Notorious murder case papers acquired by museum

A set of "invaluable" court papers from a notorious Victorian murder case have been acquired by a local museum.

Trowbridge Museum has acquired papers connected with the Road Hill House murder case in 1860, in which Constance Kent pleaded guilty to murdering her three-year-old half-brother Saville.

The papers, which are due to go on display by October, were used as part of the prosecution case in the trial which inspired the 2008 book The Suspicions of Mr Whicher and a television series.

Chairman of the museum, councillor Nick Blakemore, said: "This is an exceptionally generous donation from the Friends of Trowbridge Museum and a highly significant addition to the museum's collection."

"The acquisition reflects the museum's ongoing commitment to protecting and sharing the stories that have shaped our community," Blakemore added.

Collections and exhibitions officer Nikki Ritson said the "beautiful" document had significant local interest.

"It was police officers from Trowbridge who originally went and investigated the crime before Mr Whicher came along. It was within our boundary and our parish before it changed to Somerset, so we still claim it.

"It's the brief for the prosecution so it's got 27 different witnesses in the document alone. The content is invaluable."

Ritson added that the newly arrived document was being conserved ahead of its formal unveiling.

"We are now transcribing the document, because it is all handwritten, and it's from 1865 so it is quite old, and had a bit of age-related damage around the edges.

"We're looking to refresh the crime and punishment area in the museum so when visitors come from October, they should be able to find it hidden in a nice secret little drawer in there."

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