Young criminals pose with name and date of offence in 1870s mugshots

Real-life Artful Dodgers: Children as young as TEN pose with their name and date of offence after being jailed for stealing food or coal in 1870s Birmingham

• Images, showing smartly dressed criminals, date back to the 1870s, when photography was still in infancy
• The photos show the boys holding up chalk boards bearing their names and the dates of their arrests
• Pictured in the gallery is Charles Lambourne, who was just 10 when whipped for stealing a frock from father
• The images have been revealed after being found in West Midlands Police’s archives 

Haunting mugshots showing Victorian child criminals as young as TEN who faced jail for petty crimes over 145 years ago have been unearthed.

The fascinating custody shots reveal real-life Artful Dodgers and Oliver Twists who were remanded for offences such as stealing frocks, food, underwear and coal.

They are believed to be among some of the world’s oldest mugshots and show the youngest criminals to face harsh justice in Victorian Birmingham.

The images date back to the 1870s, when photography was still in its infancy. They show baby-faced offenders smartly dressed in waistcoats and oversized jackets.

The collection was unearthed in the West Midlands Police archives and has now recently gone on display at their museum in Sparkhill, Birmingham. 

Haunting mugshots showing Victorian child criminals as young as TEN who faced jail for petty crimes over 145 years ago have been unearthed. Left: Among the rogues gallery of juveniles is Charles Lambourne, who was just 10 when he first appeared in the police records. He is seen above in his second appearance, wearing a striped cravat aged 16. Right: Charles Paul, 13, who pinched six pairs of drawers from his father in 1876, is also pictured in the black-and-white snaps

The young street urchins stared fixedly at the camera while holding blackboards displaying the date of their offence and their name in chalk. 

Birmingham was the earliest UK police force to photograph criminals, snapping their first crook in 1853.

Pictured in the gallery is Charles Lambourne, who was just 10 when he first appeared in the police records.

He was sent to prison for seven days in 1876 and whipped for stealing a frock from his father.

Lambourne appears again on June 12, 1882, aged 16, this time wearing a striped cravat.

He received a one-month sentence for stealing 18 shillings and a watch from his master.

They are believed to be among some of the world’s oldest mugshots and show the youngest criminals to face harsh justice in Victorian Birmingham. The images date back to the 1870s, when photography was still in its infancy. They show baby-faced offenders smartly dressed in waistcoats and oversized jackets. Left: William Harris stole a bicycle and was sent to prison for 14 days. Right: Thomas Giblin stole coal and went to prison for two weeks 

Charles Paul, 13, who pinched six pairs of drawers from his father in 1876, is also pictured in the black-and-white snaps.

The teen was sent to prison for 14 days then spent five years in a reformatory – a Victorian version of a  young offender’s institution.

More images show stony-faced youngsters at Birmingham’s Moor Street Public Office in 1876.

William Harris stole a bicycle and was sent to prison for 14 days.

Joseph Haynes’ crime is not recorded but he was sent to prison for 21 days and to a reformatory for four years.

William Walton was sent to prison for 14 days and a reformatory for five years for stealing beef.

Thomas Giblin and John Welch were both convicted of stealing coal and sentenced to one month and 14 days imprisonment respectively.

They were both packed off to a reformatory for five years afterwards.

Lambourne was just 10 when he first appeared in the police records, in 1876. The teen was banged up for 14 days in prison then five years in a reformatory, which was like a Victorian young offender’s institution. William Walton (right) was sent to prison for 14 days and a reformatory for five years for stealing beef

Corinne Brazier, the heritage manager at West Midlands Police, said she had spent painstaking hours cataloguing and sorting the archive.

She added: ‘Victorian criminal justice has a strong focus on punishment – long prison sentences for minor offences, reformatories and hard labour.

‘As the country moved away from transportation and capital punishment, a significant number of people were imprisoned, including a large number of children.

‘Many of those children were first time offenders and probably completed their incarceration hardened and streetwise.

‘If the desired effect was to ‘scare them straight’ it often fell short of the mark, with many young offenders repeatedly coming before the courts.

‘We have delved into our archives to find some of the youngest offenders to face the harsh Victorian justice.

Joseph Haynes’ crime is not recorded but he was sent to prison for 21 days and to a reformatory for four years. John Welch was convicted of stealing coal and sentenced to one month in prison

‘It could well be the case that the West Midlands Police Museum holds the oldest surviving police custody photos in the world – some dating back to the 1850s.

‘Suspects would be marched round to a new photographic studio that had opened up down the road where they would have their picture taken.

‘In the 1870s it was legislated that all police forces had to take photographs of people in custody, and this is when the first ledger of the Birmingham Police collection starts.

‘These images show some sad characters – all in black, many in bedraggled clothing holding a chalk board for the reference number identifying their record, which also identified the year the image was taken.’

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