Thomas Elton

7

Diane Jones on 5th November 2021

Born in Foleshill,Warwickshire in 1826 his father Thomas was a farmer,then a licenced victualler in Coventry his mother,was Martha nee Checklin.He married Susannah Maynard in 1847 at St Michaels,Coventry and worked as a butcher.I do not know why but in 1860 he entered the County Asylum,Birmingham but did not stay long and was back working as a carter in Birmingham.On 21 Feb 1862 he was in London at the New Cattle Market and was seen by witnesses arguing vehemently with John Gould apparently over a horse,an'old screw'as Thomas called it(in other words he had been sold an old nag,not fit for purpose).The argument got more heated threats were made on both sides.At some point Thomas 'shoved a stick(a 'Drovers stick',a thin ash stick)in Goulds eye.Thomas was heard to say'take that you old b......'.A policeman intervened at this point,PC William Faint arrested both men and took them to the police station,he put Thomas in a cell and took Gould to St Barts Hospital.William Stevenson,House Surgeon examined Gould and did not realise the extent of the wound until Gould passed away the following day and he did an autopsy.The 'drovers stick' had penetrated between the nose and left eye 4'' into Goulds brain causing a rupture in the membrane.Gould slowly died.The Court realised that this was not premeditated and was done in the heat of the moment.he was senteced to 6 yrs penal servitude.His son Thomas was 15 yrs old.He arrived in Australia on the 'Lord Dalhousie'on 28 Dec 1863 and proceeded to work in a number of different jobs from labourer to butcher and after a couple of minor infringements was given a ticket of leave on 3 Nov 1864.He was not to know that back home things were not going well his wife Susannah evidently had a breakdown,possibly caused by her husbands conviction and sentence.On 1 Feb 1865 she entered the County Asylum,Birmingham a year later she died there on 30 May 1866,she was 40 yrs old.Their son also called Thomas would still have been a teenager,could this have been the reason why Thomas was given a Conditional Pardon on 15 Sept 1866.In Nov 1868 Thomas son married,he entered his fathers occupation as 'dealer'.I can find little trace of Thomas in Cencus',I have no idea if his family even kept in touch with him,he only had one son but that son went on to have 4 children and numerous grandchildren one of which Reginald Maynard Elton gave his life in The Great War,1 Jul 1916 aged just 18.i'm not sure when Thomas Elton died but I have found an entry in the 1911 census for a Thomas Elton,aged 80(born abt 1831)widower,formerly a farm labourer,born in Coventry living at the Aston Union Workhouse,Erdington,Birmingham.I think it's him.Can't find his death but will carry on looking he was 80 so that was a long life I can only think that sometime in the next couple of years he passed away.