Expert’s Choice
Dr Nell Darby is a crime historian, TV presenter and author ( nelldarby.com)
Throughout my career researching and writing about the history of crime, one website in particular has been invaluable. Old Bailey Online ( oldbaileyonline.org) contains the details of 197,745 trials that took place at the Central Criminal Court of England and Wales in London, also known as the Old Bailey, between 1674 and 1913 – and the site is completely free.
The online resource – a collaboration between three universities – has a wealth of information, and this goes beyond the basic details of crimes and trials. You can use the search page ( oldbaileyonline.org/forms/formMain.jsp) to look for an individual, an offence, a verdict, a sentence or even time period, but you can also search for a keyword. So if you want to know how often a particular profession is mentioned in the Old Bailey proceedings, you can type it in and search for it.
You can also use the site to see what offences were common at different times, or what items were frequently stolen in theft cases, for example. There’s also an incredibly useful range of historical background provided, covering areas such as types of crime, trial procedures, the various punishments that could be ordered, and much more.
Even if your London ancestors were law-abiding, you may find them mentioned on Old Bailey Online because they were witnesses to a crime, victims or members of juries. The website brings often very ordinary people to life, giving details about what they did, where they lived, who their friends or acquaintances were, and sometimes even an insight into how they spoke.