In October 1835, Samuel Burrows was slowly dying. Suffering from liver disease, the 63-year-old knew he had little time left to confess his sins. The Reverend William Clarke offered Burrows some religious guidance so he could attempt to salvage Burrows’ soul before the eyes of God. He knew the struggle that fell before him; after all, it was not every day that Clarke had to provide religious comfort to a man who had sent around 53 individuals to meet their maker.
Burrows felt little remorse for his actions. In his view, the law was the law and they deserved their final punishment, a punishment which also provided Burrows with some much-needed income. Clarke spent a week with Burrows as he died. He attempted to help Burrows examine his life and career as Chester’s Hangman. Did they all deserve it as Burrows stubbornly believed?
This book takes a deeper look at Chester’s infamous hangman and those he condemned to death by delving into the crimes they had committed. The book also looks at the social, economic, and political changes that the country endured during his 26-year career. From his days as a butcher and beadle to gaining employment as the city’s executioner during the era of the “Bloody Code” to the act's eventual repeal.
The Noose of Samuel Burrows takes you on a journey through early 19th-century crime and punishment through the eyes of those who lived through it.
