Tag: greed

Victorian Bournemouth (238)
5th Period

Victorian Bournemouth (238): draper’s bankruptcy

Victorian Bournemouth (238) has investigated events surrounding the bankruptcy of draper Stephen Ely. It has uncovered a web of dubious supply and financial management. The case leaves unanswered whether Ely’s involvement concerned just commercial failure or extended into the dubious practice of evading insolvency. He claimed never to have met the man to whom he transferred his assets, with the entire process carried out through the unilateral signing of documents. However, soon after, the business went up for sale at £5,000, a price well below the value of his buildings.

Greedy lodginghouse keepers blighted early Victorian Bournemouth
1st Period

Greedy lodginghouse keepers: a blight

Introduction Greedy lodginghouse keepers featured in a series of letters written to the Poole & Dorset Herald in 1854. Their author, Dr A.W.P. Pinkerton, adopted as his theme the ‘Capabilities of Bournemouth’. Pinkerton’s subject consisted of invalids, his concern lying in their obtaining the best conditions. He dwelt much on the standards of housing and […]