Elizabeth Mugway, my great great great great great grandmother, was in the papers for having been neighbour to a murder victim, Hannah Giles, killed by a man, Samuel Seager, who obsessively stalked Hannah while her husband was out rat catching with his dogs and ferrets. Elizabeth was well acquainted with both Hannah and her killer Samuel.
In such days, Elizabeth was known by her married surname Roberts, by this time in her late 80's and a widow, living along in a cottage of Otterden. It was in 1827 that Elizabeth's husband Charles died in this same village. It was now 1839, Elizabeth having been a widow for 12 years.
As a child, Elizabeth had led a travelling life, she herself born in Eastling, Kent, in 1753. Hers does look very much to have been a gypsy background, not only because each of her siblings was baptised in a different location of Kent, but also she marrying a Roberts man, the Otterden Roberts being known to have been a gypsy family. Elizabeth and Charles Roberts married in Otterden in the St Lawrence Chapel on May 19th 1776. Charles was the illegitmate son of a Mary Roberts, his father being unknown, and his mother having died when he was aged 16. Elizabeth was born to John Mugway and Elizabeth Fonisett, her own mother having died as well, a few years earlier. Within Kent her family had travelled from place to place, known locations being Halden, Stalisfield, Eastling, Leaveland, and Guston.
1839 2nd February was the date of the murder of Elizabeth s neighbour, Hannah Giles. As we have seen, Elizabeth was living as a widow, and her neighbour, and also friend, was Hannah Giles, aged 41, who on the evening of this day was killed by a 28 year old shoemaker whom she sometimes bound shoes for, Samuel Seager, who was a widower with two sons. That very morning Samuel had called at Elizabeths house, he being a friend of hers as well, and he had spyed from her place, watching the door of Hannahs house, trying to work out if Hannahs husband Stephen Giles had already left for work. Having concluded that this was so he went round there. Stephen had been miserable for some days, for he and Hannah had been secretly romancing, but which she now wanted an end to. Elizabeth appears to have been a confidente in this affair, having familiarity with both parties and full view of the comings and goings at Hannahs house. Elizabeth noted that he spent an hour round at Hannahs house after which she saw him come out with Hannah and one of Hannahs sons. Elizabeth had come to check on what was happening and on seeing Samuel she said to him shouldn't he go and he said he was and off he went. It was later that day in the early evening that Samuel killed Hannah as she was on her way to babysit the children of a nearby famer, Henry Jenkins. It was the farmer who found Hannah's body in the early hours of the morning, lying dead with her clothes nearly burnt from her body, and an old pistol close by. As a surgeon did reveal, her throat was cut, as was a finger upon each hand, this being done by a razor, by which he would have been grabbing her from behind, her body was burnt due to her clothes igniting from the pistol shot, and she'd been shot in the thighs, seemingly to handicap her before further attack. The deep slashing to her throat would have killed her instantly. Prior to this event, both Samuels mother, and a visiting girl, 15 year old Ann Harris, had struggled with him at his shoemaking shop to try and prevent him going out with his gun, he having made there a lead bullet in a hole which he had carved into a potato. His mother was even down on her knees praying and begging him to stay home, and both she and Ann tried to block the door, but they could not stop him in his resolve. They had rather suspected his intention to be suicide. His mother said he had been deranged for a week or two, his manner changed and his talking incoherent. It was cold and snow was all around and after killing Hannah on the road Samuel went on the run, to be later apprehended in another county, his description having been circulated in a the newspapers. 'He is about 5ft 5 inches high, of a light complexion, pale face and light hair, walks stoopingly, has a slow, whining mode of speaking through his nose, is about 30 years of age, and a shoemaker by trade. He had on when last seen a dirty fustian shooting coat, corded striped trousers, boot shoes, newly soled and specked, and black hat.' It was understood he had relations in London and somewhere beyond London. It was in the county of Warwickshire that he was found, he having enquired there about work on the railroad, falsely giving his name as William Roberts. He denied the murder at first, but then confessed. When asked why he did the deed, he said it was because they'd 'had words'. For this Samuel was sentenced to execution.
A map in one paper shows the layout of the cottages, including the one in which lived Elizabeth Roberts. A gate led to four cottages of Otterden, between a blacksmiths forge and the pathway to Stalisfield Green. The path beyond the gate led through gardens to the cottages, the first detached one being Elizabeths. Then came a row of three cottages, on the end of which was the shared bakehouse. First was the cottage of Hannah and Stephen Giles (Hannah being the one murdered, her husband being a ratcatcher), then was the cottage of Spillets, and then of William Jenkins (brother to the farmer Henry Jenkins). It was on route along the road to the home of a farmer Henry Jenkins, where Hannah had been heading to babysit the Jenkins children, that she was murdered in the snow by Samuel Seager who was obsessed with her. Whether an affair truly happened between them was not known for certain by investigators, but at the very least Samuel was obsessed and stalking her, for the fear of which Hannah would always tell her oldest son, Stephen, to stay and not go out when he was around. Most of the villagers assumed Samuel to be a harmless man, being meek, honest and sober of habits, short with fresh complexion and not anything of the ruffian in him.
Location of Elizbeths cottage, Hannahs cottage, the bakehouse where Hannah was laid when dead and the place she was killed (marked by the red cross)
Elizabeth Roberts statement: 'I live in a cottage very near to that of Hannah Giles. One of my windows overlooks the door of it. I know the prisoner (Samuel Seager). He was very often in the habit of going there. Deceaseds husband (Stephen Giles) who is a ratcatcher is much out. The prisoner came when he was out. I remember the Saturday of the murder. Prisoner came to my house and stayed about three quarters of an hour. He asked me if 'they were at home at the other house' (meaning the Giles). I said I had heard them about. He said that he thought he had tracked Giles's dogs out in the snow. He said to me something about a woman, and I said 'You are a hem queer fellow, Sam'. He warmed himself by my fire, but went to the window that overlooked Giles's door several times. After he had left nearly an hour I went to Giles's house. I went to the door and met the woman coming out. At the front door, which was open, Samuel Seager made his appearance, together with one of the deceaseds children, about eight years old. I said 'What, be'ant you gone Sam?' and he replied 'No, I am going directly'. I saw him go away.' Being coss examined Elizabeth said 'Giles is very much employed, and keeps several dogs and ferrets. He often goes out to some distance and is out a great deal, sometimes all day and a good part of the night. I never saw Seager there at night.'
One of the sons, Stephen Giles, said his mother always wanted him to stay home when his father was out and Samuel called round. Samuel would stand talking and never sit down. He had never seen Samuel lay hold of or kiss his mother. Another brother said on that Saturday Hannah had frequently told Samuel to go away, and his constant answer had been that he was going in a minute. The conversation had been about Hannah cutting for Samuel a pair of trousers which he wanted her to make for him. Rumour in the village was going on about Hannah and Samuels secret illicit connection, for which he constantly visited her, this being made mention of by the farmer Henry Jenkins. Whatever had or had not been their past connection she had become troubled by his frequent loitering and desired to be left alone.
On that fateful evening, Hannah had left her youngest child in the care of Elizabeth before setting off to babysit and her two sons had at that time gone off to the shop at Stalisfield Green. These boys, while on a footpath across a field, on their way back to Otterden, even heard the gun shot and screams, but had no idea it was their mother being attacked. The boys called on 'old Mrs Roberts' as they called Elizabeth, before retiring to bed. One newspaper article says they told her what they had heard and another that they had not. At any event, she being, it was said, 'old and decrepit' raised no alarm to others in the area.
When Hannahs body was found, it was brought to be laid in the bakehouse at the end of the cottages, and many people including strangers came to look upon her. The women of the cottages, no doubt including Elizabeth Roberts, stood in a group together with swollen eyes from crying, in deep grief, wearing black in respect to Hannahs memory. With the body being in such a state the women were requested to prepare her to be better viewed by covering her naked burnt body. Stephen Giles, Hannahs husband, stood near his three sons, those boys being in confusion, and he was leaning against the wall with a handkerchief to his face, stupified by grief. Samuel had run away and not yet been found. His wife had died about a year previously. He is said to have been a nervous sickly looking man. He was constantly running to and from Hannah's house. Hannah had been binding shoes for him for about a year and Stephen had heard gossip about the two of them being intimate, but had never himself seen anything improper. Hannah had never complained to Stephen about Samuel going round, but he was fed up with Samuel going there and had had words with him. This was because of what he had heard from other people about what was going on.
Up until Samuel was captured, Elizabeth and the other local women were too afraid even to leave their cottages. Even three days after the murder, despite the rain and thawing of the snow, Hannah's blood was still visible in the puddles of the road.
Life carried on, resuming to normal, and in 1841 the census shows Elizabeth to still be living, a lone widow, aged 80, at a hamlet called Woodsell.
1841 Census Stalisfield, Kent Woodsell Elizabeth Roberts, age 90
In that same year of the census, Elizabeth Roberts died. Elizabeth Roberts, Burial 31st December 1841 at Otterden Kent