Ellis's Early Life and First Executions
John Ellis was born in the Balderstone district of Rochdale, England, on October 4th, 1874. In his early life he worked at the Eagle Mill, until suffering a back injury there in 1898. After trying to find less strenuous employment he elected to open a barber’s shop in Rochdale. Ellis’s father had also owned a barber’s shop, on the same road.
While working at the shop Ellis wrote to the Governor of Strangeways prison in Manchester, enquiring about a job as an executioner. Ellis’s wife was not pleased but, following an interview and training at Newgate in London, his name was added to the list of executioners on May 8th, 1901.
Ellis’s first execution was as an assistant to William Billington in Newcastle. They hanged Joseph Miller and his nephew, John Robert Miller, for the murder of Joseph Ferguson in Northumberland. Following the double execution Ellis made comments to the Daily Mail newspaper. He was soon told in no uncertain terms by his employers that speaking to the press was strictly forbidden.
On January 1st, 1907, Ellis carried out his first engagement as a chief executioner when he hanged John Davies at Warwick for the murder of Jane Harrison. He was assisted by William Willis, who would work with Ellis on many occasions. A notable incident occurred in July, 1910, when Ellis was assaulted by fellow executioner Henry Pierrepoint at Chelmsford. As a consequence, Pierrepoint was struck from the list of executioners.
Famous Criminals Hanged by Ellis
In 1910 Ellis hanged John Dickman at Newcastle. In a controversial trial, Dickman had been found guilty of murdering John Nisbet on a train near the city, despite there only being circumstantial evidence. While protests went on outside the prison Ellis allowed the condemned man to remove his coat before being hanged, with Dickman proclaiming his innocence until the end. Ellis was also present at several other notorious hangings during his career. These included Hawley Harvey Crippen, Roger Casement and George Joseph Smith, better known as the, “Brides in the Bath Killer.”
Ellis’s career was not without its problems. When he hanged Thomas Henry Allaway, for the murder of Irene Wilkins in Bournemouth, the execution did not go as planned. Instead of sudden death an insufficient drop meant Allaway succumbed slowly by strangulation.
The Execution of Edith Thompson
A pivotal moment in Ellis’s life came on June 9th, 1923, when he hanged Edith Thompson. Thompson and her lover, Frederick Bywaters, had both been found guilty of murdering Percy Thompson, Edith’s husband. Thompson was taken, hysterical and terror-stricken, to the scaffold, before losing consciousness. Ellis carried out the hanging quickly but the episode had a major effect on him. On 28th December of the same year he carried out his final appointment, hanging John Eastwood at Leeds, for murdering his wife.
Ellis's Life After Being an Executioner
After tendering his resignation Ellis’s life started to go downhill. A short time later he tried to kill himself and stood trial for it, as attempted suicide was a criminal offence at the time. He also developed a drinking habit and even appeared in a play called The Life and Adventures of Charles Peace. Based on a true story, Ellis played the part of the executioner William Marwood, but the play did not run for long. After that he toured fairs around the country with a scaffold, demonstrating execution techniques. Some of his recollections were serialised and published by DC Thompson in Dundee, Scotland.
By the early 1930s Ellis was reduced to selling towels around pubs in Rochdale to try and make some money. On September 20th, 1932, he committed suicide. After threatening his wife and daughter with a razor he cut his own throat. Before his death Ellis recorded his experiences as an executioner for posterity in the book, “Diary of a Hangman.”
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