Dean
  

PUBLISHED: 14:18, 26 September 2013 | UPDATED: 18:44, 26 September 2013

Take a look at these pictures and consider for a moment what these rather brutal looking metal contraptions might be.

Are they power tools? Medieval torture devices? The world’s first hairdryers? Archaic egg whisks? Nope, these are actually Victorian vibrators, a collection of vintage self-massagers currently on display at Littledean Jail in the Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, a former house of correction, police station and courthouse-turned-visitor attraction.

And exhibits include Dr Macaura’s Pulsocon Hand Crank Vibrator, which dates back to 1890 and resembles an old-fashioned egg whisk.

+7

This may look like an early hair dryer with different attachments, but it is actually a vintage ‘self-massager’, used by women as a vibrator in the late 19th and early 20th centuries

+7

Dr. Macaura’s Pulsocon Hand Crank (1890) Vibrator, which resembles an archaic egg whisk, is now on display at Littledean Jail, Forest of Dean,

According to Philip Larkin, sex began in 1963, between the end of the Lady Chatterley ban and the Beatles’ first LP.

But this collection of Victorian vibrators shows self-pleasuring has been going on for a whole lot longer than that.

Littledean Jail owner and curator Andy Jones, 51, described the assortment of sex toys as ‘a fascinating insight into women’s pleasure during Victorian times’.

+7

The ‘ACME’ hand-held vibrator shows self-pleasuring has been going on for a whole lot longer than we originally believed

+7

When compared to today’s vibrators such as the pink plastic rampant rabbit, the ACME is certainly a lot less… girly

But despite its pleasurable connotations, the modern-style vibrator was actually invented by respectable Victorian doctors.

‘Pelvic massage’ was a common treatment for female hysteria during the Victorian era.

However, doctors found the process of administering the massage by hand tiring and time-consuming, and so devised a device to do the job for them.

Dr Joseph Mortimer Granville patented an electromechanical vibrator around 1880, a story told in the 2011 film Hysteria, featuring Maggie Gyllenhaal.

+7

Despite its pleasurable connotations, the modern-style vibrator was actually invented by respectable Victorian doctors

+7

‘If you plug them in, the force is incredible. They’re loud and some of them look like hairdryers’

+7

The vibrators come packed neatly in cases with a number of different attachments, and resembles an old-fashioned drill and its bits

While some of these contraptions now look like they belong more in a torture chamber than beneath the sheets, they serve as testament to the ingenuity of Victorian inventors.

The sex toys also offer a fascinating insight into the supposedly ‘prim and proper’ Victorian world, in which some families would supposedly cover up table legs since they were seen as suggestive and risque.

‘If you plug them in, the force is incredible,’ Jones said. ‘They’re loud and some of them look like hairdryers.

‘I would imagine it would have been quite a painful exercise, judging by what I’ve seen of them, like having a kango hammer pressed against your body.’

DARK TOURISM HERE IN THE UK…A BRIEF TASTE OF THE KRAY TWINS, THE FIRM, OTHER GANGLAND MEMORABILIA, MURDERABILIA, MAIMERABILIA AND BEYOND. IT’S ALL HERE AT THE CRIME THROUGH TIME COLLECTION, LITTLEDEAN JAIL

SEEMINGLY OF  TIMELESS  MEDIA INTEREST …. BRITAIN’S MOST INFAMOUS AND NOTORIOUS 1960’S LONDON GANGSTERS …. RONALD AND REGINALD KRAY …..BETTER KNOWN AS THE KRAY TWINS .

HERE BELOW IS AN  ARTICLE FEATURING THE CRIME THROUGH TIME COLLECTION HERE AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL ,THAT APPEARED BOTH ONLINE AND IN PRINT WITHIN THE DAILY MIRROR ON PAGE 33 -7 MAY 2015 .

ABOVE AND BELOW :  Original oil paintings of The Krays by Gloucestershire artist Paul Bridgman . Also depicts  two of their murder victims Jack “The Hat ” McVitie  who was killed by Reg Kray at Evering Rd, Stoke Newington  and George Cornell who murdered by Ron Kray at The Blind Beggar Pub , Whitechapel Rd

 

HERE BELOW IS A BRIEF TRAILER OF THE  KRAY TWINS FILM ENTITLED “LEGEND” STARRING TOM HARDY PLAYING THE ROLE OF BOTH RON AND REG KRAY SOME OF THE MANY GENUINE KRAY MEMORABILIA ITEMS ON DISPLAY AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL… THESE INCLUDE ONE OF RONNIE KRAY’S SUITS SEEN HERE WITH HIS FORMER WIFE KATE KRAY’S WEDDING DRESS , KINDLY DONATED BY KATE HERSELF MANY YEARS AGO

BELOW IS SOME MORE BRIEF HISTORICAL INSIGHT FOOTAGE INTO THE KRAY’S

EXTRACTS FROM VARIOUS  OTHER NATIONAL NEWSPAPERS FEATURING SOME OF THE KRAY TWINS MEMORABILIA ON DISPLAY AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL IN THE PAST.

BELOW IS A BRIEF GALLERY OF KRAY TWINS ITEMS INCLUDING 2 ORIGINAL PAINTINGS FROM BOTH RON AND REG, WHILST IN JAIL AT HMP PARKHURST , ISLE oF WIGHT , PAINTED BY THEM IN 1971 THAT WERE SOLD TOGETHER FOR £4800 + FEES, ETC  AT CHISWICK AUCTIONS , LONDON IN MARCH 2008 .

AFTER GOING AROUND VARIOUS OTHER AUCTION HOUSES SINCE THEN,  THEY HAVE NOW ARRIVED HERE AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL ACQUIRED FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTOR   AND ARE NOW ON DISPLAY TO THE PUBLIC  ALONG WITH VARIOUS OTHER KRAY TWINS ITEMS .

BELOW IS THE  PRESALE REPORT ON THE PAINTINGS AS SEEN IN THE DAILY MAIL  ON THE 9 MARCH 2008

Yours for £2,000, oil paintings by the Kray Twins (currently owned by a ex-convict who won them in a card game)

Gangsters with an artistic streak: Reggie (left) and Ronnie Kray in the 1960s

One famously shot dead a fellow gangster in an East End pub for a verbal sleight. The other knifed to death another gangland member at a party  But it appears Ronnie and Reggie Kray also had a more sensitive side – as landscape painters. These oil canvasses by the infamous twins, painted after they were both jailed for 30 years, are to be auctioned in London this week.The one of a white cottage next to a road was painted by Ronnie. His brother’s is an image of a river running through a green valley with an ominously dark sky in the background.  Both twins began painting after their 1968 trial at the Old Bailey, often creating the same scene in picture after picture.  A spokesman for Chiswick Auctions in West London, where the paintings are being sold, said: ‘The same themes are repeated over and over again in their work, with very little variation. We expect these two to go for between £800 and £1,500 each.’ Both pictures are being sold by a former inmate who won them from the twins during card games in jail.The auction house spokesman said: ‘The seller has given us some interesting insights into the Krays’ minds.

 

Dream house in the country: Ronnie Kray’s

  ‘He says Reggie always, always painted with a dark sky. This might reflect his state of mind and the dark thoughts he had. He was known for his moods and being aloof. Ronnie, on the other hand, always painted a white cottage because that was his idea of a dream house, a place in the country.

Ronnie’s paintings are more aspirational, whereas Reggie’s tend to reflect his sombre state of mind.’The images were painted in oils on to card. They are both eight-and-a-half inches by 11-and-a-half inches.

A similar painting by Ronnie sold at an auction in Lincolnshire in 2005 for £2,200, twice the expected fee.

The spokesman added: ‘The seller told us paintings were used in games of cards as currency. If they were by Joe Bloggs, they wouldn’t be worth £5.’

The Krays ran a brutal gang known as The Firm in London’s East End during the late Fifties and Sixties. Revelling in their image of sharp suits and flashy cars, they began to believe the law could not touch them.

That bravado allowed Ronnie to walk into the Blind Beggar pub in Whitechapel and shoot dead George Cornell in front of customers for calling him a ‘fat poof’.

A year later, in 1967, Reggie stabbed Jack ‘The Hat’ McVitie to death in a flat in North London.  But Scotland Yard closed the net and the twins were given life sentences and told they must serve at least 30 years.  Ronnie died of a heart attack in 1995 after collapsing in his cell in Broadmoor. Reggie died in jail in 2000.

 

Moody: Reggie Kray painting

MORE EXTRACTS OF MEDIA COVERAGE OF THE CRIME THROUGH TIME’S KRAY TWINS EXHIBITION

BELOW ARE MORE EXHIBIT ITEMS

Picture By:Jules Annan Picture Shows:Original paintings by both Ronnie and Reggie Kray painted in 1971 whilst both were imprisoned in HMP Parkhusrt, Isle of Wight . Previously sold at Chiswick Auctions, London back in 2008 and now on display at the Crime Through Time Collection, Littledean Jail, Gloucestershire Date ;10/06/2014

Picture By:Jules Annan Picture Shows:Original paintings by both Ronnie and Reggie Kray painted in 1971 whilst both were imprisoned in HMP Parkhusrt, Isle of Wight . Previously sold at Chiswick Auctions, London back in 2008 and now on display at the Crime Through Time Collection, Littledean Jail, Gloucestershire Date ;10/06/2014

Picture By:Jules Annan Picture Shows:Original painting by Ronnie Kray painted in 1971 whilst imprisoned in HMP Parkhusrt, Isle of Wight . Previously sold at Chiswick Auctions, London for £4, 800 plus fees and VAT back in 2008 and now on display at the Crime Through Time Collection, Littledean Jail, Gloucestershire Date ;10/06/2014

Picture By:Jules Annan Picture Shows:Rear of original painting by Ronnie Kray painted in 1971 whilst imprisoned in HMP Parkhusrt, Isle of Wight . Previously sold at Chiswick Auctions, London for £4, 800 plus fees and VAT back in 2008 and now on display at the Crime Through Time Collection, Littledean Jail, Gloucestershire Date ;10/06/2014

Picture By:Jules Annan Picture Shows:Original painting by Reggie Kray painted in 1971 whilst imprisoned in HMP Parkhusrt, Isle of Wight . Previously sold at Chiswick Auctions, London back in 2008 and now on display at the Crime Through Time Collection, Littledean Jail, Gloucestershire Date ;10/06/2014

Picture By:Jules Annan Picture Shows:Rear of original painting by Reggie Kray painted in 1971 whilst imprisoned in HMP Parkhusrt, Isle of Wight . Previously sold at Chiswick Auctions, London back in 2008 and now on display at the Crime Through Time Collection, Littledean Jail, Gloucestershire Date ;10/06/2014

Picture By:Jules Annan Picture Shows:Sale receipt for original painting by Ronnie Kray painted in 1971 whilst imprisoned in HMP Parkhusrt, Isle of Wight . Previously sold at Chiswick Auctions, London back in 2008 and now on display at the Crime Through Time Collection, Littledean Jail, Gloucestershire Date ;10/06/2014

Picture By: Jules Annan Picture Shows:Andy Jones of the Crime Through Time Collection at Littledean Jail with child-like pastel drawing of two boxers painted by Reggie Kray circa 1980’s as part of the Kray Twins and The Firm Exhibition Date 01st June 2012 Ref: *World Rights Only* *Unbylined uses will incur an additional discretionary fee!*

Picture By: Jules Annan Picture Shows:Andy Jones of the Crime Through Time Collection at Littledean Jail with child-like pastel drawing of two boxers painted by Reggie Kray circa 1980’s as part of the Kray Twins and The Firm Exhibition Date 01st June 2012 Ref: *World Rights Only* *Unbylined uses will incur an additional discretionary fee!*

Picture By: Jules Annan Picture Shows:Cowboy crayon drawings by Reggie Kray which are part of the Kray Twins and The Firm Exhibition here at the Jail Date 01st June 2012 Ref: *World Rights Only* *Unbylined uses will incur an additional discretionary fee!*

Picture By: Jules Annan Picture Shows:Cowboy crayon drawings by Reggie Kray which are part of the Kray Twins and The Firm Exhibition here at the Jail Date 01st June 2012 Ref: *World Rights Only* *Unbylined uses will incur an additional discretionary fee!*

Picture By: Jules Annan Picture Shows:Andy Jones of the Crime Through Time Collection at Littledean Jail with cowboy crayon drawings by Reggie Kray which are part of the Kray Twins and The Firm Exhibition here at the Jail Date 01st June 2012 Ref: *World Rights Only* *Unbylined uses will incur an additional discretionary fee!*

Picture By: Jules Annan Picture Shows: HMP Parkhurst Isle of Wight prison letter dated 02nd November 1983 sent to family friend Lawrie O’Leary by Reggie Kray which are part of the Kray Twins and The Firm Exhibition here at the Jail Date 01st June 2012 Ref: *World Rights Only* *Unbylined uses will incur an additional discretionary fee!*

Picture By: Jules Annan Picture Shows: HMP Parkhurst Isle of Wight prison letter dated 02nd November 1983 sent to family friend Lawrie O’Leary by Reggie Kray which are part of the Kray Twins and The Firm Exhibition here at the Jail Date 01st June 2012 Ref: *World Rights Only* *Unbylined uses will incur an additional discretionary fee!*

ABOVE IS RONNIE KRAY’S  ORIGINAL PROVISIONAL DRIVING LICENCE FROM BACK IN 1959 WHEN HE WOULD HAVE BEEN 26 YEARS OLD, REGISTERED TO HIM AT THE KRAY FAMILY’S HOME ADDRESS AT THE TIME , 178 VALLANCE ROAD , LONDON   .

IN ITSELF A NOSTALGIC PIECE OF PRE-ARREST KRAY TWINS MEMORABILIA …. NOW HERE ON PERMANENT  DISPLAY ALONGSIDE THE KRAY TWINS EXHIBITION  HERE AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL .

THE ONLY KRAY TWINS EXHIBITION OF ITS KIND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC .

REGGIE KRAYS SO SAY (THOUGH CERTAINLY FAKE …. BUYERS BEWARE )  ORIGINAL ARTIST PAINT BOX , PAINTS AND BRUSHES LAST USED BY HIM AT HMP WAYLAND SHORTLY BEFORE HIS DEATH FROM CANCER ON 01ST OCTOBER   2000

COME VISIT AND SEE FOR YOURSELVES THE UK’S ONLY KRAY TWINS EXHIBITION ON PUBLIC DISPLAY FEATURING SOME OF THEIR PERSONAL BELONGINGS, HANDWRITTEN AND SIGNED LETTERS ,  TOOLS OF THE TRADE, ARTWORK, MEMORABILIA AND OTHER RELATED FIRM ITEMS . 

ALL IN ALL AN INTRIGUING PERSONAL INSIGHT INTO BOTH PRE ARREST DAYS AND THEIR SUBSEQUENT LIFE BEHIND BARS

ALSO VARIOUS OTHER GANGLAND MEMORABILIA …..ITS ALL HERE AT THE CRIME THROUGH TIME COLLECTION AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL .

HERE BELOW IS A BRIEF PICTORIAL INSIGHT INTO SOME OF THE ITEMS ON DISPLAY …………

YES THIS REALLY IS RON KRAY’S PERSONAL KNUCKLE DUSTER  KINDLY GIFTED TO ANDY JONES – THE CRIME THROUGH TIME COLLECTION AFTER A PERSONAL  VISIT TO REGGIE KRAY WHILST HE WAS INCARCERATED AT HMP. MAIDSTONE …WHICH HE WANTED ANDY TO DISPLAY ALONG WITH VARIOUS OTHER PERSONAL ITEMS  ACQUIRED FROM OTHER INNER CIRCLE FRIENDS,  ACQUAINTANCES AND EVEN FROM VARIOUS FORMER METROPOLITAN POLICE OFFICERS …….. .FOR AND ON   REGGIES AND  RONNIES  BEHALF..

.

ORIGINAL RONNIE KRAY ARTWORK PAINTED BY HIMSELF WHILST AT BROADMOOR MENTAL ASYLUM . HERE ON DISPLAY ALONG WITH MANY OTHER ARTWORK ,DRAWINGS AND PAINTINGS BY BOTH RONNIE AND REGGIE 

ABOVE: Original oil painting of  “The Richardsons, Charlie and Eddie ”  by Gloucestershire artist Paul Bridgman. Also known as the sadistic “Torture Gang “, they were fierce South London  rivals of the  Kray twins.

ELLEN HAYWARD “OLD ELLEN” THE LAST WOMAN IN GLOUCESTERSHIRE TO BE CHARGED FOR WITCHCRAFT . TRIED HERE AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL IN 1906 ….

ABOVE :Superimposed  image of how ” Old Ellen ” would have looked in and around 1881 – 1912 at the well

AN ALLEGED CUNNING  WITCH , WISE WOMAN AND HERBALIST FROM  THE FOREST OF DEAN. SHE WAS  TRIED FOR WITCHCRAFT HERE AT LITTLEDEAN JAIL AND AS A RESULT OF A GREAT MANY LOCAL FRIENDS SUPPORT AT THE TRIAL SHE WAS  SUBSEQUENTLY FOUND NOT GUILTY . 

ABOVE: COPY OF FOREST OF DEAN NEWSPAPER REPORT ON ELLEN HAYWARD 

 

ABOVE AND BELOW …… A BRIEF LOOK AT SOME OF THE EXHIBITION MATERIAL THAT FEATURES THE FOREST OF DEAN FOLKLORE TALE ON THE CUNNING WITCH OF THE FOREST OF DEAN … ELLEN HAYWARD 

ABOVE AND BELOW … COPIES OF THE ORIGINAL 1881 CENSUS RECORDS THAT SHOW THAT ELLEN HAYWARD LIVED AT 30 PEMBROKE ROAD ( NOW PEMBROKE STREET) , CINDERFORD . ALSO THAT SHE LIVED THERE SEEMINGLY AS A WIDOW AGED 39, ALONG WITH HER SON EDWARD THEN AGED 9 ,  HER DAUGHTERS RUTH AGED 5 AND FLORENCE AGED 3.

ELLEN’S YOUNGEST DAUGHTER  FLORENCE WAS PLACED AT WESTBURY-ON-SEVERN WORKHOUSE, PRESUMABLY BY HER MOTHER, AFTER THIS 1881 CENSUS RECORDS AS SEEN HERE ABOVE  .

SHE LATER DIED AT THE AGE OF 8 AND AS INSCRIBED ON  ELLEN HAYWARD’S HEADSTONE  IS BURIED ALONG WITH HER MOTHER IN THE SAME  GRAVE. (SEE HEADSTONE INSCRIPTION ON IMAGE BELOW .)

Parliamentary Questions

MR. MACVEAGH (Down, S.) I beg to ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether his attention has been called to the practice of witchcraft at May Hill and other parts of Gloucester; whether he is aware that, in the case of a family named Markey, four members last week lost their reason and one attempted to commit suicide at a place called Blakeley, as a result of these practices; and whether, in view of the alarm in the locality, he can state what action will be taken by the authorities to suppress witchcraft. 

MR. AKERS-DOUGLAS I have made inquiry into this very curious case. I find that Markey and his wife consulted a supposed witch about some money which they believed to have been stolen, and that subsequently three members of the family became insane, while the wife left the house and remained concealed in a wood for nearly four days. If sufficient evidence is forthcoming to justify a prosecution, proceedings will be taken by the local police against the woman who was consulted. Hansard : 31st May 1905

She was known throughout the Forest as Old Ellen, and famed as a healer and “wise woman”

Ellen Hayward was born at Arlingham, a village across the River Severn and opposite Newnham, in 1839, the daughter of Charles and Mary Ann Hayward. Her home was at Pembroke Road, Cinderford.

As a herbalist she used potions to cure ailments and dress sores of both animals and human beings. Her herbs were gathered by moonlight and dried across the rafters in her cottage. She would cure forestry men, whose only protection against the elements was often only a sack split open and tied round them, of their chronic rheumatism. Farmers from Hereford used to ride over in their gigs seeking her help.

She was known to treat free of charge servant girls from Cheltenham, who suffered from housemaid’s knee after washing stone corridors every day, free of charge. She normally charged no fees for her help and advice but simply accepted what her customers offered her. She also called herself a phrenologist. Phrenology is the science which studies the relationship between a person’s character and the morphology of their skull. She appears to have been liked and respected by Forest of Dean residents. When sent for to treat a woman with a serious varicose ulcer in Mitcheldean her first action when entering the bedroom was to throw open the window and instruct the patient to keep it open. She cured the ulcer but would not let any man see what she was doing.

She had come to national attention in May 1905. Ellen was at that time visited by John Markey of May Hill who was worried that £50 had disappeared from a drawer in his house. Ellen advised him to go home and rest as she felt that he was unwell.

Within a week of this visit, three members of the Markey family had become violently insane. A daughter and granddaughter had to be taken to an asylum and his wife disappeared. After days of searching, she simply reappeared holding a hazel stick which, she claimed, was to protect against witches. Her son George, who had been involved in the search for his mother, then became violent and managed to impale his eye with a spike. After this ‘bootless and hatless’ he ran away and had to be detained by the police. He was later certified as insane.

 

In the villages of May Hill and Huntley people started carrying hazel sticks around as tales of what had happened to the Markey’s spread. The newspapers got hold of the story which then spread nationally. Questions were even asked in Parliament as to what action the authorities were going to take to suppress witchcraft. In the midst of all this furor a letter was published in the Dean Forest Mercury in which Ellen denied pretending to be a witch but accepted that she was well known as a phrenologist. This letter, written either by Ellen herself or, more likely, on her behalf went on to explain that this “cruel attack” by the papers had left her unable to make a living and asked readers to send donations. The house in which the Markeys lived, now called ‘Counties View’, still stands in Folly lane.

In May 1906 Ellen Hayward (67) was summoned at Littledean Petty Sessions, Forest of Dean, for using, between November 21, 1905, and March 1, 1906, “certain craft, or means, or device, to wit, by pretending witchcraft, to deceive or impose upon one of his Majesty’s subjects, to wit, James Davis.”  

The prosecutor was Sergeant William Packer of Cinderford police. Our photo below shows him after his promotion to Inspector in 1909.

The son of a farm labourer, he was born at Southrop,Gloucestershire in 1860. He joined the Gloucestershire constabulary in 1878 and after serving as a sergeant at Painswick and Stroud was posted to Cinderford around 1903. Inspector Packer retired in 1919 after serving for 41 years. He died in 1929 and was buried at Cinderford’s St. John’s Churchyard, the same cemetery as Ellen Hayward.

Since 1854, Littledean gaol had been used as a police station and remand prison. In 1874 the east wing was remodelled as the Forest’s petty sessional court.

The Dean Forest Guardian reported on May 21st 1906 – “The old lady, attired in black, with a big warm muffler round her neck, and carrying a large handbag, was accommodated with a seat. She pleaded not guilty.”

James Davis, a 66 year old hurdle (fence) maker from Pauntley, Redmarley, had purchased a store pig at Newent Market for two guineas in September 1905. It was delivered to him on Gloucester’s Barton Fair day. The pig was OK for three weeks and then was taken ill. He felt that someone had a spite against him, suspecting a neighbour, Mrs Amos, of putting a charm on it. He had not seen her on his premises or spoken to her for ten years but thought she was often around there. Davis had two store pigs suffer in a similar way a year earlier and also two cows had been sick.

He somehow came into contact with a ‘travelling woman’ who informed him that the animals were being charmed and it was indeed a woman named Amos who was responsible.He explained to the court that having heard about Ellen Hayward’s experience at May Hill he asked his sisterHannah Elton to write to her enclosing a postal order for two shillings and sixpence and explaining his problem.

 

COPY OF ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH OF ELLEN HAYWARD ALONG WITH HER 3 CHILDREN , EDWARD , RUTH AND FLORENCE AND OTHERS . PICTURED HERE STANDING OPPOSITE HER HOME IN PEMBROKE ST , CINDERFORD . CIRCA 1881

Before receiving an answer and still quite distressed, he decided to visit Ellen at Cinderford. He explained his concern and asked her to fix the pig’s problem. He related that she told him he must wait till the moon changes; “the pig will come alright soon”. He then paid her five shillings and she said that would do very well, and then gave him some further advice which resulted in the pig recovering.

Unfortunately at the end of November the animal had a relapse. He again sent a letter, written by his sister, to Cinderford enclosing a postal order for ten shillings. He received a written acknowledgement.

In December he himself became seriously ill so he went again to Cinderford and told Ellen Hayward his symptoms and asked her to put him right. He handed her a gold sovereign but she said that was too much. He then said “Be you satisfied? I want you to put me right – I dont want to have to come to you any more. She replied ” Its influenza. Dont come again till February.”

At the end of February he returned to Cinderford. Mrs Hayward asked him “How be you?” He then asked her to remove the charm affecting him and if she did’nt take it off soon he would ‘put it in the Government’s hands’ and in the end, that was what he did.

James Davis made a report to the police and Sgt William Packer from Cinderford interviewed him on the 7th of May 1906.

In her own statement, made the next day, Ellen Hayward explained that she was a herbalist by profession and had nothing to do with witchcraft or palmistry. She remembered Davis coming to her house and complaining of what the keeper had done to him. She told him that neither the keeper, nor her, nor anyone could do him harm in that way. They had no such power. She acknowledged receiving the money, which was very helpful to her, and had written a letter sending her best love to Mrs Elton. Ellen said that she had advised them to keep very quiet and not to let anyone know how the pigs were.

At the end of the hearing, the court retired. On their return, the magistrates, who had received thirty letters in support of Ellen Hayward, dismissed the charges.

Ellen Hayward described as a “widow and herbalist” died of a stroke in September 1912 and was buried at St. John’s Church, Cinderford. Her grave carries the inscription “erected by her friends in loving memory.”

In 1991 I interviewed in Cinderford a Mrs Lily Mills who had been treated as a small child by Mrs Hayward. She had no recollection of the encounter herself but had been told of it by parents. Mrs Hayward, no doubt embittered by the court case, had greeted them at her door by saying: ‘Oh, you be come to th’ old witch, are you?’ She was wrinkled and bent. Chickens roamed freely round her living room. Little Lily’s parents had taken her because doctors said her leg would have to be amputated. Mrs Hayward supplied a homemade salve which did ‘the world of good’, and Lily still had her legs almost eighty years afterwards. The Folklore of Gloucestershire by Roy Palmer. (A highly recommended read)

BELOW:  A few shots of  the main entrance to Littledean Jail in 2016 with a witch weathervane above the main gateway.

…………………………………………….

HERE BELOW …. CUNNING WITCH  ELLEN HAYWARD AND OTHER FOREST OF DEAN FOLKLORE HISTORY …..

        ST ANTHONY’S WELL , LITTLEDEAN,  FOREST OF DEAN

MEDIEVAL HOLY GRAIL OR SACRED SPRING ???

 

SITUATED APPROXIMATELY 1.25 MILES AWAY FROM LITTLEDEAN JAIL

THIS WAS A POPULAR HAUNT AND SPIRITUAL SETTING  DATING BACK TO THE MEDIEVAL PERIOD.ELLEN HAYWARD WOULD REGULARLY VISIT  TO COLLECT THE NATURAL SPRING WATER TO  USE FOR HER ALTERNATIVE HERBALIST AND REMEDIAL TREATMENTS. POSSIBLY ALSO FOR SOCIAL GATHERINGS WITH HER GOOD MANY FOLLOWERS  WHO LOOKED UPON HER FOR TREATMENT FOR THEIR AILMENTS AND SPIRITUAL NEEDS. IT ALSO HAS A  LONG HISTORY FOR BEING USED FOR PAGAN , WITCHCRAFT, OCCULT AND OTHER GATHERINGS THROUGHOUT THE CENTURIES .

FOREST OF DEAN WISE WOMAN, HERBALIST AND ALLEGED WITCH … ELLEN HAYWARD HAD LONG BEEN LIVING,WORKING AND TRAVELLING BETWEEN CINDERFORD, LITTLEDEAN , MITCHELDEAN , FLAXLEY AND WESTBURY-ON-SEVERN. .

Superimposed original images of how ” Old Ellen ” would have looked in and around 1881 – 1912 at the well.        

The well, which is said to have miraculous healing powers and was once used for public baptisms, the occult, Pagan Weddings and has been used for witchcraft past and present. .
” Old Ellen ” would almost certainly have used the well.

ABOVE AND BELOW : IMAGES OF THE MEDIEVAL  ST ANTHONY’S WELL BUILT BY THE MONKS FROM NEAR BY FLAXLEY ABBEY .

.

THE CRYSTAL CLEAR SPRING WATER LAKE FILLED WITH WATER FROM ST ANTHONY’S WELL

Occult dabbling at ancient Gloucestershire well… for more information click HERE

……………………………………………………………………………………

BELOW : COPY OF ORIGINAL RARE PHOTOGRAPH OF ELLEN HAYWARD’S COFFIN PRIOR TO BURIAL . KINDLY SOURCED BY MARK TURNER , CINDERFORD TOWN COUNCILLOR FROM IAN POPE . THIS PHOTOGRAPH TAKEN 1912 COULD WELL BE EITHER AT THE LOCAL  UNDERTAKERS RUNCICLES PREMISES OR POSSIBLY IN THE OUTBUILDING SHED AREA AT ELLEN’S HOME ADDRESS AT 30 PEMBROKE ROAD (NOW PEMBROKE STREET ) CINDERFORD . IN THOSE DAYS COFFINS WERE PUT ON DISPLAY AT THE HOME’S OF THE DECEASED FOR FAMILY AND FRIENDS TO VISIT PRIOR TO BURIAL AND WITH ELLEN BEING A VERY POPULAR LADY IN THE FOREST OF DEAN AT THIS TIME , IT COULD WELL HAVE BEEN PICTURED AT HER HOME?

 BELOW :  COPY OF ORIGINAL RARE PHOTOGRAPH OF ELLEN HAYWARD’S HEADSTONE AND GRAVE TAKEN BACK IN 1912 . KINDLY SOURCED FROM IAN POPE  VIA MARK TURNER, CINDERFORD TOWN COUNCILLOR

ABOVE : RECENT PHOTOGRAPH (JULY 2016) OF ELLEN HAYWARD’S HEADSTONE AT ST JOHNS CHURCH GRAVEYARD , CINDERFORD .

BELOW : ORIGINAL HAUNTING, GHOST- LIKE PAINTING BY GLOUCESTERSHIRE ARTIST PAUL BRIDGMAN , OF ELLEN HAYWARD ( OLD ELLEN ) OVERLOOKING HER GRAVE AT ST JOHNS CHURCH , CINDERFORD WITH A SILHOUETTE IMAGE OF THE ENTRANCE TO  LITTLEDEAN JAIL IN THE BACKGROUND , WHERE SHE WAS TRIED FOR WITCHCRAFT IN 1906. ON DISPLAY HERE AT THE JAIL.