1764

Middlesex

At the General Quarter Session 18 Octr, 1764 :

Account of
Proceedings in
Parliament about
Newgate.

John Hawkins< no role > Esqr . layd before this Court an Account of the Proceedings in Parliament
on the Citys of Londons Petitions for rebuilding the Goal of Newgate at the Charge of
the City of London and County of Middlesex and of the opposition of his Majesties.
Justices of the Peace for this County to such Application which Account was read
by the said Mr Hawkins and is as follows

An account of the Application of the City of London to Parliament
for rebuilding the Goal of Newgate and of the opposition made thereto
by the Justices of the County of Middx

On the 28th January 1704 A petition of Several Persons Inhabitants of London residing
near Newgate was presented by Mr Alderman Harley one of the Members for the City to
the House of Commons selling forth that the Goal of Newgate was the Common Goal for
the City of London and County of Middx That for several years last past there had
been Community Annis near one Thousand persons committed to the said Goal
annually two thirds of whom have been Middlesex Prisoners That the said Goal
is a very old ill constructed close and Incommodious Building and in its present
State unfit for the reception of the Prisoners committed thither That a great number
of Prisoners had been usually crowded into the said Gaol at the opening of the,
Several Sessions of Oyer and Terminer and General Gaol delivery held at Justice
Hall in the Old Bailey That the Petitioners were advised it might be in a great
Measure attributed to those Causes that the Prisoners in the said Gaol had been,
frequently visited with a Malignant disease called the Goal distemper by which
many lives had been lost in the said Goal and said Sessions House being contiguous
to said Gaol the Health of all persons resorting thereto must be endangered
That the Petitioners and the several other Persons who reside near the said
Gaol were greatly annoyed by the noxious Effluvia from said Goal and that
some was become a most dangerous nusance

The Petition was ordered to lie on the Table which gave reason to
apprehend that nothing would be done in it but it appearing by the Publick
Papers that the City were preparing plans of a new Gaol and that a committee
to whom it had been referr'd to consider of a place for it had reported the old
Bailey