I'm sure at some point we have all heard the adage ‘sweet Fanny Adams’. But do you know where it came from? The tale of Fanny Adams highlights the darkest aspects of human nature and serves as a reminder of the horrors that can be inflicted upon innocent souls. This is the disturbing true story behind the saying.
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Fanny Adams was born in Alton, Hampshire, England on 30th April 1859. She lived with her father, George, mother, Harriet and five siblings, and next door lived her grandparents. Fanny was described as a ‘tall, comely and intelligent girl’, always happy and energetic, with long blonde hair and bright blue eyes. She was often found with her best friend, Minnie Warner, who was the same age as Fanny and lived down the same street.
There was little crime in Alton; it was a small market town during the 19th century and was usually a very peaceful place. On the 24th of August 1867, many children wanted to play out in the sunshine. Fanny, her sister Lizzie, and Minnie asked permission to go and play at Flood Meadow, a place not far from where they lived and where they had played many times before. Whilst walking towards Flood Meadow, the children were stopped by Frederick Baker, a man who had arrived in Alton three weeks previously. He offered the three girls money for sweets, and having seen Baker at the local church, they considered him safe and took the cash. He stayed with them, watching them play around and enjoying the weather (he would later claim he was intoxicated at this point). Shortly after, Lizzie and Minnie decided to walk home; at this point, Baker asked Fanny if she would accompany him to Shalden, a small village near Alton. She refused, but it fell on deaf ears, and Baker dragged her away, kicking and screaming.
Lizzie and Minnie reported to Minnie’s mother, Martha, that Fanny had gone with Baker. Martha paid little attention to the story, dismissing it for whatever reason and carried on about her day, oblivious to the abduction. Later that day, neighbour, Mrs Gardner, asked the children of Fanny’s whereabouts. They repeated the story, and Mrs Gardner went and spoke to Martha. The two women decided to go and look for her, bumping into Baker on the way. When questioned, he assured the women he had only given the children money for sweets and that being generous with the local children was normal. Mrs Gardner warned him, ‘I have a great mind to give you in charge of the police’, but nothing came of it. Baker was a solicitor’s clerk, a position of responsibility and importance, and it eased any suspicions the women may have had about him. The women gave up the search for Fanny, believing her to have lost track of time and to be playing.
By late that evening, Fanny still hadn’t made an appearance. Her mother, Harriet, gathered a few neighbours to form a search party, and they began looking in the nearby areas. Fanny was discovered by a veteran of the Crimean War, Thomas Gates. At least, part of her was. While tending his crops, he encountered her head stuck on two hop poles (a wooden or metal pole used to train hop plants). One of Fanny’s ears had been removed, and her face had deep lacerations. As the search party continued looking, other parts of her were discovered; her limbs were removed from her torso, there were incisions on her liver, and her heart and eyes had been removed. More graphic descriptions of this are available online, but it’s a child we’re talking about, and I don’t think we need details.
Understandably, Harriet was overcome with grief, and her husband was sent for. George arrived consumed with anger and ready to shoot whoever was responsible for this terrible situation. The neighbours eventually calmed him down and kept him company throughout the night. The next day, hundreds came to help search and collect the missing body pieces, using a local tavern called The Leathern Bottle as a meeting point. Police were looking for evidence and murder weapons, believing small knives had been used; however, a lot of evidence had been trampled on by well-meaning volunteers. The volunteers found all her clothing the following day, along with an arm, a foot (still in her shoe) and her intestines, which had been cut and scattered around the field. Her breastbone was never found.
Police superintendent William Cheyney was informed that Baker had been one of the last to see Fanny alive. Cheyney discovered the solicitors that Baker worked at and arrived there at 9 p.m.; Baker was still there, working later than usual. Baker insisted that he was innocent, but he was arrested on suspicion of murder; he was the only suspect. He was searched at the station, where blood spots were discovered on his clothing and two small knives on his person. He was asked about the source of the blood and replied, “Well, I don’t see a scratch or cut on my hands to account for the blood”. Baker was described as calm and relaxed throughout his entire time at the police station. While Baker was in custody, the solicitor’s office was also searched; Cheyney discovered a diary. On 24th August 1867, it said, ‘Killed a young girl. It was fine and hot’.
Why would you even write that down??? Did he want to be caught? Was he being framed? Maybe he just genuinely didn’t care.
An unnamed witness, who worked in the same office as Baker, spoke to police. He had been drinking in The Swan public house on the night of the murder and started talking to Baker. He claimed Baker had stated he would leave soon, possibly for London. When the witness exclaimed that he might struggle to find work, Baker replied, ‘I could go as a butcher’. ,
This sounds strange and suspicious now, but I’m not sure it necessarily would have done in the moment; hindsight is a wonderful thing.
In October time, a young boy came forward as an eyewitness. He testified that he had seen Baker emerge from the hop garden, where Fanny was found, around 2 p.m. on the day she was murdered (her death was estimated to have been between 1.30 and 3.30 p.m. by Deputy Coroner Robert Harfield). Baker was covered in blood, stopping to calmly clean himself up by the river and placing a small knife into his pocket. The young boy had informed his mother of what he had seen then, but she never said anything until two months later in a pub.
Cheyney sent the clothing and the knives for forensic testing in late October. Professor A. S. Taylor at London’s Guy Hospital performed the tests and confirmed that the blood on the blades was human. Taylor stated that he would expect more blood, and it was a surprisingly small amount. He did muse that someone with no experience could dismember a body in around half an hour – the blood would run but not spurt out. Doctor Lewis Leslie from Alton believed the actual cause of death was most likely caused by a head injury, probably from a stone. During their searches, police had discovered a stone with hair and flesh on it and had kept it as evidence. Speculation was made that the knives found would have been too small to dismember a body, later confirmed by the forensic staff in London. There must have been another weapon that was still missing.
While the investigation was ongoing, Barker was placed in Winchester prison. He would remark to the wardens and the chaplain that he hoped the killer of Fanny Adams would be found. During his stay at Alton prison, he suffered disturbed sleep and an adverse mental reaction to meat, yet he ate and slept well at Winchester.
Under British law at the time, a sudden death meant an immediate inquest had to be held under the jurisdiction of a coroner. Robert Harfield, who had been involved earlier on in the investigation, was in charge of the proceedings, overseen by Justice Mellor. The first person called to give evidence was Fanny’s best friend, young Minnie. She reiterated her story to the court; she could correctly say what Baker had been wearing but could not identify him. Fanny’s mother, Harriet, was the next to be summoned to give evidence, and she told the court about her meeting with Baker shortly after Fanny’s disappearance. Mrs Gardener, who has been with Harriet, recounted her story and was able to identify Baker; Baker was offered to cross-question her, but he declined. On the 5th of December, the defence argued that Minnie could not identify Barker and that the knives found were far too small for the crime. An insanity plea was brought in; his father was a violent man, a cousin spent time in mental asylums, and Baker himself had previously tried to commit suicide (an offence at the time. How it can be a crime is beyond me, but there we go).
Justice Mellor spoke to the jury, asking them to consider the insanity plea, but it did not sway their opinion. They found Baker guilty in just 15 minutes. Baker wrote to George and Harriet Adams, admitting the crime, expressing his remorse for what he had done ‘in an unguarded hour’ and seeking forgiveness. Five thousand people gathered on Christmas Eve outside Winchester Prison to watch the last public execution at the jail; Baker was hanged for the murder of Fanny Adams. He was 29 years old. Her death certificate states the cause of death as “Injuries inflicted by Frederick Baker (murder)”.
Fanny Adams's grave still stands in Alton Cemetery. Her headstone reads:
‘Sacred to the memory of Fanny Adams, aged 8 years and 4 months, who was cruelly murdered on Saturday, August 24th, 1867. Fear not them, which will kill the body but are not able to kill the soul but rather fear Him, which is able to destroy both body and soul in hell. Matthew 10 v 28’.
In 1869, British sailors had new rations introduced, tinned mutton that they were not overly impressed by. It was so unpalatable they started referring to it as the remains of ‘Sweet Fanny Adams’ (that is some seriously dark humour). The expression became synonymous with leftovers, then with anything worthless. It’s still used today, often shortened to ‘Sweet FA’.
So, a poor young girl is brutally murdered on a sunny summer day after playing with friends. A man hangs for the crime. And she is, many would say cruelly, remembered decades later thanks to a crude saying invented by sailors.
So, what are your thoughts? If Lizzie and Martha’s story had been acted on straight away, could there have been a possibility that Fanny would have lived? Do you think Baker had a mental illness? Do you think this is a crime he had committed before? Maybe that was the reason he had to leave his last town? His name was put down on the death certificate before the trial commenced, let alone a guilty verdict reached; was this fair? Let me know what you think in the comments! Thanks for reading, look after yourselves, and I will see you soon!
Hi! I spend a lot of time writing for the website and I basically exist on caffeine and anxiety - if anybody would like to encourage this habit, please feel free to buy me a coffee!
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