Agard
Street Murder
(Written
by Wayne Anthony & Richard Felix)
When Richard Thorley was executed on 11 April 1862 he became the last
person to be publicly executed in Derby. However that is not the only
legacy that Thorley left behind to the city of Derby.
Thorley had been sentenced to death for the vicious murder of Eliza Morrow on Agard Street on 13 February 1862.
The principle witness for the prosecution had been a ten year-old boy. It wasn't long after the execution that strange events began to occur on Agard Street.
The ghosts of both Thorley and Eliza Morrow were seen on separate and numerous occasions and workers at the Longdon's Fabric Mill on Agard Street heard unexplainable noises so often that they became accustomed to them.
Accommodation for the University of Derby now stands upon the site of this grisly murder. It remains to be seen how Richard and Eliza will deal with the newcomers!
University of Derby student halls of residence on Agard Street, built
on the site of the 1862 murder
