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Mary Schofield

Age: unknown

Sex: female

Date: 16 Mar 1917

Place: 23 Aspinall Street, Heywood

Mary Schofield died from an illegal operation.

A woman was tried for her murder but acquitted.

Mary Schofield had been living apart from her husband for two years and lived with a friend at 95 High Street, Rochdale.

The court heard that in March 1917 she and her friend had gone to the house of a woman at 23 Aspinall Street, Heywood and that Mary Schofield had been alone with her for a time and had then paid her some money and left. They took the tram home, however, during the journey Mary Schofield became ill and when they got home she went to bed. The next day a doctor was called but Mary Schofield died on 16 March 1917.

The cause of death was given as injury resulting from the use of an instrument.

However, the woman who was tried said that although Mary Schofield and her friend had come to her house she said that once they told her what they wanted she had refused saying 'You have come to the wrong house. I have been in trouble once and I will not do it again'. She also denied receiving any money from Mary Schofield.

The court heard that the woman had been in trouble about the same sort of thing four years earlier but had been found not guilty.


*map pointers are rough estimates based on known location details as per Place field above.

see www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk

see National Archives - ASSI 52/271

see Rochdale Observer - Saturday 19 May 1917