Mary Ann Allen

72

Sheryl on 28th October 2025

Mary Ann Allen, 35yrs, married with 1 child, convicted of feloniously uttering counterfeit coin, sentenced to 7 yrs at Central Criminal Court on the 25 Oct 1847. Before convicted. Prison Registers and Statistical Returns - page 174 1843-1850 HO 24/12

338

Penny-Lyn Beale on 14th January 2025

1871 - Marriage. Vestry of Melville - 11 September 1871 George Brittlebank. Full Age. Barber ** . & Mary Allen. Full age. House Keeper 1878 - General Hospital Hobart Mary Brittlebank. Barber's wife. Aged 62 years old ** Admission dates: 27 May 1878 Ship: Elizabeth & Henry Place of origin: Birmingham Date of death: 28 May 1878 from Chronic Renal Disease Date of burial: 04 Jun 1878 Record ID: NAME_INDEXES:1501603

135

C H on 6th March 2024

Old Bailey Online MARY ANN ALLEN. Royal Offences; coining offences. 25th October 1847 Text type Trial account Defendants MARY ANN ALLEN Offences Royal Offences > Coining offences Session Date 25th October 1847 Reference Number t18471025-2330 Verdicts Guilty Punishments Transportation 2330. MARY ANN ALLEN, alias Johnson, alias Sanson , was indicted for uttering counterfeit coin, having been previously convicted of a like offence. MESSRS. BODKIN and ROBINSON conducted the Prosecution. CALEB EDWARD POWELL. I am assistant-solicitor to the Mint—I produce a copy of the record of the conviction of Mary Ann Allen, alias Sanson, with another, at this COURT in April Sessions, 1842—I have examined it with the original record in Mr. Clark's office, and it is a true copy. Cross-examined by MR. PAYNE. Q. How did you examine it? A. The original was read first, and then the other—I first looked at one, and then at the other—I have no doubt that it is a correct copy—(read—indicted with William Jones, pleaded guilty, and confined two years) ROBERT WHITTLETON (policeman, K 152.) I was present when the prisoner was tried in April, 1842, for uttering counterfeit coin. Cross-examined. Q. Did you know her before the trial? A. No—I have not seen her since till she was committed—I have a distinct recollection of her—I recognised her the moment I saw her, before I got near her—I know her by her looks and face—I should know her for twenty years to come—she pleaded guilty to the charge. MR. BODKIN. Q. Were you in Court at the time of her trial? A. I was not—I was in attendance at the Sessions, and heard her arraigned—I took her into custody, and appeared before the Magistrate—she was remanded three times—I have no doubt whatever of her being the person. COURT. Q. You said at first you were present at her trail? A. I am not exactly aware whether it was considered a trail; as she pleaded guilty, we were not asked for any evidence. MARY ANN CARVER. I am bar-maid at the King of Prussia public-house, at Stratford—on the 2nd Oct., about two o'clock in the afternoon, the prisoner came and asked me for half a pint of beer—it came to a penny—she gave me a half-crown—I gave her 2s. 5d. change—she went away, and I put the half-crown into the till—my master went to the till an hour or two after that—(I had remained in the bar all the time)—he took out a half-crown, looked at it and it was a bad one—I did not observe how it was lying in the till—it was afterwards given to Andrews, the constable—I marked it. Cross-examined. Q. You put it into the till without looking at it? A. Yes. JOSEPH BURTENSHAW. I am assistant to William Smith, a grocer, of Albert-place, Stratford—on Saturday the 2nd of Oct., the prisoner came between two o'clock and half-past, and asked for an ounce of sugar-candy—it came to 2d.—she gave me half-a-crown in payment—I put it into the till—there were no other half-crowns there—I gave her 2s. 4d. in change, and she went away—I went to the till about ten minutes after, saw the half-crown, and found it was bad—I took it out and put it on the shelf—on the 5th of Oct., Andrews and Benton came and took it away. Cross-examined. Q. How long was she in the shop? A. A very few minutes—I did not know her before—I saw her afterwards in company with some other women—I said I knew her by the child—she had not the child in her arms at the time—I looked round for the child—I said I was sure she was the woman—before that, the policeman pointed to her and said, "This is her," or "Is this her." I am not sure which—he did not say, "This is the woman"—there were four women in the cell—he pointed to the prisoner and said, "That is the woman;" and I said, "I knew her without." MR. BODKIN. Q. Did you know her without his pointing? A. Yes, when I went to the cell—if I had gone alone, without the policeman, I should have known her, of my own knowledge—she had a child when she came to my house—she had not one in the cell—I have no doubt about her being the person—my house is about half a mile from the King of Prussia—it lies between there and the Coach and Horses. ANN MIDDLEDITCH. I am the wife of James Middleditch, who keeps the Coach and Horses at Bow—on Saturday the 2nd of Oct., about three o'clock in the afternoon, the prisoner came there and called for half a pint of beer—I served her—she gave me 6d.—I gave her 5d. in change—I put the 6d. into the till on some shillings, while I gave her the halfpence; I immediately perceived it looking different to the shillings—I took out it and rubbed it, and told her it was bad—she said I did not know a bad sixpence—Benton, the policeman, was there—I gave him the sixpence—he laid his hand on her shoulder, and said she was the person he wanted—the sixpence was bent. Cross-examined. Q. Had you a good deal of silver money in the till? A. I had—I emptied twenty-two sixpences from it afterwards on the counter—the sixpences laid on the one side, and the shillings on the other, and I put this sixpences on the shillings, that was away from the sixpences, by mere accident—I had not shut the drawer, when I returned my eye on the sixpence and saw that it looked different to the shillings—there were no other sixpences among the shillings—there might have been five or six shillings and some half-crowns. MR. BODKIN. Q. Did you lose sight of this particular sixpence at all from the time you put it into the till until you took it out again? A. Merely in turning my eye to give her the halfpence—my eye was of course off the till for that moment—I did not go away from the place or close the drawer—I am quite certain, the sixpence I took out, was the one I had put in, but I would not swear to it—I told the Magistrate at Arbour-square I would not swear to it, though I could do so, as it had been out of my band. COURT. Q. You say you are sure the sixpence you took out was the one you had put in? A. Yes—I should not like to swear to it, having had it out of my hand—I do not think it was one of the other sixpences, but my motive was that I wanted to avoid any further trouble—I thought the case would have been discharged—I did not tell the Magistrate so, but that was the reason I would not swear to it—I expected the Magistrate would not commit the prisoner—I said so, that he might not commit the prisoner, and that I might have no further trouble about it. WILLIAM JOHN ANDREWS (policeman.) On the 20th Oct. my attention was called to the prisoner—I first saw her coming out of the King of Prussia public-house—I watched her, and saw her go into Mr. Smith's, the grocer's—I saw her come out of there, and go into the Yorkshire Grey, and from there to the Coach and Horses—I sent my brother constable, Benton, who was in private clothes, to watch her—I received this half-crown at the King of Prussia. Cross-examined. Q. Was not the first place you saw her go to, the Coach and Horses at Bow? A. No—I have mentioned before to-day that she went into the King Prussia—I was in my police dress. JOSEPH BENTON (policeman, K 381.) On Saturday, the 2nd of Oct., in consequence of something told me by Andrews, I went into the Coach and Horses public-house, and saw the prisoner there—she was served with half-a-pint of beer, and I saw her give a sixpence to Mrs. Middleditch—she gave her the change, pulled the till out, and just put the sixpence inside the till—she took it out again directly, and said, "This is a bad sixpence"—the prisoner said, "You do not know a bad sixpence"—she was going to take it up, but I prevented her, and took it up myself—she said, "You b——, you gave it yourself"—I took her into custody, and took her to the station—I was not present when she was searched—she had something in her hand, but before I could get round the counter it was gone—she had some money at the station-house—she had some barley-sugar or sugar-candy in a paper—she crammed it into her mouth, and I cried out, "She has some money in her mouth," and she ate it up as fast as she could eat it. Cross-examined. Q. From which I suppose you inferred that it was not money, but something much nicer? A. She had a sixpence in her mouth—the searcher gave it me afterwards—I am almost sure that I have mentioned that before to-day—the searcher was not examined before the Magistrate—she is here to-day—I will not swear I told the Magistrate that the prisoner put a sixpence into her mouth with the sugar-candy, but I am most certain I did—I will not swear that I recollected it at the time—I will not swear there was a sixpence produced before the Magistrate, said to have been taken out of her mouth—I cannot say there was not—I produced the whole of the money, a sixpence and two half-crowns—the money found on her was all good. MR. BODKIN. Q. I do not understand you now to say that you saw any sixpence in her mouth? A. No, but I called to the woman to search her, and she said there was a sixpence in her mouth—she said that in the prisoner's presence—I produce the sixpence which I took possession of at the last public-house—I was in private clothes. MARTHA WADEY. I am a policeman's wife, and act as searcher at the station. The prisoner was brought there by Benton—I found on her two good half-crowns and a sixpence, four farthings, and I think coppers amounting to 1s. 5d.—the sixpence she took away herself from the halfpence, put it into her mouth, and chewed it with the sugar-candy—I know she had the sixpence—the money was in a pocket in her skirt—she had no loose pocket on—she denied taking it, but I was positive she had one—I found there was a sixpence among the copper, and I afterwards missed it—I said, "There was a sixpence"—she said, "No, there was not"—I said I was certain there was, and said, "You must have it in your mouth," and she handed me the sixpence back again out of her mouth—I asked her why she should change, having so many coppers—she said they belonged to a broom person, they did not belong to her. Cross-examined. Q. Why did not you go before the Magistrate? A. I was not required to go—the policeman did not know I had found the sixpence in her mouth till I told him—I took it to the officer with the rest of the money—I should not know it again. MR. POWELL re-examined. I am inspector of coin to the Mint. These half-crowns are counterfeit, and cast in the same mould—this sixpence is likewise counterfeit. GUILTY.** Aged 35.— Transported for Seven Years. Before Mr. Justice Cresswell.