Origins
The Warwickshire Reformatory Institution for Girls was established in 1856 at Allesley Farm, Tile Hill Lane. At first glance, this half-timbered cottage with 19th Century additions must have closely resembled its agricultural origins, rather than that of a reform institution accommodating 22 inmates. However, in 1961, when the building was demolished, barred windows, heavy locks and bolts and spy holes in the doors were still evident. It was run by a private committee which included Lord Leigh amongst its members.
During the Victorian period, girls and women were generally marginalised figures and their perceived capacity for criminality was no exception, the notion being that the problems of female delinquency were small compared to that of boys. However, the problem was growing and on 1st March, 1869, the Reformatory at Tile Hill moved to larger premises at 61, Little Park Street, Coventry, where it could house 40 inmates and was re-named the Warwickshire Reformatory for Girls. This site had previously been the county hospital, purchased by Richard Greaves for the sum of £800. Public subscription allowed for the refurbishment.
The Principles of the Reformatory
Just after the move, the annual meeting of the committee was held at St Mary’s Hall, an account appearing in the Warwick and Warwickshire Advertiser. The Mayor addressed those assembled, saying that, “ …the Reformatory movement was one which must commend itself to the minds of all persons having benevolent ideas, it being a most humane and philanthropic object to seek to convert children who had been initiated in the ways of vice and crime, into useful and industrious citizens.” He hoped that “many juvenile delinquents had been arrested in the early stage of a vicious career and made honest members of society”.
There is the sense that the reformatory movement was considered most modern and enlightened, described by the mayor as “thoroughly in harmony with the spirit of the present age and favourably contrasted with a few hundred years ago…the whipping post, the pillory, the stocks and the dungeon…[which] probably acted as a deterrent from crime, but could have no tendency to reform the offenders.” He went on to tell his audience that at a reformatory, the young person – too young to be dealt with as a young offender “would have the opportunity of redeeming their characters and afterwards becoming useful members of society”.
At the reform schools, children were given industrial training with a focus on agricultural training for boys; the boys reformatory being situated at Weston-under-Wetherley. The girls at Tile Hill also did washing and laundry work, expanded upon at Coventry in the larger premises. The newspaper report tells us why the move to Coventry was necessary: the building at Tile Hill could take only 23 girls and the demand was greater. In the last year at Tile Hill, there had been 14 admissions, 6 discharges, 6 girls released on licence of which 5 were conducting themselves satisfactorily according to their employers. 23 girls were in the reformatory at the end of the last year. The Vicar of Westwood, Rev. Edmund Roy (see a previous Memory Monday to learn more about him) was a said to be a “zealous” worker acting as both Honorary Secretary and Chaplain.
Real people, real lives
The 1861 Census provides a snapshot of the situation at that time, showing that the Reformatory was run by a matron, Miss Wakelin, assisted by Miss Mason and a trainee, Miss Agnes Stones. These three women were responsible for 21 girls. It is interesting to see that the girls were from around the country – including Lincolnshire, Dumfries and Buckinghamshire – as well as closer to home.
Looking at the ages of the girls on this census, the oldest was 18 years old, the youngest, Emma Botham, just 10. This seems an incredibly young age to be in a reform institution and prompted me to want to discover more about her background. Emma Botham was from Tissington, a Derbyshire village, where she lived with her parents, Sarah and John, a labourer. Emma was the second oldest of seven children. At the time of the 1861 Census, her parents were living with their other children; Ann, Daniel, Herbert, Charles, Alice and Frank. The children’s ages ranged from 12 years down to 6 months.
The Derbyshire Advertiser & Journal of November 23rd 1860, carried a brief report of Emma’s crime: .
“Emma Botham, 10 years old, was charged by Dorothy Staley of Tissington with stealing 2s 6d from her shop-till on the 16th inst. Committed for one month and 3 years to a Reformatory School.”
This seems like a harsh punishment. In spite of her tender age, perhaps she had “form”; although I could find no other record of any offences committed by Emma before or after her time at the Tile Hill Reformatory, so maybe she truly mended her ways – or maybe not. By 1871, she was back at her parents’ home, where there have been two additions to the large family: 8 year old Mena and 5 year old Allan. Her older sister Ann and young Alice, only 12, were living away, but working together locally as domestic servants. Given that domestic service was the most common work for women in this period, it is interesting that Emma has not found such a situation. Sadly, the next record I can find for her is her burial record – 21st June, 1872 aged just 22 years of age.
This is just one girl’s story, simply scratching the surface of Emma’s life and begging many questions about her and her fellow inmates. What were their offences? What lives had they led before being committed to a reformatory? Did the reformatory live up to the expectations of its proponents, providing the girls with skills and enabling them to lead useful lives? One thing is known – the need for such institutions continued to grow. In 1903, it moved once more, this time to purpose-built premises in Kenilworth, opened in 1907. More research is planned into the activities of the Tile Hill Reformatory and the lives of its inmates.
Images:
Photographs showing the original 18th Century farmhouse with 19th Century additions prior to demolition in 1961 (unattributable images).
Map of the area in 1920 showing the site of the Old Reformatory (Copyright Cassini Publishing Ltd. and used with permission).
Sources:
Warwick & Warwickshire Advertiser, 10th April, 1869. (Accessed at www.findmypast.co.uk).
We are always looking to increase our knowledge of the history of the area. If you have any old photographs or recollections that you are happy to share with the Westwood Heath History Group, please message me, leave a comment or email me at www.westwoodheathhistory@gmail.com
Comments