Calendars of Prisoners

From 1761, prisoners in the goal and all the houses of correction are normally given, but the lists are not complete.

The manuscript calendars and early printed calendars give name, offence, and usually by whom and when committed [to gaol or house of correction].

From 1819, columns are added for age and sentence, but the sentence is not always given in 1819 and the 1820s, and is not noted at all in the calendars of those who are to take their trials from 1830. However, sentences are given in the calendars of those who have taken their trials (later called Sentences of the prisoners) which first appear in 1830.

The level of literacy is given from June 1835 and from January 1854 columns are provided for the prisoner's trade and stages in the case.

Note that until Jan 1826, the Calendars referred to prisoners in the Gaol and Houses of Correction but from Apr 1826-Jan 1828 to prisoners in the Gaols and from Apr 1829 to prisoners in the Gaol.

The calendars (lists) of prisoners were probably originally part of the sessions bundles, but the bundles were broken up in the late 19thc and the constituent papers rearranged according to type of document. It seems probable that many of the bundles listed here were created out of this dispersal of the contents of the sessions bundles.

From at least 1830, more than one copy of each calendar was printed and, from the 2 bound volumes of calendars annotated with expenses in the cases, it is evident that separate copies were used for different purposes. There may, therefore, be 2 or more series of mid-19thc calendars represented here, one or more of which may not have been part of the sessions bundles. In addition, there are other series of papers having a connection with the calendars.