High Green Bear Attack

[RichardB]

A circumstance not less dreadful in its consequence than disgraceful to a civilized nation, happened at High-green, a few miles from Sheffield, on Saturday se'nnight. A Bear, kept there for the amusement of the country people at their wakes, got loose, and, entered the dwelling of a person named Rogers. The unfortunate wife of the man was sitting with one child on her lap, and another before her, when the creature seized her with all the savage ferocity incident to its nature, and tore her in a manner too shocking to particularize.

The cries of the poor unfortunate, and of the children, reached Rogers and the Bear-ward, who almost the same moment entered the house, and beheld a sight sufficient to appall the most callous mind; what then must have been the feelings of a husband:

He flew to the animal, but was unable to wrench its jaws from the object of its fury. The Bear-ward then struck it on the head with a hammer, but the: haft flying off, the blow was powerless; it however turned the bent of its rage on him, and it pursued him until he was nearly exhausted with fatigue, and he must have fallen a victim had not the neighbours, alarmed at the out-cries, come up with him, and, at a second shot, laid it dead.

The woman expired in dreadful agony on Monday.

Reported December 1790

[Lyn 1]

A circumstance not less dreadful in its consequence than disgraceful to a civilized nation, happened at High-green, a few miles from Sheffield, on Saturday se'nnight. A Bear, kept there for the amusement of the country people at their wakes, got loose, and, entered the dwelling of a person named Rogers. The unfortunate wife of the man was sitting with one child on her lap, and another before her, when the creature seized her with all the savage ferocity incident to its nature, and tore her in a manner too shocking to particularize.

The cries of the poor unfortunate, and of the children, reached Rogers and the Bear-ward, who almost the same moment entered the house, and beheld a sight sufficient to appall the most callous mind; what then must have been the feelings of a husband:

He flew to the animal, but was unable to wrench its jaws from the object of its fury. The Bear-ward then struck it on the head with a hammer, but the: haft flying off, the blow was powerless; it however turned the bent of its rage on him, and it pursued him until he was nearly exhausted with fatigue, and he must have fallen a victim had not the neighbours, alarmed at the out-cries, come up with him, and, at a second shot, laid it dead.

The woman expired in dreadful agony on Monday.

Reported December 1790

My four times great grandmother Mary Rodger - wife of Francis aged just 29 yrs. She was his second wife.

Lyn

[Bayleaf]

My four times great grandmother Mary Rodger - wife of Francis aged just 29 yrs. She was his second wife.

Lyn

Crikey! I bet that was a shock when it turned up in your family tree Lyn!

[RichardB]

Crikey! I bet that was a shock when it turned up in your family tree Lyn!

Great when someone knows of, or, is related to someone in one of the items posted up on here. I always wanted to find an ancestor that was a sheep-fondler or a black-pudding smuggler but, alas, they all seemed to mess around with steel products, not even got a Publican despite all the effort.

[Lyn 1]

Crikey! I bet that was a shock when it turned up in your family tree Lyn!

I was totally shocked.

Came across it purely by accident when researching my tree. It was vaguely mentioned in the Old Ecclesfield Diary - (see http://www.*****.co.uk/contents.htm for a few more entries)

'Mary Wife of Frans. Rodgers. She was bitten by William Cooper's Bear Boath at High Green in the Parish of Ecclesfield December 11th. She Died off her wounds Munday Following December 13' [sic]

(don't ask me what Boath means as I haven't found out yet)

This led me to a newpaper report . A bit of searching through the parish registers confirmed she was one of mine.

Pays to look at all aspects of local history when doing a family tree.

Lyn

[Bayleaf]

I was totally shocked.

Came across it purely by accident when researching my tree. It was vaguely mentioned in the Old Ecclesfield Diary - (see http://www.spick.co.uk/contents.htm for a few more entries)

'Mary Wife of Frans. Rodgers. She was bitten by William Cooper's Bear Boath at High Green in the Parish of Ecclesfield December 11th. She Died off her wounds Munday Following December 13' [sic]

(don't ask me what Boath means as I haven't found out yet)

This led me to a newpaper report . A bit of searching through the parish registers confirmed she was one of mine.

Pays to look at all aspects of local history when doing a family tree.

Lyn

Is it too simple that Boath might be the bear's name?

[SteveHB]

Is it too simple that Boath might be the bear's name?

Thought the name 'Boash' would have been more likely.