The Setting
Fifty-five-year-old Catherine Churchill was a farmer’s wife who lived at Knowle St. Giles near Chard in Somerset.
A Disturbing Morning
One morning in early March 1879, Eliza Whatley, a neighbour of the Churchills, was taking breakfast to her husband George, who was working in one of his fields. As she walked past the Churchills’ cottage, she heard a male voice shouting, “Murder, murder.” This was followed by groaning and then the same voice shouting, “You brute.”
Eliza looked toward the cottage and saw the head and upper body of a woman in a “stooping position,” apparently dragging something heavy across the living room floor.
Explore more historical capital punishment cases with a free collection of 10 detailed accounts.
Free PDF • Instant access
A Suspicious Discovery
Around 10:00 a.m. that day, Catherine Churchill asked George Whatley for his help, telling him that her 82-year-old husband, Samuel, had fallen into the fire. George went to the cottage with Catherine and found Samuel lying on his back with his head in the grate. The back of Samuel’s head and one shoulder were badly burned.
Catherine had gone to the Ship Inn around 9:00 a.m., which had been witnessed. It was only when she returned that she asked George for assistance. Was she trying to produce an alibi, perhaps?
Police Involvement
Another neighbour, Charles Forsey, found the death suspicious and sent for the police. Catherine told them that she and Samuel had gotten up around 8:00 a.m., had breakfast together, and that Samuel had then sat by the fire to smoke a pipe while she went to the Ship Inn. When she returned, Samuel was lying in the fire, and she had thrown some water on him to stop his clothes from burning.
The policeman found Samuel’s pipe, noticing blood on it and on the floor near the fireplace. He also found a billhook under a chair with bloodstains on the blade.
Medical and Forensic Evidence
Samuel’s body was examined by Dr. Munden, who found fresh cuts to the hands and determined the blood on the billhook was also fresh. Catherine suggested Samuel had cut his fingers chopping wood the previous day.
Samuel’s daughter by his first marriage, Sarah England, found a blood-stained woman’s dress in the upstairs bedroom. She turned it over to the police, who then arrested Catherine and charged her with murder.
The Trial
Catherine came to trial before Baron Huddlestone at the Somerset Assizes held in Taunton in early May 1879.
Evidence Presented
Neighbours gave evidence of physical and verbal abuse that Samuel had suffered at the hands of Catherine and their son, Samuel Waldron. Dr. Munden testified about the bloodstain evidence, but it could not be scientifically confirmed at the time whether the blood was human or animal. Samuel had reportedly killed and butchered a pig shortly before his death.
Why he would have used a billhook—a tool meant for cutting hedges and undergrowth and certainly not for butchery or chopping wood, as Catherine claimed—remained questionable.
Motive and Will
Much attention was given to Samuel’s recently changed will. The prosecution alleged that Catherine believed he was going to see his solicitor that morning in nearby Chard to change it again, possibly in favour of his daughter. They speculated that Catherine feared being cut out of the will. In reality, Samuel had left Sarah England just £5 and willed the rest of his estate, including the cottage, to Catherine for her lifetime.
The Defence
The defence, led by Mr. Aubyn, argued that Samuel’s death was an accident caused by a fit that led him to fall into the fire. He also challenged the blood evidence’s validity. However, this argument did not convince the jury.
The jurors initially wanted to return a verdict of manslaughter, but Baron Huddlestone instructed them they must find her guilty of murder or acquit her completely. Catherine denied everything flatly.
The Execution
Despite local efforts to obtain a reprieve for Catherine, none were successful. She was visited by her family in Taunton Gaol and continued to maintain her innocence.
At 7:45 a.m. on Monday, the 26th of May, 1879, the prison bell began to toll. At 8:00 a.m., Catherine was hanged by William Marwood on a gallows erected in the prison’s van house. She died without a struggle.
Around 500 people gathered outside Taunton Gaol to see the black flag raised, signifying the execution had been carried out. Notices of execution were posted on the main gate. Reporters were not admitted.
The Inquest
The formal inquest was held at 10:00 a.m. by coroner Mr. William Munkton. The jury was taken to the van house, where Catherine’s body lay in a rough wooden coffin. As required by law, Edward Kitley, the deputy governor, identified the body to the jurors. William Liddon, the prison surgeon, certified her death.
Support the Archive
If you have found this article useful and would like to help preserve and maintain this historical archive, please consider supporting the site.