Julia Wallace Murder Case

[Ged]

What did Tom, Pete and your son discuss then LindyLou?

[lindylou]

The Wallace case.

[SteH]

Originally Posted by ChrisGeorge

Hi Ged

I'm not sure there was any evidence of anything stolen in the house though was there?

Chris

According to William Wallace, some cash was taken from a jar.

[Ged]

Yes, his Pru takings were missing, but as he'd been ill the previous week, it wasn't as much as it might've been.

LindyLou, I know that much What bits of the case did they discuss, does your son have an opinion on 'Whodunnit' (remember that show) - did he give Tom Slemen's newish angle on it any credence?

[lindylou]

Originally Posted by Ged

Yes, his Pru takings were missing, but as he'd been ill the previous week, it wasn't as much as it might've been.

LindyLou, I know that much What bits of the case did they discuss, does your son have an opinion on 'Whodunnit' (remember that show) - did he give Tom Slemen's newish angle on it any credence?

Sorry Ged, I wasn't intending to be sarky

get ready for a lengthy post :

My son is only 13 and just getting interested in the case. I've always told him about it as I was brought up in Wolverton st, so my family were always interested. As kids we used to play right outside of no. 29, and run around the back entry behind the wallace house.
The famous phone box where he made the phone call - we used to pass it most days. There was always a phonebox located on that spot but in recent years has been removed.

Of course we grew up knowing about the murder and would tell scary tales about the blood on the walls of the front parlour (as it we used to call a front sitting room then).

The house remained unmodernised until recent years.
Throughout the 1960s when I was a kid it always looked old fashioned as you see it in the old photos. It wasn't brought up to date and refurbished until the latter years. Can't recall exactly when - but I do know that the house never changed for long enough - even when most of the other houses were brought up to date, no.29 stayed the same.
It was a bit disappointing really when it did get modernised - all the character of the house altered and the air of mystery taken away. ( I wish we'd taken more photos of our days in that street - and of the Wallace house as it was then - but you don't think at the time, and people didn't bother with cameras as much then).
Still, the house had to change eventually and things have to progress.

My grandmother told us that, when she was young, she spoke to Wallace on one occassion. She went to pay some insurance money at the house. Forget the details now. She said he was a bit odd and quite brusque in manner .. she always believed that he did the murder. We would always argue about it because I was never convinced ! Also, regarding one of the theories of Julia having an affair .. my grandmother maintained that Julia was the last type of person to be having an affair as Mrs Wallace was somewhat antequated and dowdy, a little eccentric, a very quiet and timid kind of lady.

I don't live in Wolverton street now, we left some years ago, but I still know some of my old neighbours who are still there.


ps,

the DVD 'Burke's Law' by Vincent Burke is ok, but I found it disappointing as so much detail was left out.

[Ged]

Great stuff LindyLou. There's a bloke who has posted some pics up of some of the areas covered in the case, in the link given by ChrisGeorge earlier. It seems most of themare still there in one guise or another - the newsagents, the post office is still a post office - 29 Wolverton street is still there etc as is the triangle of land where the phone box was. There has been mention of perhaps both of them having an affair, but it seems unlikely in both cases if their grey, stoic,understated manner is anything to go by. So many unanswered questions though and a case where legal history was made, possible 2nd only to Jack the ripper for mystery and intrigue and how fitting in a funny sort of way that Liverpool should be involved in both world famous cases.

[lindylou]

That triangle of land you mention (opposite the LFC Supporters club - the former old Cabbage Hall cinema) - is known as the 'triangle' by local Anfielders. We always refer to the 'triangle'.

I have photos of when the triangle was a little gardens surrounded by hedges. There were seats in there and a couple of small flowerbeds.
It's how it would have looked in Wallace's day.
It was still like it during the early 60s and I can just about remember it.
It's just a flat area of grass now where the pigeons congregate.

[Ged]

[Mark R]

Yes, that triangle of land. It was originally Rochester Road I believe. My mother was born in Clarendon Road 3 years after the murder, and was christened in Holy Trinity Church. My great-aunt had dealings with Wallace and she was convinced he was guilty - 'I always knew there was something about him. He always had cold hands'
My grandfather regularly used to see Wallace as well and believed he was innocent. I have never been convinced of Wallace's guilt. The complete lack of bloodstaining on his person points strongly to his innocence I believe.

[ChrisGeorge]

Originally Posted by Mark R

Yes, that triangle of land. It was originally Rochester Road I believe. My mother was born in Clarendon Road 3 years after the murder, and was christened in Holy Trinity Church. My great-aunt had dealings with Wallace and she was convinced he was guilty - 'I always knew there was something about him. He always had cold hands'
My grandfather regularly used to see Wallace as well and believed he was innocent.

Hello Mark R.

Great to see you here. I believe you will know me from the Casebook: Jack the Ripper website. Contemporary views of people involved in famous cases are always interesting. I found George Skelly's The Cameo Conspiracy to be quite persuasive, although I have recently read Richard Whittington-Egan's assessment that the alleged gunman, George Kelly--whom he had met--was the "Little Caesar of Lime Street." It still doesn't mean of course that Kelly did the double murders of the manager and assistant manager at the Cameo Cinema in Wavertree on March 19, 1949 but RWE's characterization of Kelly gives one pause for thought.

Chris