Following the Reformation to 1834, Ripon was policed by parish constables, who operated under the magistrates and whose wages were sanctioned at the quarter sessions. From 1836-52 the council leased the building at the junction of Duck Hill and Kirkgate, as town house and police station. The Old Courthouse

They set up a watch committee and, in addition to the two night watchmen, appointed two police officers, the former parish constables. The door at the foot of the steps on Duck Hill led to their lock-up, built in 1838. In March 1877, having been arrested for drunkenness and thrown into the lock-up, Richard Seaburgh, boiler-maker, set his bedding alight and suffocated. After this tragedy the city council bought No. 5, Kirkgate, adding four cells - the barred windows can be seen from Duck Hill. The ground floor housed the fire engine.

© Maurice H Taylor 2000 Please click here for details of the Author

In the Beginning Custom and Tradition The Church The Administration The Hospital Chapels Law and Order The Market Town and City