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Explore - Murder & Mayhem

A threshing machine

The Swing Riots in Oxfordshire

20 August 2021

St. Helen's Church, Church Road, Benson

In November 1830, unrest over poor pay and conditions for England's rural population boiled over into rioting, arson and vandalism.

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University College, Oxford

Attempted Murder at University College

19 August 2021

Master's Lodge, Logic Lane, Oxford

When Catherine Riordan's relationship with Junior Dean John Haines ended in 1890, Catherine swore 'By God, I will be a murderess.'

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Hay bales

A Burned Body Found at Stadhampton

17 August 2021

Stadhampton

What happened to Canadian student Thomas Patteson Moss remains a mystery to this day.

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Somerville House, Oxford

Isaac Grubb and the 1867 Bread Riots

3 August 2021

Somerville House, 130 Banbury Road, Oxford

Baker Isaac Grubb incurred the town's anger when it was revealed he was selling bread to the university on the cheap.

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St Andrews Church Headington

Cabbage Theft Ends in Tragedy at Headingon Church

2 August 2021

St. Andrew's Church, St, Headington

A misunderstanding ended in tragedy in 1872, when the Parish Clerk of Headington was accused of stealing cabbages from a neighbour.

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Donnington Bridge Road circa 1876

A Suicide Buried Near Donnington Bridge

26 July 2021

Donnington Bridge Road

In 1803 the body of a perfidious harness maker was buried at the junction of Donnington Bridge Road and the Iffley Road.

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Palmistry

Arrested for Palmistry at St John's College

3 July 2021

St John's College, St. Giles, Oxford

In 1893 a woman was fined 10 shillings for practicing 'unlawful and subtle craft' in the gardens of St. John's College.

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Bicester station circa 1910

Railway Disaster at Bicester

30 June 2021

Bicester Railway Station, London Rd, Bicester

In 1861 a misunderstanding between station staff and a train driver cost the lives of 6 people at Bicester railway station.

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