Some of the memorabilia linked with Palmer
(including broadsides and broadside ballads):

We hope to build a list of Palmer memorabilia. Click on the underlined heading for more details:

Memorabilia in the Palmer Exhibit at the County Museum, Shugborough

Privately held Memorabilia

Memorabilia at the William Salt Library

Miscellaneous Memorabilia

Broadside Poetry (Poetic verses from criminal broadsides)

Broadside Ballads

There must be a great many more items of memorabilia than I have discovered when researching this web because sometime after Palmer was arrested all his possessions were seized to pay his debts.

In Robert Graves in his book They Hanged My Saintly Billy he tells the story that numerous bills to the value of £10,400 'fell due' and that Palmer couldn't, and his mother wouldn't, pay. Mr. Wright a solicitor from Birmingham was refused entry to Palmer's house by Mr. Bergen a Rural Superintendent who had been given the job of safeguarding the the contents of the house which included papers, drugs and other household items, furniture and 222 gallons of Palmer's home brewed ale, 67 dozen bottles of port and 43 gallons of other spirits. Mr. Wright however, got in by breaking the glass in the scullery window then opening the latch. He then made arrangements for a public auction of the Doctor's effects. The sale drew enormous crowds to view Palmer's belongings although there were more sightseers than buyers. Several items were stolen as souvenirs and most items were sold for less than their true value by an auctioneer who wanted to finish his business quickly. In the end he sold everything in ten hours.

From They Hanged My Saintly Billy by Robert Graves first published in 1957.

Known as a ''Criminal Broadside". A single sided paper sold a the time of executions. Original the property of the William Salt Library.

This one was printed in Stafford.

When his property was seized it is thought that his faithful maid-servant Eliza Tharme managed to save his instrument case but all other items were sold. His horses were put up for sale and sold at auction on January 21st 1856. See details on The Races web page.

A Manchester photographer, Mr. C. Allen was keen to make money from the notoriety gained by the Palmer case. A copy of his tradesman's card was reproduced in They Hanged My Saintly Billy by Robert Grave.

COUNTERFEITS IN 1856:
One has to be careful when looking at memorabilia to establish that all items are genuine. There were even problems back in 1856. In the Staffordshire Advertiser 7th June 1856 under the heading of A COUNTERFEIT INDEED I found the following paragraph:

With reference to the portraits of Palmer a correspondent of the NewcastleGuardian says:- "There are, as you will suppose, none of them of very great accuracy; but the most atrocious of all is one which, some 12 or 13 years ago, when the CORN law agitation was at its height, did duty for a portrait of Mr. Cobden. Some scoundrel of a printseller, it seems, has got hold of the plate, has hammered out the name of Cobden, and inserted that of Palmer and in that condition the rude cheat is selling about the streets at a penny."