Name: George Bamlett Arrested for: not given Arrested at: North Shields Police Station Arrested on: 19 October 1914 Tyne and Wear Archives ref: DX1388-1-256-George Bamlett

The Shields Daily News for 19 October 1914 reports:

“ASSAULT ON GIRL AT NO. SHIELDS.

Today at North Shields George Bamlette (41), grocer, of 67 Wapping Street, South Shields, was sent to prison for one month for an assault on a girl under 16 years of age, in a place of amusement in the town, on Saturday”.

These images are taken from an album of photographs of prisoners brought before the North Shields Police Court between 1902 and 1916 (TWAM ref. DX1388/1). This set is our selection of the best mugshots taken during the First World War. They have been chosen because of the sharpness and general quality of the images. The album doesn’t record the details of each prisoner’s crimes, just their names and dates of arrest.

In order to discover the stories behind the mugshots, staff from Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums visited North Shields Local Studies Library where they carefully searched through microfilm copies of the ‘Shields Daily News’ looking for newspaper reports of the court cases. The newspaper reports have been transcribed and added below each mugshot.

Combining these two separate records gives us a fascinating insight into life on the Home Front during the First World War. These images document the lives of people of different ages and backgrounds, both civilians and soldiers. Our purpose here is not to judge them but simply to reflect the realities of their time.