The Bread and Jam Murder - Sheffield 14th May 1959
A correspondent to the excellent Sheffield History Forum posed the following question in January 2009
"I am researching a murder that took
place in Sheffield - details that I have are below:
The person who was murdered was Female with a surname of Widdison. The murder
took place in about 1957, although it could have been a year or two either way.
The murder took place on Macro Street which used to be in Pitsmoor.
That's all I have, although I did hear someone refer to this murder as the
Bread & Jam murder?
All help gratefully received"
Very intriguing especially when a reply came
"The murder was called "The Bread and Jam Murder" because from what we can gather the mother or Margaret Widdison who was murdered was ill through drink and only fed her children bread & jam. This statement is from someone who can remember the murder so I guess you could call it hearsay. The Times did report the murder twice but no further information was ever published. The papers from the trial are kept in the National Archives in London and are closed for 92 years from 1959 so roll on 2051."
The only report I could find at the time was in The Manchester Guardian dated 25th June 1959 which gave the following report of the trial and the final verdict
Nos. 2-8, Cross Macro Street, Pitsmoor Sheffield looking towards the Railway, picture shows the steep gradient and single type houses with blind backs
In March 2010 I obtained a report of the murder that appeared in The Sheffield Star dated 15th May 1959
But when I went to access the newspapers report of the final court case, I found out that at the time of the trial there was an industrial dispute at the Sheffield Star and so no newspapers were published which may partly account for the fact that the murder of Margaret Widdison is now long-forgotten.
In January 2017 when I was researching another article I came across this report from the Yorkshire Post and Leeds Mercury dated Tuesday 22nd June 1954. It is undoubtedly Margaret Stewart who features in what only called an extra-ordinary case. The actual marriage took place nine years earlier in the September quarter of 1945. This is the record
Surname First name(s) Spouse District Vol Page
Marriages Sep 1945
Stewart Margaret Williamson Sheffield 9c 1030
I can only guess that the reason why proceedings were started nine years later is that Margaret wanted to marry someone else which she duly did. The fact that the marriage was nullified meant that Margaret reverted to her maiden name
Surname First name(s) Spouse District Vol Page
Marriages Sep 1954
Stewart Margaret N Widdison Sheffield 2d 476
WIDDISON George Stewart Sheffield 2d 476
WIDDISON George Widdison Sheffield 2d 476
WIDDISON Margaret N Widdison Sheffield 2d 476
The report also tends to substantiate the clains that were made about Margaret in court.
As a post-script, the father David Stanley Stewart never returned home. There is an entry in the BMD registers for the March quarter of 1961
Surname First name(s) Age District Vol Page
Deaths Mar 1961
STEWART David S 70 Wakefield 2d 887
His daughter Margaret is buried alone in Sheffield's Shiregreen Cemetery
WIDDISON, Margaret Florence Nellie (Housewife, age 39).
Died at 1 Cross Main St; Buried on May 21, 1959 in Unconsecrated ground; Grave Number 1167, Section A of Shiregreen Cemetery, Sheffield.
Parent or Next of Kin if Available: ~. Remarks: ~.Plot Owner: ~ ~ of ~. Page No 42
Notes
1. Surname First name(s) District Vol Page
Births Mar 1891 STEWART David Stanley Ecclesall Bierlow. Volume9c Page 389
1911 Census
Personal Information Name David Stanley Stewart Condition Single Gender Male Age 20 Estimated Year of Birth 1891 Occupation Private Employed Yes Working at Home No Industry Army Place of Birth Sheffield Yorkshire Enumerator Information Address Point Barracks Broad Street Portsmouth Parish Portsmouth Town Portsmouth Type of Building Barracks Number of Rooms 7 Inhabited Y Reference RG14PN5613 RG78PN254 RD90 SD4 ED21 SN157 Administrative County Hampshire Registration District Portsmouth Registration Sub District Portsmouth and Mid Southsea Enumeration District 21
Marriages Sep 1915 Stewart David S Lewis Sheffield Volume9c Page1242
Marriages Sep 1915 Lewis Florence Stewart
Sheffield Volume9c Page1242
Birth June 1920
Stewart Margaret F Lewis Ecclesall Bierlow. Volume9c Page 1049
Surname First name(s) Spouse District Vol Page
Marriages Sep 1954
Stewart Margaret N Widdison Sheffield 2d 476
WIDDISON George Stewart Sheffield 2d 476
WIDDISON George Widdison Sheffield 2d 476
WIDDISON Margaret N Widdison Sheffield 2d 476
Surname First name(s) Age District Vol Page
Deaths Sep 1959
WIDDISON Margaret F N 39 Sheffield 2d 206
2. Macro Street, which ran from Pitsmoor Road down to Woodside Lane was demolished in the summer of 1960, a year after the murder. This is a cutting from an old Sheffield Telegraph showing a painting of the bottom end of Macro Street. It was done by an artist called A. H. Taylor, and was exhibited at the Graves Art Gallery in early 1960's (From The Sheffield History Forum)
Sources
The Sheffield Daily Telegraph
The Sheffield Star dated 15th May 1959
The Manchester Guardian dated 25th June 1959
Sheffield Indexers
Free BMD
Yorkshire Post and Leeds Mercury dated Tuesday 22nd June 1954
This page was last updated on 08/01/17 07:47