Joseph Hedley was murdered – buried 10 Jan 1826 aged 76 years (Joe the Quilter) connection to Herdman by marriage. William Herdman of Homers House buried 19 July 1819 aged 100 years, and Isabel Hedley of Homers House buried 27 April 1817 aged 96 years. (William & Isabel were brother & sister the child of Henry Herdman, a Gentleman/Yeoman & Jane nee Cousins).
On 3 January 1826, a 76-year-old man named Joseph Hedley was brutally murdered in his cottage in the parish of Warden. Joseph’s throat and face were slashed, and multiple stab wounds were inflicted upon his body. He was commonly known as Joe the Quilter due to his skill with needlework. He was a quilter by trade and travelled around the country seeking employment. Joe’s skills in quilting were celebrated, and his handiwork was known in various parts of England, Ireland, Scotland and America.
On the evening of the murder, Joe obtained a pitcher of milk, a pound of sugar, a sheep’s head and pluck (offal) from farmer’s wife Mrs Colbeck of Warwick Grange. At approximately 6pm William Herdman, a labourer living in Wall called in on Joe on his way home from work at the local paper mill and sat with him for a short time. Joe had a good fire going and was busy preparing some potatoes for his supper. Around 7pm Mrs Biggs, a female pedlar from Stamfordham knocked at the cottage to ask directions to Fourstones having missed the turning due to the excessive darkness of the night. Joe came to the door and gave her the necessary directions. Apart from the murderer(s), Mrs Biggs is said to be the last person to have seen him alive.
The quilt was ordered and bought directly from Joe the Quilter in 1820 by the English family and was passed down to James Herdman of Wall village. It was donated to Beamish in 1972 by William Herdman, who was a descendant of James, of course only one Herdman families left lives at Wall for over 400 years and reputed to be the oldest families in Wall (direct to Cuthbert Herdman who was born in Wall in 1613). To my knowledge of my descendant of the Herdman families. I am unable to find the record of William Herdman in 1826 connection to Wall Herdman. Probably he came from different branch lines and lived in Wall for temporary. There was a William son of Cuthbert & Isabella Herdman of Wall, Cartwright born 1831, ruled out connected. Please, can you supply the name of the newspaper and mentioned he was described as an imbecile? Hexham Courant?