SIR JOSEPH JONAS (1845 - 1921)
Before I can recount the events of 1918, it is necessary to give a brief biographical account of Joseph's life and career up to the point.
The most succinct account is in The Story of Old Attercliffe (Part3) by C.R.Vine B.Sc
Born at Bingen, on the Rhine, in 1845, and educated there, Joseph Jonas came to
Sheffield about 1870 and commenced in a small way as
steel manufacturer in Bessemer road. Two years later he was joined by Robert
Colver, of Western Bank, and in. 1875 the firm had become
Jonas, Meyer and Colver, manufacturers of steel for tools, files, saws and other
things. By 1890 'Jonas and Colver ' formed one of the
most prosperous concerns in the district, and when, later on, the famous
high-speed steel (to which they gave the name of 1 Novo') made
its impact upon the industrial world, Messrs. Jonas and Colver, were amongst the
first in the market with the new steel. Extending business
necessitated drastic enlargements, and their new premises eventually covered a
very large area.
Mr. Jonas was returned unopposed as town councillor for Attercliffe in 1890,
following Mr. Edward Langton in the Council Chamber (which
eventually became the main room of the former Reference Library in Surrey
street). Thanks to the initiative of Mr. Langton, who, with
his brother, resided at High Hazels for some years, and subsequently to
Councillor Jonas's good efforts, the park was acquired, by
purchase, for the benefit of Sheffield in 1894, including the house built in
1850 by the first mayor, Mr. William. Jeffcock, which is
now, among other admirable features, a gallery of. valuable, and valued, old
Sheffield pictures. Mr. Jonas became Lord Mayor in 1904
and received the Royal favour of Knighthood in the same year. His partner, Mr.
Colver, likewise shared his townsmen's confidence, being
elected to the time-honoured office of Master Cutler in 1890...."
Apart from his contributions to civic life, he was also a valued benefactor to the newly formed University of Sheffield, as well as contributing to many other local charities and institutions. By achieving the post of Lord Mayor in 1904 as well as been rewarded with a knighthood, he had reached the pinnacle of local civic life. He was one of Sheffield's leading figures at the turn of the twentieth century.
In the 15th May 1916 edition of The Times, there is a small paragraph entitled "£32,000 for Sheffield University." It states that "Under the will of the late Mr Edgar Allen, steel manafacturer of Sheffield, the University of Sheffield has received the sum of £32,000. Five thousand of this is for the Applied Science Department and to this sum Sir Joseph Jonas has added £5,00. The total of £10,000 will bedevoted to the provision of a material testing laboratory to be called the Allan and Jonas Laboratory"
I knew of Jonas & Colver, as a Sheffield steel firm but did not bother much about the company until I came across the following article in The New York Times Archive. Whilst some of the information is incorrect, I was astounded to find that a former Lord Mayor of Sheffield acted in a manner prejudicial to the interests of the state.
Further details of the allegations were found in The Manchester Guardian dated 13th June 1918. (There is also a brief resume of Joseph's career to date)
Another report is given in The Times the same day

The following month the following article appeared in
NEWS OF THE WORLD Date: 21st. July1918; Section: Front page; Page:1
AN INTERESTING CASE
SIR JOSEPH JONAS TO STAND HIS TRIAL THIS WEEK
|
Two interesting trials will take place at the Old Bailey this week, before Mr Justice A. T. Lawrence. In the one case Sir Joseph Jonas , 73, the millionaire steel manufacturer, and ex-Lord Mayor of Sheffield, who was born at Bingen-on-Rhine, and subsequently naturalised in this country, will be indicted, in company with Chas. Alfred Vernon, 37, an official of the Ministry of Munitions, and August Kahn, Vernon's father, for conspiracy to contravene the Official Secrets Act by obtaining and communicating for a purpose prejudicial to the interests of the State, information prejudicial to the interests of the State, viz., information relating to a new rifle which Messrs. Vickers were making and to their Crayford works, a prohibited area. The other case concerns Mrs Wohlgemuth, of Church-crescent, Muswell Hill, the French wife of Dr. Adolf Wohlgemuth, a naturalised British subject, whom she is alleged to have shot in the back. The injured man was removed this week to a Harringay nursing home, and it is possible that he may be able to give evidence. At the police-court his depositions were put in. The charge is one of attempted murder. There are 52 cases in the list. The only murder charge is that in which Bertha Carbuccie stands committed for the murder of her husband, a French soldier at Staines |
A week later the News of the World disclosed the following details of the trial
NEWS OF THE WORLD Date: 28th July 1918; Section: Page Two; Page:2
EX-LORD MAYOR ON TRIAL SENSATIONAL CASE AT THE OLD BAILEY
_______
CHARGE UNDER OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT.
Great interest was taken at the Old Bailey in the trial, before Mr Justice
Lawrence, of Sir Joseph Jonas, the wealthy steel-master and an ex-Lord Mayor of
Sheffield, who was indicted with Charles Alfred Vernon, 38, and Karl Auguste
Hahn for conspiring to contravene the Official Secrets Act by obtaining and
communicating for a purpose prejudicial to the interests of the State
information which was calculated to be, might be, or was intended to be useful
to an enemy. Sir Joseph Jonas, who is 73, appeared to have aged since he
appeared at Bow-street. He followed the proceedings with evident anxiety. Hahn
who is 66 and the father of Vernon, was separately indicted for conspiring with
Paul von Contard, of Berlin, and Richard Zieschang, formerly a foreman at
Vickers' Works at Crayford, to contravene the Official Secrets Act, but was
acquitted early in the trial. Vernon's name was originally Hahn but he changed
it in August, 1914. He was the London agent of Sir Joseph Jonas' firm, and was
recently employed in the Ministry of Munitions. The Attorney-Journal (Sir F. E.
Smith, K.C) said that Jonas was a native of the Grand Duchy of Hesse, and was
naturalised as a British subject in 1870. Hahn was also of German origin and was
naturalised in 1884. Sir Frederick, continuing, outlined the result of the
police searches in the office of Sir Joseph and in the rooms of Vernon. "No
material documents were found in the possession of Vernon," he said, "which
indicates that he had hidden them in some other place. It is clear, however,
that Vernon had been in communication with Jonas for a considerable period on
forbidden matters. In November, 1913, a man, Zieschang, was employed as foreman
at the Crayford Works of Vickers Ltd. Since the prosecution began he had been
discharged. another person who figures prominently in the correspondence is Paul
von Gontard, who from the tone of it is an intimate friend of Jonas. He resides
in Berlin, and is connected with an armaments firm which manufactures small arms
on a very large scale. "The glaring impropriety of any one in this country
obtaining information as to our small arms and making it over to a German in an
official position and connected with a company making similar goods for the
German Army needs no words from me." The Attorney General said that at the time
of the correspondence Vickers were making
A NEW RIFLE FOR THE ARMY
and the plans and specifications were stored at Crayford. The documents showed
that through Vernon Jonas obtained particulars of what was going on at the
Crayford factory from Zieschang. The bulk of the documents were found in a
locked cupboard at Sir Joseph's office, and one with the printed heading of the
firm ran:-
Alfred who has a friend named Zieschang, who lives at Crayford, tells me that at
Vicker's works there they are filling up with an American machine, and laying
themselves out to supply the British Government with small arms in a very big
way.
This was signed "C.A.H.," and in Sir Joseph's handwriting was the inscription,
"Please let me have this letter back when I am in Sheffield." On receipt of that
document Sir Joseph, apparently without any request from von Gontard, the Berlin
magnate wrote to him about the contents of the letter, and received a reply
declaring that von Gontard would be grateful if he could give him the
approximate area of Vicker's new works and other important details concerning it
and the new rifle. Then Sir Joseph Jonas appeared to have dictated the following
memorandum to Vernon:-
. . . . What is the size of the new rifle works at Vickers; where are they
situated; how many rifles do they propose to make a day; how many men have they
employed; and could you get to know whether they have any orders from abroad,
and perhaps from your Government? Your information, of course, will be treated
as strictly private. Possibly your friend could get me this information, which
kindly post to me privately.
The Attorney-General added:- "I ought to add here
A FACT THAT MAY ALARM YOU
It will be proved before you that the information Vernon obtained from Zieschang,
and supposed to relate to a gear box, really related to new gear, which Vicker's
were manufacturing to be used in the steering of His Majesty's ships." Another
letter in 1913, written by Jonas, asked Vernon to get the information as soon as
he could. A letter from Vernon followed, giving facts as to Vickers' rifle
factory, and a letter from Jonas to Vernon asked for positive news as to the
small arms, and stated:- "I am pressed for the information." A long letter from
Jonas to von Goulard contained the following:
"Vickers and another firm have together expended £100,000. The Japanese were to
pay the rest, but the worthy Poles did not pay, and the company is now in a hole
... I know still more about the proposed steel works. Please do not mention the
Vickers matter to anyone, because we are not gossips."
After an interview with Zieschang on November 28, 1913, Vernon wrote to Jonas-:
"I am at last able to give you a little more reliable information, after having
today paid a visit to Crayford." The letter declared that 4,000 would shortly be
employed at Crayford. The Attorney-General continuing, quoted from the letter:-
"I gather a very elaborate system of machine ............ with the intention of
automatic production by girl labour. In addition, I am told, preparation is
being made to manufacture 200 flying machines with engines of 200-horse power.
They are also interested in the varying speed gear to which I made reference in
my last. If there is any other information I can later on procure I shall be
glad to tender any further service."
Later con Gontard wrote to Sir Joseph Jonas recording his best thanks " for your
kind lines", and concluding "Best wishes from home to home." Hahn had
erroneously supposed to be dead, and he was not included in the original charge,
but afterwards appeared at Bow-Street with the others. "The charge is a very
grave one," the Attorney-General concluded "even at any time and in any
circumstances. It is made much graver by the terrible situation in which this
country finds itself today." After police and other evidence, Col Stuart Brown,
experimental instructor in small arms at Hyde, expressed the opinion that the
information contained in the documents produced in court would be useful to the
enemy. On the close of the case for the prosecution Mr Tindal Atkinson submitted
that there was no case to go to the jury. Mr Justice Lawrence said the Act of
Parliament was clear. It was passed to protect the Government from having plans
and acts communicated to others which was deemed prejudicial to the State. Mr
Atkinson said his defence was that Sir Joseph Jonas had not the slightest
intention of doing anything prejudicial to the State. He obtained this
information merely to satisfy a trade inquiry made to him by a customer, and not
with any purpose of prejudicing the State. Counsel argued further that Vickers
Ltd, was not a prohibited area within the meaning of the Act. Sir Ernest Wilde
submitted that there was no evidence again Hahn. After legal argument, Mr
Justice Lawrence held that there was no evidence against Hahn, and the jury, by
his direction returned a verdict of not guilty, and Hahn was discharged. Sir
Joseph Jonas in the witness box, gave particulars of his German origin and
connection with Sheffield, and said that both before the war and since he had
always been against the military party in Germany. He had known von Gontard for
between 30 and 35 years. Von Gontard was in Sheffield as a young man, and was
his
VERY OLD AND VALUABLE FRIEND
and also a valuable customer. In September, 1913, he went to Berlin and met
Gontard, who said: "I say Jonas, I have heard Vickers are going to make small
arms. You know we are making arms for the world and evidently Vickers are going
to try to do so also. I would like to know what kind of proposition we are going
to get. Can you enlighten me?" Witness promised that he would, and asked Gontard
what he wanted to know. Gontard replied that he wanted to know how many rifles
Vickers were going to make, the size of the works, and where they were. Witness
said he would try to oblige him. Witness added that he sent on the information
to Gontard almost word by word as he had received if from Vernon. __ Sir F E
Smith (cross examining): You were German Consul at Sheffield, I believe? __ Yes,
and whilst I was I did not get much pleasure out of it. I was the man who
attacked their dumping. When I went to Germany I was told, "You are a nice
representative of Germany." I replied that I took the action I did because......
The next weeks edition gave the verdict
NEWS
OF THE WORLD Date: 4th August 1918; Section:
Page Two; Page:2
£3,000 IN FINES, SIR JOSEPH JONAS GUILTY OF MISDEMEANOUR
| After a four days' hearing at the Old
Bailey, the trial of Sir Joseph Jonas (74) steel manufacturer and former
Lord Mayor and German Consul at Sheffield, and Charles Alfred Vernon (38),
manufacturer's agent, and an official at the Ministry of Munitions,
residing at Glenmore-Road, Hampstead, indicted for conspiring with Paul
von Gontard, the head of a Berlin armament firm, and Richard Zieschang, an
employee at the Crayford works of Messrs Vickers, Ltd., came to an end.
The charge against the two men was that of conspiracy to contravene the
Official Secrets Act, 1911, by "obtaining and communicating for a purpose
prejudicial to the interests of the State information calculated to be
directly or indirectly useful to the enemy." It was alleged that in 1913
Sir Joseph Jonas, who was born in Germany, but was naturalised in 1876,
sent to von Gontard information about a new rifle and shop's steering gear
that were being manufactured at Messrs. Vickers' works at Crayford, Kent.
Vernon is also of German origin and his father, Carl Augustus Hahn, was
discharged early in the proceedings, the Judge holding that there was not
sufficient evidence for his case to be left to the jury. Mr Tindal
Atkinson, K C for Sir Joseph, said his client took upon himself the sole
responsibility for obtaining the information, which was in no sense
intended to assist a possible enemy. Sir Joseph's sole purpose was to
satisfy the inquiry made by a large customer, who, unfortunately, was in
Germany, as to certain matters connected with a firm that was about to
open business in competition with Gontard. It was deplorable in the
interests of justice that this case should be tried in reference to
matters which took place nearly five years ago, and nearly a year before
the outbreak of war. Mr Justice Lawrence said it would be most unjust for
the jury to allow their minds to be prejudiced against defendants because
of the monstrous conduct of the Germans in this war, of which neither they
nor anyone else in 1913 dreamed. If the jury found that the defendants had
no intention of doing anything prejudicial to the interests of the State,
they would probably find them not guilty of felony. __ The jury were away
for an hour and a quarter. They found both defendants not guilty of
felony, viz., conspiracy to injure the interests of the State, but guilty
of misdemeanour, namely, Sir Joseph guilty of aiding, abetting, and
procuring Vernon to obtain and communicate information relating to a
prohibited place , and Vernon guilty of having in his possession certain
information relating to a prohibited place obtained in contravention of
the Official Secrets Act, and communicating to to an unauthorised person.
__ The Judge (addressing Jonas) said he had been found guilty of
misdemeanour, and not of the crime of felony. "The very serious aspect of
the case," continued the Judge "has been negatived by the jury. I do not
myself disagree with the jury in their conclusions. I think they have come
to a merciful and reasonable conclusion. The same is true of you, Vernon,
that you have both been guilty of a misdemeanour, which, from its very
nature, is a very serious one, as it concerns the safety and interests of
the State. It is manifest that you were grossly negligent of those
interests. I do not propose to send either of you to prison, because I
think the view the jury have taken that you did not consciously intend to
injure the State is a true one. Punishment upon you by imprisonment would
be unnecessarily harsh. I must, however, show the gravity of the view I
take of your offence, and therefore, I impose upon Sir Joseph Jonas a fine
of £2,000 and upon Vernon £1,000 and you must jointly pay the costs of
this prosecution. |
If Sir Joseph thought his trials were over, and yes they were, he was sorely
mistaken. Within a week of the trial ending the national newspapers were
reporting that on 6th August 1918.
Mr Bonar Law announced in the House of Commons yesterday
that the case of Sir Joseph Jonas, recently convicted for supplying information
to Germany connected with the mechanism and construction of a new rifle intended
for use by the British Army, would be submitted to the Advisory Committee under
the British Nationality and Status of Aliens Bill, should that measure become
law.
Just over three weeks later on 30th August 1918 it was announced that
SIR JOSEPH JONAS DEGRADED
The King Deprives Him of His Knighthood
The Home Office announces:
The King has been pleased by letters patent under the Great Seal of the United
Kingdom to degrade Sir Joseph Jonas from the degree of Knight Bachelor.
Sir Joseph Jonas was in June , with Charles Vernon , employed at the Ministry of
Munitions, charged with conspiring in 1913 to contravene the provisions of the
Official Secrets Act by communicating to Germany information respecting Messrs.
Vickers ' rifle works at Crayford , Kent . He was found not guilty of felony,
but guilty of aiding and abetting Vernon to communicate to him information
unlawfully obtained and was fined £2,000
And on 15th September 1918, the newspaper reported that
MR
Mr Joseph Jonas, who last month was degraded by the King
from the degree of knighthood has been removed from the list of Sheffield J
.P's.
And so in the space of less than six weeks Joseph had been put forward for deportation after living in this country for 48 years, stripped of his knighthood and removed unceremoniously from the Sheffield bench. And this was for a so called "misdemeanour". This in my opinion is the one key feature of the whole case. - the speed and alacrity with which Joseph was stripped of his position in society
After reading the details of the court case, it is absolutely preposterous to suggest that Joseph was in anyway prejudicing the interests of the state. At the time these so called "offences" took place Britain was not even at war with Germany. Sir Joseph was doing what he had always had done, protecting his business interests. As one of Sheffield's leading steel manufacturer's, he would naturally be keen to know of the latest developments in the fields of weaponry and ordnance - his business like many today depended on knowing the right people and being in the right place at the right time. It was what he and his partner had done for many years and so what had changed.
My impression and I believe that of others at the time was that the prosecution was a politically driven one. 1916 had seen the Allies incur hundreds of thousands of causalities on the Western Front. 1917-8 was even worse as conditions deteriorated rapidly at home with severe food shortages, scarce fuel supplies and widespread industrial unrest. The traditional tactic of the ruling classes in such cases is to find scapegoats, and of course the Germans fitted the bill perfectly. The widespread anti-German sentiments fuelled by a jingoistic press even prompted the Royal Family to abandon all titles held under the German crown and to change German-sounding titles and house names for English-sounding versions. On 17 July, 1917, a royal proclamation by George V provided that all agnatic descendants of Queen Victoria would be members of the House of Windsor with the personal surname of Windsor. In Sheffield the Professor of German at the University Julius Freund was interned as an alien despite having worked there since 1908. In December 1916 the University Council shamefully removed his Chair whilst he was in prison - he had committed no offence
This coupled with the fact that Joseph was also Jewish to boot, inspired the prosecution or to my mind the persecution of Joseph. The ridiculous attempts after the trial to deport or repatriate him to Germany did nor succeed although it involved a lengthy legal battle with the Home Office.
There is no doubt that the case took a heavy toll on Joseph who was 72 years old at the time the case started. Sir Joseph Jonas died in Endcliffe House, Enfield in 1921 due to a stroke. The University of Sheffield's Centenary History "Steel City Scholars" mentions the case on page 80-81. It reveals that Sir Joseph was well liked in the city and even after his public humiliation he was still referred to as "Sir Joseph" by his workforce. It records that the general view in Sheffield was that the punishment was excessive but then curiously adds that his actions were most unwise at a time of Anglo-German tensions. If that was the case why did the authorities bring a case in 1918 and not 1913? Even as late as May 1916 was still making large and significant donations to the University of Sheffield, surely not the actions of a man who was acting in a manner prejudicial to the state.
The Manchester Guardian published his obituary on 24th August 1921

His obituary in The Times dated August 25th 1921 is entitled "DEGRADED FROM KNIGHTHOOD - THE JONAS CASE RECALLED" and gives a brief summary of the case. It also then goes on to state that the reason why Joseph came to England in the first place was his total refusal to do military service in Prussia. He came to England in 1867 and came to Sheffield two years later. His naturalization came in 1876 the same year he married Lucy Earle
The obituary appeared on the same day that Joseph's funeral took place. The following days' edition of The Times reported that
"FUNERAL OF MR. JONAS
The funeral took place at Sheffield yesterday of Mr Joseph Jonas, a former Lord Mayor of Sheffield, an obituary notice of whom appeared in The Times yesterday. The large gathering at the Cemetery included not only people assembled out of curiosity but also representatives of every side of the city's activities. The Lord Mayor and Mater Cutler attended, and the University was represented by Lieutenant Colonel H.K.Stephenson, M.P. D.S.O. Pro Chancellor and other leading officials, including dr Ripper head of the Applied Science Department of which Mr Jonas was formerly chairman and one of its largest benefactors and Sir William Clegg chairman of the department and of the Sheffield Education Committee, The Chamber of Commerce and other commercial interests were also represented."
He was buried in Ecclesall Parish Churchyard in Sheffield."
The well attended funeral and the presence of civic leaders and businessmen supports the prevalent view that Sheffield believed that the case was politically inspired and that Joseph should be remembered first and foremost as an outstanding businessman, generous benefactor and prominent civic leader.
As a post script his widow Lucy Jonas remarried Sir William Clegg, brother of Sir Charles Clegg. The January 29th edition of The Times refers to the Will of DAME LUCY ANN CLEGG of Kenwood, Nether Edge Sheffield and of Bothamsall Hall, Retford who died on January 3rd, age 76, wife of Sir William Clegg and widow of Mr Joseph Jonas (who was Lord mayor of Sheffield in 1904 )left unsettled property valued for probate at £487.
It should be pointed out that the letters patent under the Great Seal of the United Kingdom to degrade a person from the degree of Knight Bachelor is a very rarely used measure. The previous person to Sir Joseph was Sir Roger Casement (see note). The next letters patent were issued by the present Queen in respect of the traitor Anthony Blunt in 1979 and the fraudster Lord Kagan in 1881. Lord Kagan was stripped of his knighthood awarded in Harold Wilson's dissolution list of 1970 but still allowed to retain his life peerage that was awarded to him in 1976. Apparently it needs an Act of Parliament to annul a life peerage.

There is an academic paper** which I have not read which will no doubt look into the case with far greater insight than I have. I would be interested to find out what his conclusions were
On December 23rd 2007, I went to Ecclesall All Saints Churchyard in an attempt to locate Joseph's grave. For a local parish church it is quite an extensive churchyard covering eight acres and is the last resting place for as many as 14.000 people. Unfortunately I could not access the burial records and so it was a mater of following my nose. Fortunately I came across the grave quite soon as it was adjacent to the one of the main paths. As you can see from the photograph I was rather pleased to have found it!
And once more it revealed some more information that I was unaware of. Firstly buried alongside Joseph is his wife Lucy Ann even though she remarried after Joseph's death, And although the name of her second husband WILLIAM EDWIN CLEGG is on the memorial, the family did not disclose the fact that William Clegg was in fact Sir William Clegg and that Lucy Ann was DAME LUCY ANN CLEGG. The following obituary is taken from The Manchester Guardian dated 4th January 1929

Incidentally Lucy's will was published in The Manchester Guardian dated 29th January 1929

All mention of public honours were omitted from the memorial which gives an indication of what the family thought. But even sadder was the inscription
IN LOVING MEMORY
OF
JOSEPH JONAS
OF ENDCLIFFE HOUSE, SHEFFIELD
WHO DIED AUGUST 23 1921 AGE 76 YEARS
ALSO LUCY ANN WIDOW OF THE ABOVE
AND WIFE OF WILLIAM EDWIN CLEGG
DIED JANUARY 3rd 1929
IN LOVING MEMORY OF
HENRY JONAS
WHO DIED ON EASTER TUESDAY
APRIL 16TH 1915 AGED 30 YEARS
I was unaware that Joseph's son HENRY had died at such a young age, but then again that was the fate of many thousands of people at the time. It must have been a traumatic time for Joseph even before the arrest and trial. The other thing that saddened me was the state of the grave. The memorial itself is in excellent condition for its age but the surround looks as though it was lightly concreted over at a later date and this has now broken up due to weathering. Plants have grown through the cracks and so it does look rather neglected. It seems to me that the original intention was to line the grave-memorial with flowers but his descendents may have moved away from Sheffield and/or died hence the decision to concrete the surround.
As for Sir Joseph's mansion it is now a University of Sheffield Hall of Residence called Halifax Hall. I do not know the exact circumstances how the University came to acquire the Hall but I can say it did occur three years after the death of Joseph in 1924. It was initially used for just women students.
Notes
1.Married LUCY ANNE EARLE (December 1876 quarter Ecclesall Bierlow Volume 9c Page 371)
In June 2010 I was contacted by a reader of this site who kindly scanned me the following photographs

They were purchased on EBAY. They are German Carte de Visite of Sir Joseph Jonas and his wife. Apparently they came from an old photograph album and were identified in writing underneath. I am placing the date of the photographs circa 1875.
2.1881 Census - Joseph is not listed but his 28 year old wife is alongside her two year old son ROBERT JONAS and one year old son JOSEPH K JONAS. The address is 452 Glossop Road, Ecclesall Bierlow, Sheffield (Reference RG11 Piece Folio 4633/152 Page 42 ). There are also three young female servants
3.The 1901 Census shows Joseph as a 55 years old Steel manufacturer living at 46 Endcliffe vale Road together with his 49 year old wife Lucy Ann. As well as Manufacturer he is also listed as Justice of the Peace and German Consul. Also living there were his sons ROBERT, JOSEPH K and FRANK aged 22,21 and 13 respectively. There is also a 10 year old daughter called Margueritta and a household of six servants. The two eldest sons are cited as being steel manufacturers but are workers not an employers like their father. No mention of a Henry Jonas though. (RG 13/4340 Folio 148 Page17)
4.White's
1901 Directory gives the following information
"The Sheffield Reform Club, established in 1885, occupies the principal portion
of the Gladstone Buildings, at the corner of Church Street, St. James' Row and
St. James' Street, erected in 1885 by a limited company, at a cost of upwards of
£8,000, in the Domestic Gothic style. The ground floor is occupied as shops and
offices, and part of the first floor as offices; the club portion comprises
dining reading, billiard, and smoke rooms, and kitchen &c., and cost upwards of
£2,000. The Club has now about 500 members. J. Jonas, Esq., J.P. is president;
Mr. R Smith, treasurer; Mr. Arthur Neal, hon. secretary; and Mr. James L Taffe,
business secretary"
5. Sir Roger Casement - As British consul in Africa (1895–1904) and Brazil (1906–11), he became famous for his reports revealing white traders' cruel exploitation of native labour in the Congo and in the Putumayo River region of Peru. Ill health forced his retirement to Ireland (1912), where he joined the Irish nationalists and helped form the Irish National Volunteers. After World War I broke out, he sought German support for the Irish independence movement. For his additional intrigue in the Easter Rising, he was convicted of treason and hanged. His execution made him an Irish martyr in the revolt against British rule in Ireland
Sources
New York Times - 13th June 1918
News of the World dated 21st July 1918
News of the World dated 28th July 1918
News of the World dated 4th August 1918
The Story of Old Attercliffe (Part3) by C.R.Vine B.Sc as transcribed by Eric Youle
University of Sheffield's Centenary History "Steel City Scholars" by Helen Mathers
The Times dated 13th June 1918
The Times dated August 25th - 26th 1921
The Manchester Guardian 24th August 1921
The Manchester Guardian dated 4th - 29th January 1929
**Sir Joseph Jonas, University Benefactor, Lord Mayor of Sheffield 1904-5 —
German Spy?’
in: R.J. Kavanagh (ed.), Mutual Exchanges I. Papers presented in commemoration
of the 50th anniversary of the Sheffield-Münster academic links. 1999,
Frankfurt/ Main: Peter Lang, pp. 310-329
This page was last updated on 05/07/10 12:07