James Chard: A Parkhurst Boy

Juvenile Imprisonment at Parkhurst

Though James Chard might not have realized it at the time, the next chapter of his life brought unexpected luck when he was placed on a cutter heading to the Isle of Wight and Parkhurst Prison. The other mainland prisons, Dartmoor and Pentonville, were known to be dreadful, and the Plymouth ‘hulks’ were barely suitable for human habitation. Parkhurst Prison Originally constructed in the late 18th century as a military hospital and children's asylum [1], Parkhurst stood as a formidable structure on the Isle of Wight. During the late 1830s, due to England's shortage of penal institutions, the building was repurposed into a reformatory and prison for young offenders, those still too young to be transported. By 1843, at a cost of approximately £30,000, significant expansions were finished, including a new prison ward, a chapel, and a probationary ward school [2], the latter of which was built by the juvenile inmates as part of their training in stone masonry, carpentry, and ironwork.

Parkhurst Prison on the Isle of Wight. The prison forecourt. Engraving (Landells, c1843).

We are grateful to The Illustrated London Newspaper [3], which featured an article on Parkhurst Prison on March 13, 1847, providing a detailed and visual account of what James Chard faced upon his arrival in 1843.

The article describes that; “before being admitted, every prisoner undergoes an examination by the reformatory surgeon, is washed, and then dressed in probationary ward clothing. “While the prison officers don a military-style uniform featuring a blue frock-coat, cloth cap, and leather belt equipped with a key strap, the inmates wear grey cloth trousers and a jacket, complemented by a leather cap crafted in the shoemaker's workshop. “Every prisoner is assigned an inmate number, which appears in brass numerals on their cap and on a brass badge worn on the right side of the chest. The letters ‘PP’ along with the inmate number are stitched onto the left side of the jacket, and the same ‘PP’ letters are also sewn onto the left thigh of the trousers. “The penal class is denoted by yellow collars and cuffs, and letters of the same colour. “All garments worn by officers and prisoners alike are produced within the prison.”

Of each prisoners accommodation the article continues; “Each boy's cell measured 11 feet in length, 7 feet in width, and 8 feet 6 inches in height, featuring a brick-arched ceiling and a hammock made of coconut fibre stretched across the walls by straps. “Inside, there was a small table, a stool, and a writing desk that held a Bible, a prayer book, and a hymn book for Chapel. “School books, a writing slate, and pencils were also supplied. “On the wall of each cell, the morning and evening hymn cards along with the day’s prayers were clearly displayed.”

The article also outlines the prisoners education and training; “Instruction occurs for two and a half hours on alternate days in the Probationary Ward, which contains 50 compartments, each housing one prisoner. “The layout is designed so that the schoolmaster can supervise and teach without the boys being able to see or communicate with each other. “Boys who demonstrate good behaviour may be allowed to receive instruction in the senior division of the school, which has eight open desks. “When a school class is occupied, the schoolmaster and chaplain visit the boys in their cells several times daily to provide religious and moral guidance. “To give each prisoner occasional time for quiet reflection on their situation, several school classes are scheduled once a week for technical skill training.”

The strict regimentation of Parkhurst would have come as a shock to a thirteen year old Devonshire farm boy but his incarceration offered considerable advantages and opportunities — the obvious being that for the first time in his short life he was warmly clothed and regularly fed. Also with Parkhurst placing a huge emphasis on education, albeit with a strong religious bias, becoming literate and learning a craft were considered essential. Parkhurst was seen as highly progressive for its time; so much so that in June 1845 the institution was visited by Queen Victoria [4] where she was introduced to the boys and a pardon was granted to two individuals — one from each Division of the Establishment. Sadly, James Atkins Chard was not one of those chosen. His destiny lay in the hands of Captain John Bruton, commander of the barque HMS Stratheden, who just two months after Queen Victoria's visit, dropped anchor at the Isle of Wight. Together with 71 fellow Parkhurst boys and 154 adult male prisoners who were already on board from London, James Atkins Chard filled out the ship's manifest. Thus, sixty-seven years after the First Fleet left Plymouth harbour, James was following in his father's footsteps on a voyage to the colonies.

References Parkhurst Prison History. Parkhurst Prison. Extract from Illustrated London News, 13 March 1847 and transcriptions by Ken Scott. The Illustrated London News debuted on Saturday, May 14, 1842. Created by Herbert Ingram, it was the world’s first weekly newspaper to include illustrations, with its first edition containing 16 pages and 32 woodcut engravings. It quickly gained popularity, notably reporting on Queen Victoria's first masquerade ball. Priced at sixpence, the initial issue was a remarkable commercial hit, requiring multiple reprints on the same day; it was reprinted five times and sold 26,000 copies. Queen Victoria’s visit to Parkhurst prison in the summer of 1845 came just six months after she had given birth to her fourth child and second son, Alfred. There is no doubt that James’ close contact with the monarch on that day at Parkhurst would be recalled 23 years later when he met Prince Alfred – the newly appointed third Duke of Edinburgh - during his visit to the colonial settlements of Victoria's western district. James Chard meets the Duke of Edinburgh.