The Great Wyrley Outrages were a series of horse and cow mutilations in the village of Great Wyrley, Staffordshire, in 1903, and the long investigation and legal cases that followed. George Edalji, son of the local vicar and of Indian Parsi descent, was wrongly convicted of the crimes and, after serving three years’ hard labour, was released and eventually pardoned, thanks in part to the intervention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

Edalji’s story is fascinating in its own right, and has been the subject of several books - I particularly enjoyed The Mystery of the Parsee Lawyer by Shrabani Basu - but this article is about the small parts played by two members of my family: Hollis Morgan, who was arrested on suspicion of the crimes a year after Edalji’s release and later married into my family, and William Stokes, my 2nd great grandfather, who arrested him.

A newspaper black-and-white photograph of William Stokes in an Edwardian police uniform. William Stokes as depicted in a newspaper circa 1912. This was sent to me as a photocopy without a citation, and I haven't been able to find the article in any of the online newspaper archives.

Morgan – full name Francis Hollis Morgan – was born in Cheslyn Hay, a village directly adjoining Great Wyrley, in 1885. By the time of his arrest in 1907, he was a journeyman pork butcher, and later specialised as a slaughterman. After the release of George Edalji the previous year, there had been much speculation in the local community about who the true culprit might have been, and a general atmosphere of suspicion around anyone who seemed to know too much or have too strong an opinion. This led to the police investigating Morgan:

According to the "Daily Gazette" it appears that two or three days ago the manager of a well known hotel at Wolverhampton was discussing the Wyrley outrages with a police constable, when he remarked that a customer of his had spoken rather strongly about the maiming, and when theories as to the authorship of the outrages were mentioned this young man invariably fired up in a great passion. The conversation and the account given of the man's conduct put the officer on his guard, and he told the circumstance to his inspector. The latter took a full statement from him, and laid it before the Chief Constable (Captain Burnett). Superintendent Stokes and Detective Inspector Lewis then commenced investigations narrowing their field of inquiry down to Hollis Morgan.
— Cannock Chase Courier, 7 September 1907

Superintendent Stokes is William, my 2nd great grandfather. He had been born in Cheslyn Hay in 1863, and as a young man initially worked as a coal miner before joining the police force in 1886. He quickly rose through the ranks, becoming assistant clerk to the Chief Constable in January 1887, Sergeant and chief clerk in 1890, acting Inspector in 1891, Inspector in 1892, and Superintendent of the Police and Fire Brigade in 1900, a role he would remain in until his retirement after 25 years’ service in 1911. A newspaper report on his retirement summed up his career as follows:

At the end of the present month Superintendent William Stokes retires from that important position in the Wolverhampton police force, after contributing the full number of years of service with credit to himself, with distinction, and to the satisfaction of the authorities and the borough as a whole. Superintendent Stokes will leave Wolverhampton with the best wishes of many friends. He has long been a familiar figure in the town, and has borne an official part in numerous important events. At all times he has been a courteous and obliging officer of the force, and he has discharged his onerous duties with great efficiency, thoroughness, and devotion. His work in connection with the Fire Brigade has often placed him in positions of serious peril, but he has not spared himself, and has been exposed to the same risks in that important department as his subordinates. That he should have come through so many ordeals unscathed is a matter for satisfaction; and now that he has finished his successful career as second in command of Wolverhampton's police he merits and will receive hearty congratulations. Superintendent Stokes, we may add, intends to reside in the Chase district, where he at one time worked as a humble miner, and from which position he by dint of personal worth, perserverance, and study, rose from constable to superior officer. We wish him a long and happy period of retirement.
— Wolverhampton Express and Star, 6 July 1911

William married my 2nd great grandmother Hannah Martin in 1884, and they had seven children – four daughters and three sons. William died at the young age of 55 in 1918, and Hannah, who never remarried, survived until the age of 90.

Back to the story of Hollis Morgan’s arrest:

After complete inquiries Captain Burnett communicated with Captin Alison, and on Thursday Chief Superindendent Bishop paid a secret visit to Wolverhampton. He was met at the station by Superintendent Stokes and Detective Inspector Lewis, and several interviews were held. Superintendent Bishop was interviewed in the train on the way to Stafford by a "Gazette and Express" representative, and remarked that there was no further development, and that he had done nothing at Wolverhampton that morning. Throughout the day Superintendent Stokes and Detective Lewis conducted special observations in the Horsely Fields district, and early in the evening Captain Anson arrived, and was met at the station by Captain Burnett.
The next development took place shortly after eight o'clock, when Superintendent Stokes and Detective Lewis stepped into the butcher's at Horseley Fields, and arrested Morgan. He was immediately conveyed to the Central police station, and after being seen by the police constables he was removed to the cells. [...]
Hollis Morgan, as stated above, is a native of Cheslyn Hay and is connected with well-to-do working class families. Indeed at Cheslyn Hay very many of the inhabitants are in some way related. He was formerly in a small way of business for himself in a cottage near the Lord Nelson, but whether he found the business did not pay or not, certain it is he worked as a journeyman butcher. His father formerly worked for Messrs Hawkins and Sons. There is, it is stated, a rather large family, and his mother lives in Hill street, or near there. All the family are respectable, and hence there was more than the usual excitement when it became known that he had been arrested. This was added to when it became known that another inhabitant had been warned that his services would be required at Wolverhampton and it was stated he had proceeded there.
— Cannock Chase Courier, 7 September 1907

Hollis Morgan was held in custody while further investigations took place, and appeared in court three times of the course of the following week. The evidence given against him was found to be very poor, and the conclusion was reached that there was no suggestion that he could have been responsible for the crimes, and he was released:

Lord Hatherton [the head magistrate], addressing Morgan, said :- You are discharged, and the Bench are of the opinion that you are responsible to yourself for the trouble brought upon you by your foolish statement.
— Lichfield Mercury, 20 September 1907

That seems to be the end of Hollis Morgan’s story with the law, but perhaps the strangest part is still to come: in early 1909, barely 18 months after his arrest, Hollis Morgan got married. His wife was Annie Stokes – William’s daughter. I’m sure that there must be an interesting story behind how Hollis came to marry the daughter of the man who had arrested him, but I haven’t been able to find any newspaper articles about their marriage or any other sources that might suggest how they met or what their families thought about it.

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