Obit of the Day (Historical): Jack Sheppard (1724)

It took just two years for Jack Sheppard to transform from carpenter’s apprentice to noted thief, jailbreaker, and folk hero. One year shy of completing his apprenticeship, a 20-year-old Sheppard turned to a life of crime, and though he was not a very successful burglar, he was a master of escape.

Mr. Sheppard escaped from prison four times during his short criminal career, each more dramatic than the last:

• In the early spring of 1723, he was arrested for pick-pocketing, Mr. Sheppard was in jail for all of three hours before he broke through a timber ceiling and lowered himself to the ground using his bedclothes, all while wearing handirons.
  
• On May 25, 1723, the again-imprisoned Sheppard filed through his manacles, pried an iron and wooden bar out of his cell window and again lowered himself to the ground with a rope made of sheets. This time he was joined with his known associate and prostitue, Elizabeth Lyon, or “Edgworth Bess,” who was sharing a cell with him.
• More than a year later, on August 30, 1724, Mr. Sheppard was once again incarcerated. In preparation for escape, he filed a spike that blocked the entrance to the cell to the point where it could break off easily. His good friend Bess and her colleague, Moll Maggot, came to the prison and distracted the guard, while Sheppard pried off the spike and shoved his slight five-foot frame through the opening. He then dressed in women’s clothing brought by his accomplices and escaped.
• Free for less than two weeks, Mr. Sheppard was brought in again on September 9. But he would not be kept. This time he boldy managed to pick his way out of his cell with a bent nail, broke through several more doors and made it to the prison roof. Realizing he couldn’t climb or jump down on his own he returned to his cell and retrieved a blanket. He then made his way back to the roof and climbed onto a neighboring home, broke in, escaped through the house without waking the occupants, and made his way to the streets - while wearing legirons

After this final escape Mr. Sheppard was famous. Daniel Defoe penned The History of the Remarkable Life of John Sheppard, which added even more drama to the already dramatic prison breaks. 

Law enforcement was not amused.

Mr. Sheppard was arrested a final time on November 1, 1724, after he was discovered drunk and wearing stolen jewelry. Finally understanding that changes needed to be made to keep the wily Sheppard in prison, guards placed him in the Middle Stone Room in Newgate prison which was visible from all sides. Not above making a little money themselves, the guards charged visitors four shillings a person to meet and talk with the infamous Sheppard.

Although pleas were made to King George I to commute the young thief’s death sentence, they were ignored and he was to be hung on November 16. Thousands attended the hanging, where they could pick up a new copy of Mr. Sheppard’s autobiography, probably ghostwritten by Mr. Defoe. But Mr. Defoe was not present just to ensure book sales, he and his publisher had a plan to rescue Mr. Sheppard from the gallows. They hopes to wait the required fifteen minutes after the platform dropped, take Mr. Sheppard down, and attempt to revive him - the greatest of escapes. Unfortunately the crowd was not informed of the plan and in an act of sympathy, after Mr. Sheppard’s body was dropped through the floor, people grabbed his legs and pulled to ensure a quick death.

Jack Sheppard was 22 years old when he was executed.

Sources:  Historic UK and Wikipedia

(Image of James Sheppard awaiting his execution is an engraving by George White created in 1728, and based on a painting by James Thomhill, King George’s court painter, in 1724. The painting is lost.)

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