Mike Covell’s Blogg

It has been on the cards for a while, but this morning I finally got the time to travel through to Beverley and visit East Riding Archives and it wasn’t going to a wasted journey.

I had always wanted a copy of the Marriage of Deeming, under his alias Lawson, to Miss Matheson of Beverley and among the parish registers of St Mary’s Church I found it.  The certificate has seen better days and a large tear exists along the centre, but all the details are readable.

With the certificate in hand I decided to search the Beverley Guardian for the period, and found the Wedding among the BMD’s.  Again, this provided yet more details of the couple.  Especially Deeming, who had writted not one, but two different names and surnames for his father!

Next up I decided to search the same publication for the trial of Deeming in September 1890.  This was the trial where Deeming was charged with Fraudulantly obtaining jewellery from Messrs. Reynoldson and Son.  Not only did I find several newspaper articles pertaining to this case, I also discovered more than was initially featured in the Hull Press at the time!  Among the articles were several local articles with commentary from people that knew Deeming whilst he was in Beverley.

Next up I decided to check the same publication for the year 1892 for the trial of Deeming, and sure enough not only did I find new articles, but many of them featuring the local slant on the case, and interviews with Beverley locals!

After this I perused a scrapbook that featured Deeming on several occasions and consisted of newspaper cuttings from the Yorkshire region. 

I was also informed of two photographs on file of Deeming, and managed to look at one of them taken by Barry of Spring-street, Hull!

The staff at East Riding Archives were fantastic and really helpful, often pointing me in the right direction and helping me with the reader printers which seem to differ from Archival Centre to Archival Centre.

Afterwards I took a walk through Beverley market, taking in the sights and smells of the stalls and made my way up to the St Mary’s Church.  As a child we had visited here, and I had been informed then of the alleged link between Lewis Carroll and the rabbit carved in stone in St Michael’s Chapel here.  After walking around the church I managed to find the rabbit and after asking permission was allowed to snap several photographs.

I also managed to obtain photographs of the Chancel, where Deeming, posing has Harry Lawson, would have stood in 1890, telling his new bride that he was a single man, and thus begining his downfall.