Remembering in red ink the first hanging at the Barton Street Jail
It's not the kind of book to read as a bedtime story.
The time-worn, leather-covered journal is scarred, bulky and filled with the grimmest of detail.
But, if you are looking for a glimpse at Hamilton's underbelly in Victorian times, and have a stomach for some gruesome recollections, there is no better place, or better pages, to turn.
In remarkable penmanship, rogues and miscreants are chronicled from Sept. 1, 1868, to Aug. 7, 1887, over hundreds of ledger pages. You can read what the criminals did, when they arrived in jail, who visited them, and when they were released.
And sometimes, they never got out.
Amid the hundreds of entries in the County of Wentworth Jail Report," one item in red ink - instead of black - stands out. It draws attention to the first person to be hanged at the Barton Street Jail, 146 years ago this week.
Michael McConnell was executed at 8:10 a.m.," it says matter-of-factly next to the date March 14, 1876. Present the Hon A McKellar Sheriff, D McNabb Deputy Sherriff, James Osborne and James Walker JP Dr. Rosebrugh ... and a number of other visitors ..."
It mentions an inquest and then describes the final resting place for McConnell's remains: Body buried in the southeast corner of the East yard 3 feet from the wall at the head and 3 feet from the wall at the feet."
What yard? What wall? It's not clear. But it's known there was a small graveyard on the grounds of the Barton Street Jail that would continue to be used for executed prisoners in the future.
Roger Fuller's family has owned the 10 by 13 by 2-inch book since the 1970s. A now deceased uncle who worked for Corrections Canada ended up with it around the time the old Barton Street Jail was torn down to make way for the current jail that opened in 1978.
After his uncle's death, the book was passed on to Roger's dad, Ted Fuller, 87, and over the years it has gone back and forth between the two. Roger, 60, says he someday would like to see it put on public display at the Local History and Archives section of the Hamilton Public Library or maybe at a future Hamilton history museum.
When he turns the pages, he imagines a nameless clerk quietly recording moments from the bleak existence of the jail. The arrivals of women who came to knit and sew bed linen and covers are mentioned. Men who chop wood and tend to the furnaces are noted.
There are tales of inmates being put on bread and water diets as punishment for bad behaviour. One prisoner was lashed 50 times. There are countless stories of children charged with larceny," men arrested for vagrancy and public drunkenness, and women hauled in for prostitution-related charges.
The logs cover a period when the old city jail was attached to the Wentworth County Courthouse across Main Street from what is now the John Sopinka courthouse as well as the newly opened Barton Street Jail after prisoners were moved there in 1875 and 1876.
There are numerous references to McConnell, 38, who was held in jail for nearly three months from the time of his arrest in January 1876 through his trial, execution and burial three months later.
Visits by his wife, clergy and jail officials are recorded. There is even mention about reporters from The Hamilton Spectator and Hamilton Times meeting with McConnell less than 24 hours before the hanging.
So, what did McConnell do to find himself with a rope around his neck? It was a case that might described as rent rage."
The victim, Nelson Mills, was McConnell's landlord. McConnell was withholding $14 in rent to try to force Mills to make some much needed repairs to his home. McConnell, a butcher with a stall at Hamilton market, lost his temper when he learned his landlord was trying to evict him and his wife.
He took a large butcher knife and stabbed Mills eight times near the corner of King and Queen Streets.
Mills died four days later. McConnell's lawyer claimed his client was not guilty by reason of insanity, claiming McConnell had previously suffered a severe blow to his head that adversely affected his judgment. But the court didn't buy it.
Standing on the gallows, McConnell said, I am placed here in a very solemn position which I say from my heart I never deserved. If I am the murderer of Nelson Mills, I never planned or contrived it. If a little moderation on Mills' part had been shown it would have saved us both. I was his tenant for four- and one-half years. Fourteen dollars was the full amount, and he knew I was worth more than that."
Barton Street Jail hangings
A total of eight people were hanged at Hamilton's Barton Street Jail from 1876 to 1953. Before the jail was built in the mid-1870s, there were local hangings at other locations, most notably eight people at Burlington Heights in July 1814 during the War of 1812 after they were convicted of treason.
March 14, 1876 - Michael McConnell, 38, was hanged for the stabbing murder of Nelson Mills.
June 23, 1899 - Benjamin Parrott, 30, was hanged for the axe-murder of his 60-year-old mother, Bridget, during a drunken argument.
Dec. 7, 1900 - George Arthur Pearson, 20, was hanged for the revolver shooting death of Annie Griffin.
Dec. 27, 1907 - Jacob Sunfield was hanged for shooting and killing Andrew Radzik. He claimed he was innocent.
Dec. 19, 1919 - Paul Kowalski was hanged for murdering Ignace (Knot) Trembluk during a robbery of $700. Two weeks before his hanging, Kowalski also murdered two jailers in an escape attempt.
Jan. 12, 1927 - John Barty, 50, was hanged for the hammer killing of Nancy Cook of Welland.
July 8, 1930 - Mike Smith, 46, was hanged for the killing of John Iwanetz, who he shot and pushed down some stairs during a robbery. Four faced charges in the robbery, but Smith was the only one to hang.
Feb. 3, 1953 - Harry Lee, 37, was hanged for the murder of his girlfriend, Mary Rosenblatt. Lee claimed he was innocent.