Ratcliff Highway murders

Ratcliff Highway Murders

Postmortem sketch of John Williams, supposed murderer
Date	December 7 and 19, 1811
Location	Wapping, London, England
Also known as	John Murphy
Outcome	Declared guilty after committing suicide in his prison cell, December 28, 1811
Deaths	Timothy Marr, Celia Marr, Timothy Marr (3 mos.), James Gowan, John Williamson, Elizabeth Williamson, Bridget Anna Harrington

The Ratcliff Highway murders (sometimes Ratcliffe Highway murders) were two vicious attacks on two separate families that resulted in seven fatalities. The two attacks occurred within twelve days in December 1811, in homes half a mile apart near Wapping in London.

The first attack took place on 7 December 1811 in the living quarters behind a linen draper's shop at 29 Ratcliffe Highway, on the south side of the street between Cannon Street Road and Artichoke Hill. Ratcliffe Highway is the old name for a road in the East End of London, now called The Highway, then one of three main roads leaving London. It was in a dangerous and run-down area of seedy businesses, dark alleys and dilapidated tenements.

The victims of the first murders were the Marr family. Timothy Marr, whose age was reported as either 24 or 27, had previously served several years with the East India Company aboard the Dover Castle, and now kept a linen draper's and hosier's shop. He had a young wife, Celia, a 14-week-old son, Timothy (who had been born on 29 August), an apprentice, James Gowan, and a servant girl, Margaret Jewell. All had been living there since April of that year.

The Marrs were in their shop and residence preparing for the next day's business when an intruder entered their home. It was just before midnight on a Saturday, then pay day for many working people and the busiest day of the week for shopkeepers. Margaret Jewell had just been sent to purchase oysters as a late-night meal for Marr and a treat for his young wife, who was still recovering from the birth of their only child. Margaret was then to go to a nearby bakery at John Hill and pay an outstanding bill. She thus escaped being among the victims. One report stated that as she opened the shop door she saw the figure of a man framed in the light. As the entire area was usually busy after normal business hours, she took no notice and went on with her errand. Finding the oyster shop closed, she walked back past the Marrs' home, where she saw her employer through the window, still at work, and went to pay the baker's bill. Finding the baker's closed, she decided to go to another shop in a final attempt to find some oysters, but, after finding that shop shuttered as well, she returned empty-handed.

Arriving at the shop at twenty minutes past midnight, she found the building dark and the door locked. Thinking that the Marrs had forgotten that she was still out, she knocked, but received no answer. She first heard no movement inside, then a noise that sounded like footsteps on the stairs, so she assumed that someone was coming to let her in. She heard the baby upstairs cry out. However, no one came to the door.