Welcome to my blog, Square Mile of Murder. My name is Karen Clarke and I am proud to be the fourth great-niece of Jessie McLachlan of the Square Mile. When I learned of this connection I was pursuing my BA Hons Scottish History via the Open University, and building up my own family tree. Upon learning I had such a connection to Glasgow I fell into the Sandyford Murder Case and found great pleasure in uncovering as much as I possibly could.
Following the completion of my BA Hons Scottish History I then began my MLitt Family and Local History with the Dundee University. The Family and Local History modules have been a rather enjoyable experience and I hope to tie the masters up with a piece on the Square Mile as it is has become rather important to me.
A brief apology in advance, as much as I go over the written word there is always the likelihood that I will fail to write a perfect piece without spelling or grammatical error. I have dyslexia and below average short term memory issues. Please bear with me, as although my spelling and grammar may not be perfect – the stories are worth it if you enjoy a good piece of Glasgow History or Mystery!
The Square Mile of Murder blog has primarily been created to achieve as many possible responses to my Square Mile survey. This survey is part of the MLitt dissertation which I am basing on Glasgow’s Square Mile of murder and the public knowledge of it today. I would like to ask you to submit a response to the survey if you have the time to do so.
Please Click Here to visit the survey.
The blog is also a place to share my findings on all four murders of the Square Mile and the characters who were involved, alongside other information I come across.
I personally believe it is important that these stories which belong to Glasgow alongside many other locations across the world are mysteries which are not forgotten, they mesmerised the public of the time so much so that the public would wait outside newspaper headquarters to find out new information. The murders also led to alterations within Glasgow’s and Scotland’s criminal justice system.
This image was included within the ‘North Briton’ Newspaper on the 18th July 1857. The cartoon is a depiction of news being released on the Madeleine Smith case. The North Briton had threatened to print the ‘Madeleine Letters’ in a print that circulated before Madeleine’s trial. The editor had been called to court and warned he was not able to print the letters. The editor said he would, but had not said when he would print them – he intended them to be printed after the trial. The public was quick on their feet and headed to the paper’s headquarters to get a copy when particulars of the letters were released.
