Monthly Archives: May 2025

So what did the elusive Madeleine Smith call herself later in life?

Madeleine Smith is commonly said to have been known as Lena Wardle, and certainly after her second marriage to William Sheehy, she was known as Lena Sheehy, but on the 1881 England an Wales census her name is given as … Continue reading

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Madeleine and George

A few years ago, I got interested in the story of Madeleine Smith, a youg woman in Glasgow who was put on trial for murdering her clingy boyfriend by putting arsenic in his cocoa when he refused to break off … Continue reading

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The afterlife of Katherine Scragg

As I often do, I decided to find out a little of Katherine Scragg’s life after her 1887 assault. I’d already established that in both the 1891 and 1901 censuses she was listed as a school teacher living in Cheslyn … Continue reading

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Ethel Voynich’s early life as revealed by the census…

As I’ve said elsewhere I spent part of yesterday afternoon in the library researching Ethel Voynich’s early life to see what I could glean from the England Wales census records Ignoring the 1871 census which unsurprisingly confirms she was living … Continue reading

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