Looting
We have a rosy picture of the Second World War as a country of stalwart Britons, bravely enduring rationing and all pulling together to support volunteer bodies such as the Auxiliary Fire Service and Air Raid Precautions wardens, all to the strains of Dame Vera Lynn singing There'll be bluebirds over the white cliffs of Dover. But the conflict also brought out the darker side of the people. Reading George Cogswell's excellent article about the impact of the flying bomb raids around Manchester, which will appear in a future Manchester Genealogist, one word recurs in many of the incidents which he describes – looting.
The damage resulting from the numerous air raids, particularly in 1940/41 and later in 1944, left many houses wholly or partially ruined and insecure. Regardless of whether the occupants survived or perished, there were those who would see a damaged home or business as a rich source of plunder. Doubtless many of the incidents of looting went unreported or the perpetrators were never apprehended. However, some of the reports on court cases which were published in the Manchester Evening News shed some light on this grossly insensitive crime.
A search of the Manchester Evening News using the British Newspaper Archive covering the war years produces 31 reports from the Manchester and Salford courts in which the accused is named, and several more relating to juveniles in which no personal details are provided. These provide an interesting picture of the goods stolen and the people who stole them. There are some surprises.
The looters span a wide range of ages. The youngest were an unnamed 8 year old boy and an eleven year old unnamed girl. The oldest a 55 year old "labourer" of no fixed address, described in court as "a tramp". The majority were in their 20s or 30s. However, very few were such obvious potential thieves as our tramp. Where employment status is recorded, we find trades such as a railway engine driver and two firemen, an instrument maker, a shopkeeper and three soldiers. Some are in more surprising occupations. There are two Auxiliary Fire Service (AFS) firemen and an air raid precautions (ARP) Squadron Leader. Even more surprisingly we find a Police sergeant and three constables who between them were accused of stealing goods worth over £600. These last four were bailed to appear at the next Assizes, but no record can be found of a trial. Perhaps the charges were quietly dropped.
The majority of those accused had not taken anywhere near the value of goods alleged to have been looted by the four policemen. Most thefts were pathetically small. Four towels and a vest; four fire grates; six bottles of liniment; a mackintosh were some of the hauls described. One theft of 56 lbs of roofing lead suggests a more professional thief, but most seem to have represented opportunistic pilfering rather than grand crime. Where the accused were children, it is possible that they did not even realise it was stealing. Penalties could be harsh. While some of those convicted escaped with a £5 or £10 fine (no small sum in the 1940s, equivalent to £275 to £550 today), prison sentences from two to six months were common. Presumably the authorities wanted to send out a message.
The names, ages, occupations and home addresses of those appearing in court are set out below. Full details are available to MLFHS members in the Great Database.
ADDISON, Jonathan |
38 |
Shopkeeper |
Dalton Avenue, Stretford |
ALDCROFT, Herbert |
20 |
Soldier |
|
BRADSHAW, Edgar |
17 |
|
|
CHAPMAN, John James |
43 |
Locomotive fireman |
Honduras St, Chorlton-o-M |
COACKLEY, Ezra |
43 |
ARP Sqn. Leader |
High Street, Salford |
COCKER, Edward |
18 |
|
Briercliffe Road, Bolton |
COFFEY, Jeremiah |
26 |
Hawker |
Wheaters Street, Broughton |
DERBYSHIRE, John |
17 |
Instrument maker |
Kennedy Road, Pendleton |
FEENEY, Dominic |
31 |
Builder's Lab. |
Lower Byrom St, Manchester |
FORSYTHE, Kenneth |
17 |
Labourer |
Bishop Street, Pendleton |
GONZALEZ, Sidney Henry |
28 |
|
Arthur Street, Pendleton |
GRIFFIN, James Munro |
36 |
Police constable |
Allenby Road, Cadishead |
HADFIELD, Frederick |
44 |
Police constable |
Werneth Avenue, Rusholme |
HARRISON, Ellis Leslie |
30 |
AFS Fireman |
Alton Street, Hr Openshaw |
HAYES, Rosette Selina |
37 |
|
Cundiff Road, Chorlton-c-H |
HORAN, Kathleen |
18 |
Packer |
No settled address |
HORNE, Samuel |
27 |
Soldier |
|
LANG, Alexander |
30 |
Soldier |
|
LEE, Albert |
|
|
Sleeping in air raid shelters |
MASSEY, Joseph |
20 |
Road sweeper |
Boundary Street, Pendleton |
MILLER, Leo |
46 |
Police sergeant |
Stretford Road, Old Trafford |
O'NEILL, Eugene Jerry |
32 |
AFS |
Cowley Street |
PARKER, Thomas Vincent |
24 |
Locomotive fireman |
Philip Street, Patricroft |
PETERSON, Patrick |
40 |
Labourer |
|
RILEY, Edward |
54 |
|
Embden Street, Hulme |
ROBBINS, Frank Malcolm |
28 |
Police constable |
Milner Street, Old Trafford |
RUTTER, George |
44 |
|
Cross Lane, Salford |
SCHOLES, Edwin Holt |
55 |
Labourer |
No fixed address |
VALLELEY, Leo |
53 |
Locomotive driver |
Hortree Road, Stretford |
WARD, William |
37 |
Police constable |
Addison Cres, Old Trafford |
WIEGELMAN, Vladimar |
18 |
Machinist |
Tootal Drive, Pendleton |
- Hits: 182