Can anyone find this bad girl, please!

[Sloe Gin]

ROBBING HER EMPLOYER 

Lavinia Davis, a young girl, was charged with stealing 3s., the money of James Daniel Swann, jeweller, 69 Regent’s Place, Caroline Street.  Prisoner entered prosecutor’s service on Wednesday last, and on Friday she was entrusted with the money to pay an account.  When she returned she was asked for the receipt, and replied that the creditor said it was “all right”.  She was subsequently confronted with the person to whom she said she had paid the money, and then persisted that she had paid it.  Witnesses were called to prove that the money had not been paid.  Prisoner now admitted her guilt. – Prisoner was sent to gaol for fourteen days, to be followed by five years detention in a reformatory.

(Birmingham Daily Post  6 January 1891)

This is not Lavinia's first or last appearance in the paper!  But this episode explains why she is not to be found with her family in the 1891 census.  Try as I might, I cannot find her, even though I have found a few schools and reformatories, but no sign of Lavinia. 

Nor have I been able to find her in 1901, or an obvious marriage or death for her.  She may well be living with a man as his wife under a different name, though.

She was born in Birmingham in Dec 1877, but probably appeared older as her age is usually given as two or three years more in other newspaper reports.  I would love to find out what became of her!

[winston]

HI

Do you know who Lavinia's parents were?

Wendy

[FlutterBye]

Hi
Possibly a very young Lavinia
1 Nov 1886 Staffordshire - Lavinia Davis - removed to a lunatic asylum by order of secretary of the state, for Wilful murder of Fanny Davis - source ancestry

[stanmapstone]

The Lavinia Davis in this case was apparently a woman who killed her child, according to the report in the Birmingham Daily Post of 3rd November 1886.

Stan

[wilcoxon]

Birmingham Daily Post (Birmingham, England), Thursday, November 27, 1890
Lavinia Davis aged 16 press worker , Court, Sheep Street and Rose Hatfiield aged 16 pen maker of Heath Mill Lane were charged with trespassing  in New Street Station.  It was stated that they were regular visitors to the station and had been detected behaving indecently.  They could not be dealt with for their ` shocking depravity` but were fined 20s for the present offence .

Birmingham Daily Post (Birmingham, England), Saturday, January 13, 1894
Lavinia Davis 19,  Court, Summer Lane . Charged with disordley conduct in Temple Row. Also charged was Amy Nash 16 on Floodgate Street. Amy stated that she had no idea where her parents were, refused to go to the Workhouse and was sent  to gaol for 7 days. Lavinia got 14 days inprisonment with hard labour.
Both had been charged previously with being disorderly characters.

What about this one.
1881. RG11; Piece: 3001; Folio: 109; Page: 10
8 Potter St Birmingham.
Matthew Davis 35 iron wire cleaner b Birm. Warwick.
Eliza Davis 28 wife b Halifax Canada
Frederick Davis 12 b Warwick, Warwickshire
Walter Davis 6 "
Lavinia Davis 3 "
William Davis   3 mths "
Lavinia Davis  widow 78
 
 ADDED
1871 RG10; Piece: 3108; Folio: 62; Page: 20;
Matthew Daves 22
Eliza Daves 20 b Canada.
Fred Daves 2

 

[Sloe Gin]

Thanks folks -

Yes, that's the family, 1881 is the only census where I've managed to find Lavinia junior.  There are a couple of earlier items in the BDP about her as well, she started her life of delinquency early!  Stealing a purse in 1888 and running away from home in 1889.

A CRAFTY YOUNG THIEF

Minnie Lamb and Lavinia Davis, two girls, were charged with stealing a purse containing about 30s. – Prisoners attended Gem St Board Schools, and a fortnight ago the purse was stolen from a room which Lamb had been seen to enter a short time before.  She was taxed with the theft, but denied it.  The girl Davis, however, stated that she actually saw Lamb take the money.  She also gave a description of the purse which Lamb was said to have stolen.  Lamb was locked up, but subsequently the state of Davis’s pocket caused the police to suspect her, and Detective-sergeant Ashby arrested her.  She had 12s. in her pocket, and being put under a rigorous cross-examination, she admitted that she alone committed the theft, and that Lamb knew nothing about it. – The stipendiary remanded Davis for a week, and discharged Lamb.
(30 August 1888)

BOARD OF GUARDIANS  

The Clerk reported that a girl named Lavinia Davies, aged fourteen, had tramped from Birmingham to Warwick, giving a circumstantial account of the recent death of her parents at Sheep Street, Aston, and stating that her mother’s dying wish was that she should make her way to her godmother, at Warwick.  He (the clerk) had ascertained that her story was a tissue of falsehoods, that her parents were alive, that she had run away from home, and that her father was willing to take her back again.  It was decided to restore the girl to her parents, who reside at Sheep Street, Birmingham
(16 December 1889)

As Stan says, she is not the same Lavinia Davis that features in the infanticide case.

I have Lavinia's birth cert and her baptism (in Warwick), although I have never found baptisms for the other children.  I have Matthew and his second wife (Eliza died in 1885) in Sheep Street in the 1891 census, but only Walter is with them.  (RG12 2385 100 45)

I should add that I have Matthew (by now with wife no 3) in 1901 and 1911, but none of the children except Walter who was married with his own household by then.

[wilcoxon]

I expect you`ve found this , but probably not the right one. 

1891 RG12; Piece: 2383; Folio 104; Page 20
22 Park Lane, Birmingham. 18 people in the house.
Luvina Davis lodger 18 brass polisher. b Birm Warwick

[Sloe Gin]

I have seen that one, yes ... not too troubled about the age inconsistency as this is typical, and it's interesting because her brother is also a brass polisher.  But I can't see her being "at large" so soon after being sent to a reformatory!  She can't have done the full five years, but I'd expect to find her living under supervision somewhere at this point.  Unless she escaped of course!

[wilcoxon]

Birmingham Daily Post  6 January 1891 Lavinia was given 5 years detention.

But she appearared in court again.
Birmingham Daily Post, Saturday, January 13, 1894
She was `out` after 4 years or less.