Eliza Benwell - Hanged for the murder of her mistress Jane Saunders at New Norfolk – 30th of September 1845
32 year old Eliza Benwell arrived in Hobart Town on the Hector in October 1835. She had been transported for 14 years for stealing a quantity of household articles from her mistress who had recently died.
Eliza was well reasonably well behaved, until she received her Ticket of Leave in 1840. Regularly being drunk in disorderly houses with immoral conduct saw her returned to hard labour as a 2nd Class convict at the Factory and House of Correction, with her Ticket of Leave suspended.
After four years Eliza was recommended for a Conditional Pardon and assigned to William Elwin at New Norfolk at his Bush Inn and later his Derwent Hotel. 4 Early in 1845, the body of Jane Saunders, a nurse maid employed by the American Consul was discovered in the River Derwent at New Norfolk. Consul Elisha Hathaway and his family had been holidaying at Elwin’s Derwent Hotel with 18 year Jane Saunders caring for their young children. Three male convicts working at the hotel were immediately charged with the murder of Jane Saunders. But it was not until five months later that the three appeared in the Hobart Supreme Court before Justice Algernon Montagu on Thursday, 24th July 1845. The trial lasted all day with the chief witness being Keo, a twelve year old Hawaiian boy, who also worked for the Consul. Keo spoke little English and his whole testimony was translated by an interpreter appointed to the court. During his evidence, Keo stated that he saw a female servant at the hotel present when the murder took place. Eliza Benwell was immediately called to the court and after making a statement that she knew nothing about the death of Jane Saunders, was placed in custody in the gaol directly across Murray Street, before being taken to the Cascades House of Correction. The three men were found guilty of Jane’s murder and sentenced to death, but were not executed and remained in gaol awaiting an examination of Eliza’s involvement. On Friday September 5th, Eliza Benwell appeared before Justice Montagu and a jury of 12 men. She was charged with malice aforethought, being present, aiding, abetting and assisting in the murder of Jane Saunders. Eliza pleaded ‘Not guilty’. For four long days, all the evidence of the witnesses at the men’s trial was rehashed and re-examined, again with 12 year old Keo surprisingly remembering and even contradicting minute details, in his version of what had taken place some ten months before, aided of course by his translator’s assistance. Finally, after patiently listening on day five to Justice Montagu’s 27 pages of hand written notes, the jury after an hour’s deliberation, returned a verdict of ‘Not Guilty’. 5 Justice Montagu immediately asked them to retire again and consider that Eliza ‘need not’ to have known of the men’s intention to murder. She did her part by keeping watch. Obviously completely exhausted, the jury eventually returned at 11pm with a verdict of ‘Guilty’. The court closed and next morning Justice Montagu sentenced Eliza to death and dissection, carefully informing her that she had no hope of Mercy. She was removed across Murray Street to the gaol. At the executive Council meeting on the Saturday, Justice Montagu provided his copious trial notes. There were letters of protest and conflicting medical opinions as to just how Jane Saunders might have died. All to no avail, with the Executive Council stating to Lieutenant Governor Sir John Eardley-Wilmot that they could not advise him that mercy should be extended to Eliza. The following Tuesday, the three men, Lockwood, Gomm and Taylor, who had been patiently waiting in the gaol, were then brought from the condemned cell and executed, even though they still persisted on that fatal morning in maintaining their innocence. Eliza thus spent the last two weeks of her life in that same condemned cell awaiting her destiny. On Tuesday 30th September, Eliza, dressed in a printed cotton gown with a white handkerchief, her light brown hair tastefully arranged, mounted the scaffold. She was absorbed in meditation with her eyes closed, as several thousand people crammed every vantage place in Murray Street beneath the gaol walls. Rev. William Bedford said some quick prayers, before Executioner Solomon Blay, as the cool and expert finisher of the law, quickly adjusted the rope and launched Eliza into eternity. Her body after hanging the usual time was placed in a coffin and removed to the Colonial Hospital for dissection and anatomization before her remains were taken to the Campbell Street Burial Ground.
Eliza was well reasonably well behaved, until she received her Ticket of Leave in 1840. Regularly being drunk in disorderly houses with immoral conduct saw her returned to hard labour as a 2nd Class convict at the Factory and House of Correction, with her Ticket of Leave suspended.
After four years Eliza was recommended for a Conditional Pardon and assigned to William Elwin at New Norfolk at his Bush Inn and later his Derwent Hotel. 4 Early in 1845, the body of Jane Saunders, a nurse maid employed by the American Consul was discovered in the River Derwent at New Norfolk. Consul Elisha Hathaway and his family had been holidaying at Elwin’s Derwent Hotel with 18 year Jane Saunders caring for their young children. Three male convicts working at the hotel were immediately charged with the murder of Jane Saunders. But it was not until five months later that the three appeared in the Hobart Supreme Court before Justice Algernon Montagu on Thursday, 24th July 1845. The trial lasted all day with the chief witness being Keo, a twelve year old Hawaiian boy, who also worked for the Consul. Keo spoke little English and his whole testimony was translated by an interpreter appointed to the court. During his evidence, Keo stated that he saw a female servant at the hotel present when the murder took place. Eliza Benwell was immediately called to the court and after making a statement that she knew nothing about the death of Jane Saunders, was placed in custody in the gaol directly across Murray Street, before being taken to the Cascades House of Correction. The three men were found guilty of Jane’s murder and sentenced to death, but were not executed and remained in gaol awaiting an examination of Eliza’s involvement. On Friday September 5th, Eliza Benwell appeared before Justice Montagu and a jury of 12 men. She was charged with malice aforethought, being present, aiding, abetting and assisting in the murder of Jane Saunders. Eliza pleaded ‘Not guilty’. For four long days, all the evidence of the witnesses at the men’s trial was rehashed and re-examined, again with 12 year old Keo surprisingly remembering and even contradicting minute details, in his version of what had taken place some ten months before, aided of course by his translator’s assistance. Finally, after patiently listening on day five to Justice Montagu’s 27 pages of hand written notes, the jury after an hour’s deliberation, returned a verdict of ‘Not Guilty’. 5 Justice Montagu immediately asked them to retire again and consider that Eliza ‘need not’ to have known of the men’s intention to murder. She did her part by keeping watch. Obviously completely exhausted, the jury eventually returned at 11pm with a verdict of ‘Guilty’. The court closed and next morning Justice Montagu sentenced Eliza to death and dissection, carefully informing her that she had no hope of Mercy. She was removed across Murray Street to the gaol. At the executive Council meeting on the Saturday, Justice Montagu provided his copious trial notes. There were letters of protest and conflicting medical opinions as to just how Jane Saunders might have died. All to no avail, with the Executive Council stating to Lieutenant Governor Sir John Eardley-Wilmot that they could not advise him that mercy should be extended to Eliza. The following Tuesday, the three men, Lockwood, Gomm and Taylor, who had been patiently waiting in the gaol, were then brought from the condemned cell and executed, even though they still persisted on that fatal morning in maintaining their innocence. Eliza thus spent the last two weeks of her life in that same condemned cell awaiting her destiny. On Tuesday 30th September, Eliza, dressed in a printed cotton gown with a white handkerchief, her light brown hair tastefully arranged, mounted the scaffold. She was absorbed in meditation with her eyes closed, as several thousand people crammed every vantage place in Murray Street beneath the gaol walls. Rev. William Bedford said some quick prayers, before Executioner Solomon Blay, as the cool and expert finisher of the law, quickly adjusted the rope and launched Eliza into eternity. Her body after hanging the usual time was placed in a coffin and removed to the Colonial Hospital for dissection and anatomization before her remains were taken to the Campbell Street Burial Ground.