History of the Metropolitan Police

The Infamous Daniel Good - 1842

Daniel Good was famous for showing up the faults of the communication systems of the 19th century police after he had committed a murder in Putney Park on 3rd April 1842, escaped from a police officer, and travelled around different parts of London and Kent, thereby evading arrest until the following month. The Detective Branch was set up in August of that year to improve efficiency in catching suspects like Good.

On 11 th April 1842, PC William Gardner was called to investigate the theft of a pair of trousers from a pawnbroker's shop in Wandsworth High Street. The suspect, Daniel Good worked as a coachman in Putney Park, and PC Gardner went to the house, interviewed him, and started a thorough search of the stables where Good worked. In the last stable, PC Gardner took a closer look with his lantern at what he thought was a plucked goose, but before he could act on the fact that the object was a dead body, Good took his chance to flee from the stable, and, even worse, locked PC Gardner, Good's own son, and two shop boys in the stable.

After 15 minutes or so, the party escaped from the stable, and further enquiries revealed that the body was that of Jane Good (or Jones or Sparks) with whom Daniel Good had been living. It was four hours or so before Good's details were circulated.

Over the next few days, nine divisions of the Metropolitan Police became involved in the chase for Daniel Good. In those days before telephones, the Metropolitan Police operated a system of "route papers" which consisted of officers from neighbouring divisions meeting at pre-arranged points and exchanging messages and papers for other parts of London. Good always seemed to be a day or so ahead of the pursuing police, and this was reported in great detail by a critical Press.

D Division, for instance, learnt that Good had a son who lived off Manchester Square, but when they called in the afternoon, their suspect had left an hour or so earlier. 'Old Molly' Good, his wife, was interviewed in Flower and Dean Street, Spitalfields, but as the house was not properly searched, Daniel Good may have been in the house at the time.

Inspector Nicholas Pearce, assisted by Sergeant Stephen Thornton, both of whom were later to be among the original select band of six officers appointed for detective duties, took up the case and followed Good's trail from Spitalfields to Deptford, and then to Bromley where they could find no other clues. Two weeks later, Good was traced to Tonbridge where he was working as a bricklayer's labourer. One of his work mates, Thomas Rose, was a former police officer who recognised him and told the local police.

Daniel Good was tried, found guilty of murder and publicly hanged at Newgate on 23rd May 1842, unaware that he had unwittingly contributed to the Metropolitan Police improving their crime fighting performance by introducing specialist detectives.