John returned the next day
to dispose of the body and
there he used his once taught
butchery skills and cut off her
head, arms and legs. Not all
of Celia fit into the trunk he
had prepared; so, some parts
where hidden in the privy
at a house in Margret Street
and some went missing. In
the middle of that night John
took the trunk of body parts
upon a wheelbarrow and dug a
shallow grave in a place called
Lover’s walk in Preston, Brigh-
ton. It is still named to this day
although these days its ap-
pearance has changed signifi-
cantly. Lover’s walk ironically
was a well-known and popular
place for courting couples in
those
days.
Unfortunately for John the
weather tuned for the worse
and extreme rain began to
wash away the soil uncovering
his once loved wife.On the 13th August 1831 two
local men named Gillam and
Maskell noticed something in
the path at lover’s walk. The
soil appeared disturbed with
some fabric poking above the
surface. After seeking help
of the Preston policeman by
the name of Elphick they dug,
leading to the discovery of
poor Celia’s butchered body.
Only eighteen inches deepwas the first portion, a thigh, followed by
another thigh and then the torso which
was wrapped in a bundle made from a
petticoat. The head, arms and portions
of leg were missing. Word quickly spread
around Brighton and large crowds formed
in order to identify the body. One of these
was a Mrs Bishop who confirmed that this
was the body of her sister, Celia.Ann was taken into custody as the
police found her first and upon
hearing this John handed himself
in. He was found guilty and was
hung on the 16th of December
1831 at Horsham gaol. The very
next day his body was put on
display at Brighton town hall and
around 23,000 people visited
to see it. His body was then
dissected and used for research.
Ann was cleared.The remains of Celia were interred in
St Peter’s churchyard, Preston within a
wall and pathway close to Lover’s walk.
Celia’s previous history would not allow a
churchyard burial although what portions
of her that were recovered were placed
within the wall behind a plaque; a plaque
dedicated to her and remains there today.