Tweet
I'm not going to upload all the gory details as it deals with sexual violence, but sometime back I noticed that there is a long, handwritten statement by Albert Bachert's sister, Augusta Collinson, still in existence. She was attempting to divorce or become legally separated from her husband, William Collinson, a merchant marine, and was describing the physical abuse that she had endured.
According to her statement, William Collinson placed certain sexual demands on her, referring to them as his 'marital right,' and if she refused, he would assault and/or rape her. She writes that on one occasion he threw her down a flight of stairs, seriously injuring her, and as a result he was sentenced to several months of hard labor by the Thames Police Court, but I haven' found any other reference to this case.
What I find equally disturbing, however, is that the divorce must not have been granted, or was withdrawn, because the 1911 Census shows that August and William are still living together.
Worse yet, Bachert's other sister, Flora Steffin is also in the same home, listed as their domestic servant. Flora is the same sister that Albert Bachert was living with in 1901, which might signal that he is now out of the picture, as she was forced to live in what must have been very unpleasant surroundings. So now the brutish William Collinson has two Bachert sisters living under his roof.
We can't blame Albert for the sins of the brother-in-law, of course, but it might tell us something about the wider sexual tensions within the family.
The Collinson's had a son named George (they were living just north of Cable Street, Ratcliff in 1888-1891). Years later he moved to Philadelphia, U.S.A., and filed naturalization papers. He can be found living on Lexington Avenue in NY City in the 1920s. He is also listed as a deserter in the Canadian Army and worked as a draughtsman for an engineer. As a working theory, I thought George's move to the U.S. might have followed his uncle's earlier emigration, but I've found no evidence of it.
According to her statement, William Collinson placed certain sexual demands on her, referring to them as his 'marital right,' and if she refused, he would assault and/or rape her. She writes that on one occasion he threw her down a flight of stairs, seriously injuring her, and as a result he was sentenced to several months of hard labor by the Thames Police Court, but I haven' found any other reference to this case.
What I find equally disturbing, however, is that the divorce must not have been granted, or was withdrawn, because the 1911 Census shows that August and William are still living together.
Worse yet, Bachert's other sister, Flora Steffin is also in the same home, listed as their domestic servant. Flora is the same sister that Albert Bachert was living with in 1901, which might signal that he is now out of the picture, as she was forced to live in what must have been very unpleasant surroundings. So now the brutish William Collinson has two Bachert sisters living under his roof.
We can't blame Albert for the sins of the brother-in-law, of course, but it might tell us something about the wider sexual tensions within the family.
The Collinson's had a son named George (they were living just north of Cable Street, Ratcliff in 1888-1891). Years later he moved to Philadelphia, U.S.A., and filed naturalization papers. He can be found living on Lexington Avenue in NY City in the 1920s. He is also listed as a deserter in the Canadian Army and worked as a draughtsman for an engineer. As a working theory, I thought George's move to the U.S. might have followed his uncle's earlier emigration, but I've found no evidence of it.
Comment