William Frederick Horry, also known as Fred Horry (December 1843 – 1 April 1872), was the first person to be hanged by Victorian hangman

William Marwood William Marwood (1818 – 4 September 1883) was a hangman for the British government. He developed the technique of hanging known as the " long drop". Early life Marwood was born in 1818 in the village of Goulceby, the fifth of ten childre ...

, and the first to fall using the long drop method. He was hanged at

Lincoln Castle Lincoln Castle is a major medieval castle constructed in Lincoln, England, during the late 11th century by William the Conqueror on the site of a pre-existing Roman fortress. The castle is unusual in that it has two mottes. It is one of only ...

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincol ...

, England on 1 April 1872, aged 28, for the murder of his wife, Jane Horry.

Biography and crime

Horry was born in December 1843, in

Boston, Lincolnshire Boston is a market town and inland port in the borough of the same name in the county of Lincolnshire, England. Boston is north of London, north-east of Peterborough, east of Nottingham, south-east of Lincoln, south-southeast of Hull ...

, England. He married Jane in 1866 and they took over the George Hotel together in

Burslem Burslem ( ) is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Longton and Stoke-upon-Trent form part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is often referred to as the "mother town" of Stoke on Trent. T ...

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

, England. By September 1871, the two were estranged due to Horry's

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol (drug), alcohol that results in significant Mental health, mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognize ...

and accusations of Jane's

infidelity Infidelity (synonyms include cheating, straying, adultery, being unfaithful, two-timing, or having an affair) is a violation of a couple's emotional and/or sexual exclusivity that commonly results in feelings of anger, sexual jealousy, and riva ...

with customers. Jane went to live with Horry's father in Boston with their children whilst William stayed at the hotel. William made attempts to visit his family but due to his abusive behaviour, he was barred from further visits. Unable to maintain the business on his own, he sold the hotel and moved to

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

. In 1872, William pleaded with his wife a final time to return to him with their children. After being unsuccessful, he travelled to Nottingham, purchased a

revolver A revolver (also called a wheel gun) is a repeating handgun that has at least one barrel and uses a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold up to six roun ...

and ammunition before returning again to Boston to murder his wife.

Trial and execution

At his trial on 31 March 1872, he pleaded

insanity Insanity, madness, lunacy, and craziness are behaviors performed by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity can be manifest as violations of societal norms, including a person or persons becoming a danger to themselves or to ...

but the prosecution successfully argued that the crime was premeditated. He was sentenced to death by hanging the following day. William refused all appeals and was executed by William Marwood on 1 April. William Marwood had never hanged anyone before but persuaded the authorities in Lincoln to allow him to try a new "long drop" method. The long drop method is designed to snap the condemned persons neck instantly, causing unconsciousness and eventually

asphyxia Asphyxia or asphyxiation is a condition of deficient supply of oxygen to the body which arises from abnormal breathing. Asphyxia causes generalized hypoxia, which affects primarily the tissues and organs. There are many circumstances that can i ...

tion, it was considered a more humane method than the existing short drop method that had been used for centuries. The execution went without any complications and Marwood went on to hang 176 people. A memorial to William Frederick Horry exists in

consisting of a granite

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by Anc ...

. William is buried in a simple grave in the Lucy Tower of

. The grave (featuring only the initials of the condemned and the date of death) is well preserved and is still visible, along with many other criminals' graves. The name Horry is still common in the

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (abbreviated Lincs.) is a county in the East Midlands of England, with a long coastline on the North Sea to the east. It borders Norfolk to the south-east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south-west, Leicestershire ...

area, but William's particular line has apparently died out following the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

.Boston Standard: Letters to the editor

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Horry, William Frederick 1843 births 1872 deaths People executed for murder People from Boston, Lincolnshire Executed people from Lincolnshire 19th-century executions by England and Wales 1872 murders in the United Kingdom

Biography and crime

Trial and execution

See also

References