STEP BY ESTEP GUIDE: Richard Estep saddles up & rides into town to investigate McInteer Villa.

The Leeds Times, dated Saturday July 18th 1835, The York Herald, also dated Saturday July 18th 1835, and The Yorkshire Gazette, also dated that day, all featured a report stating that on the previous Saturday at the Golden Fleece, after a short illness, at the age of 40, Mr. Thomas Triffitt had died.

On Saturday July 25th 1835, The York Herald featured a notice stating that Mrs. Elizabeth Triffitt, widow of Thomas Triffitt, wished to thank friends and customers for their help, and custom, during the period, and wanted to inform everyone that the Fleece Inn would remain open for trade, and that she was now taking care of the business.

Elizabeth Young took over the pub in 1849 and was assisted by her eldest son, William, and four other employees. Elizabeth Young appeared in The Yorkshire Gazette, dated Saturday June 15th 1850, when it was revealed that two men, named John and Samuel M’Lachlan, had stayed at the inn during the Spring Assizes of 1849, but they had not paid, Elizabeth was hoping to recover the money owed to her, and won the case.

The Golden Fleece, 25 Pavement and Elizabeth Young, appear in the 1851 census, thus: [Class HO107, P2355, F269, P12, GSU87620-87621]

Elizabeth Young 60 Head Innkeeper William Young 28 Son Draper Thomas Foster 27 Servant / Ostler Elizabeth Bielby 19 House Servant Ann Johnson 38 House Servant Teresia Smith 18 House Servant

William Young, the son of Elizabeth Young, died during November 1856 at the Golden Fleece, he was aged 34 at the time, and it was reported that he was a well-known, wellrespected sportsman, who played around Yorkshire. His death took place on Sunday November 9th 1856, and was reported in The Yorkshire Gazette, dated Saturday November 15th 1856, and The Sheffield Daily Telegraph, dated Wednesday November 19th 1856. His death appears in the British Death Registers, thus:

Surname: Young, Forename: William, Age: Year: 1856, Quarter: Dec, District: York, Vol: 9D, Page: 22

Elizabeth Young worked at the pub until Edward Warneford became the landlord, with his tenure appearing in print as early as Saturday May 23rd 1857 in The York Herald. Warneford moved into the property, bringing with him his wife, Fanny, and their young children; Henry, Edward, Fanny, and Frederick. It wasn’t long after the family took over the pub when they were robbed by William Jennings, a 33 year old man. The case appeared in The Leeds Mercury, dated Thursday July 14th 1859, The Wakefield and West Riding Herald, dated Friday July 15th 1859, The Yorkshire Gazette, dated Saturday July 16th 1859, The York Herald, dated Saturday July 16th 1859 and The Barnsley Chronicle, dated Saturday July 16th 1859.

The 1861 Census shows Edward Warneford residing at the Golden Fleece, Pavement, York, thus: [Class RG9, P3552, F45, P10, GSU543150]

Edward Warneford 37 Head Innkeeper Fanny Warneford 33 Wife Henry Warneford 7 Son Scholar Edward Warneford 5 Son Scholar Fanny Warneford 4 Dau Scholar Frederick J Warneford 2 Son Edwin Warneford 26 Cousin Assistant Mary Toes 23 House Servant Elizabeth Belwood 14 House Servant Mary Grocock 13 Servant / Nurse

A similar case took place in July 1869, when 46 year old Susannah Burns was charged with stealing two dresses belonging to Edward Warneford, on May 31st. The story was reported in The Yorkshire Gazette, dated Saturday July 12th 1862.

Tragedy struck in March 1864 when Edward Warneford died, which resulted in the pub being transferred to Joseph Beaumont. Edward’s death appears in the British Death Registers, thus:

Surname: Warnefield, Forename: Edward, Age: Year: 1864, Quarter: March, District: York, Vol: 9D, Page: 39

Joseph Beaumont announced that he was running the property with a notice which appeared in The Yorkshire Gazette, dated Saturday April 30th 1864, which stated:

FLEECE INN, PAVEMENT, YORK. JOSEPH BEAUMONT begs most respectfully to inform the Public that he has Entered on the above Inn, occupied by the late Mr. Edward Warneford, and intends to keep a superior quality of Wines, Spirits, Ale, &c., and hopes by strict attention to merit a share of Public patronage and support. N.B. – Good Beds, Stabling & C.,

William Coates took over the running of the property in 1871, and at this point Fanny Warneford, the widow of the deceased Edward Warneford, moved out of the Golden Fleece and went to live in the Yorkshireman Inn.

The 1881 Census shows William Coates and his family at the Fleece Inn, Pavement, thus: [Class RG11, P4724, F8, P9, GSU1342142]

William Coates 57

Head Licensed Victualler

Helen Coates

47 Wife

Catherine Wilson 20

General Servant (Domestic)

William Ashton 46

Visitor Retired Farmer

William Coates ran the inn until his death in 1882, his death was registered in the British death Registers thus:

Surname: Coates, Forename: William, Age: 58, Year: 1882, Quarter: December, Vol: 9D, Page: 37

After the death of William Coates, his wife Mrs. Helen Coates, took over the inn. Helen Coates was in trouble in April 1887, when The Richmond & Ripon Chronicle, dated Saturday April 9th 1887, reported that she had been summoned for allowing drunkenness. Sergeant Raisbeck was outside the inn on the previous Tuesday afternoon when he saw a drunken man leave a cab and stagger into the inn, when the police officer walked into the inn, the drunken man was sat at the bar with a freshly poured glass of gin. Mrs. Coates stated that her niece had supplied the liquor, but if she had seen it, she would not have allowed it to happen. The charges were dropped when the fine was paid.

The 1891 Census shows Helen Coates at the property, now named The Golden Fleece Hotel, Pavement, it appears in the census thus: [Class RG12, P3892, F105, P6, GSU6099002]

Helen Coates 50 Head Hotel Keeper Pub Henrietta Coates 23 Niece Barmaid Inn

Mary Ann Raftree 24 General Servant Domestic Charles Simpson 28 Servant Ostler Groom

The York Herald, dated Tuesday July 14th 1891, lists Mrs. Coates as the landlady of the Golden Fleece. She ran the pub singlehandedly between the years of 1882 and 1892, but then married George Daniel, thus becoming Mrs. Helen Daniel. Their marriage entry in the British registers reads:

Surname: Daniel, Forename: George, Year: 1892, Quarter: September, District: York, Volume: 9D, Page: 65

Surname: Coates, Forename: Helen, Year: 1892, Quarter: September, District: York, Volume: 9D, Page: 65

The Yorkshire Gazette, dated Saturday July 21st 1894, lists Mrs. Daniel as the landlady of the Golden Fleece. From as early as Friday February 17th 1899, The York Herald, was reporting that George Daniel was running the Golden Fleece, he was also a member of the Licensed Victuallers Association. Tragedy struck again at the inn during April 1899 when at the age of 66, Helen Daniel passed away. Her death was announced in The York Herald, dated Thursday April 20th 1899, which stated: DEATHS: DANIEL. – On the 19th inst at the Fleece Hotel, Pavement, York, Helen, the beloved wife of George Daniel, and relict of the late William Coates, aged 66 years. Interment to-morrow (Friday) afternoon: Service at All Saints’ Pavement at 3.15 p.m.: York Cemetery at 4 p.m., Friends please accept this, the only, intimation.

Announcements of her death were also published in The Yorkshire Gazette, dated Saturday April 22nd 1899, and in The York Herald, dated Saturday April 22nd 1899. Her death was registered in the British Registers, thus:

Surname: Daniel, Forename: Helen, Age: 66, Year: 1899, Quarter: June, District: York, Vol: 9D, Page: 24

On Saturday May 6th 1899, The York Herald published the following notice with regards to her death, it stated:

MRS HELEN DANIEL DECEASED. All persons having claims against the Estate of Mrs HELEN Daniel, late of the Golden Fleece Hotel Pavement in the City of York Innkeeper who died on the 19th APRIL 1899 are requested to forthwith send detailed particulars thereof to the undersigned to whom also all debts are due to the deceased must immediately be paid.

The same notice was also later published in The York Herald, on Saturday May 13th 1899. Her husband continued to run the pub until 1905, when Frederick Coates took over.

On Tuesday November 16th 1915, The Hull Daily Mail reported that the landlord of the Golden Fleece, Pavement, was summoned for serving intoxicating liquor to two soldiers during prohibited hours, namely at 11.20 a.m. on October 23rd. The landlord was named Frank Jackson, and he appeared before the magistrates at York on Monday November 15th 1915. The Chief Constable reported that the two men were from Hull and were on leave at the time when they were found to be drinking. The men had been serving at the Front, and after having breakfast at the hotel asked for two beers. There were some legal discussions at the time, and it was felt that while there were a number of laws in place which were relevant, such as The Defence of the Realm Act, there were also a number of amendments which made it unclear what acts or laws have been broken. In the end the chairman decided that the Chief Constable had done the right thing in bringing the case before them, but the charges were dropped, and the case was dismissed. Some books written about the history of the public house in recent years erroneously name the landlord of Frederick Jackson.

The Clitheroe Advertiser and Times, dated Friday January 13th 1950 reported that the landlord of the Golden Fleece was Olive Rind, aged 42. It transpired that Olive and her husband Jack Rind, aged 44, were found driving in Clitheroe in an unlicensed motor car. According to numerous magazines, books and websites the Golden Fleece is one of the most haunted public houses in York, and boasts and impressive cast of spectral characters.

THE STORY OF GEOFF MONROE

According to numerous ghost tours,

books, magazines, newspaper articles, paranormal groups, and websites, Canadian Airman named Geoff Monroe is one of the main ghosts that haunts the Golden Fleece. For as long as I can remember I was told this story, it appeared in print in several books, and it appeared in print in several magazines, it was mentioned on several of the York ghost tours, mentioned on several radio shows and podcasts, and made its way into several television shows filmed at the property.

One of the earliest editions of Haunted York, by Rupert Matthews, published in 1992 [Pitkin Guides, 1992], does not feature the story or even the location.

According to all the stories it is claimed that after a very heavy night of drinking at the pub Mr. Monroe was either pushed, jumped or fell from the window of room four upstairs on the third floor. Guests have reported seeing a dark figure dressed in full military uniform standing over their beds, and they have reported being woken up by the phantom airman. The story appears to have originated with Jack Currie, who died in October 1996 aged 74. Jack had written a book entitled Jack’s Echoes in the Air, which was published by his widow after his death. Three stories from the book were read out on air on BBC Radio York in May 1998, and since then the story of Geoff Monroe has become well known. The book claimed that Geoff Monroe haunted the landlady, April Keenan, who was the landlady at the Golden Fleece, and then the spirit had followed them to their home when they moved to Quincy, California. All sources that feature this story feature it after 1998. Obviously, such a story would be easy to prove, so I began searching the newspapers that covered York, Yorkshire, and England, but could not find any reference to a death at the pub involving anyone known as Geoff, Jeff, or Geoffrey Monroe/Monro during WWII, before WWII or after WWII.

Haunted York, by Rupert Matthews, [History Press, 2009] states simply that the ghost is a Canadian airman named Monroe. The Ghosts of York, by Rob Kirkup, [Amberley Publishing, 2012] states that the ghost is called Geoff Monroe, and that he has been seen by guests wearing WWII attire, and often seen looking out of the window of the third floor.

Some books, such as Ghostly Encounters: Terrifying Tales of Paranormal Activity, by Jeff Bahr, published in 2013, do not even mention his name, but simply state that he was a “WWII airman who fell to death from a window.”

Parapsychology: Ghosts and Hauntings,

Robert Young, 2015 states that it was a Canadian Airman who fell or committed suicide.

Paranormal books aside, even books on the history of the property include the claim, such as York Pubs, Nathen Amin, [Amberley Publishing, 2016], which names the Canadian Airman as Geoff Monroe.

Haunted York, by Vincent Danks, [Halsgrove, 2018] also states that the ghostly airman is named Geoff Monroe.

Can you imagine if the name of the

ghost was not Geoff Monroe, or a variation on that name? Can you imagine if the story behind him was false? What would that mean for the many researchers, writers, tour guides, publishers, paranormal investigators and mediums that got it wrong?

I wanted to get to the bottom of the story, as this is one of the quintessential ghost stories from York, but in doing so it would require a lengthy systematic search of archives around the world, and take in hundreds of documents, but after months of painstaking research, I was able to uncover the truth.

Searching the British and Yorkshire death records for the county of York looking for deaths associated with the name “Geoff/ Geoffrey/Jeff/Jeffery Monroe/Monro,” I came across one death during the period for someone named Monroe, and that was for William K Monroe, who was 69 at the time of his death in 1941. There were no other Monroe’s recorded as dying in York between 1939 and 1950. This search involved the Yorkshire death records, the British death records, and was later cross referenced with the death records held on the genealogy site “Find my Past,” and the genealogy record site “Ancestry.” None of them had any such death taking place in York with the surname of Monroe or Monro other than the previously mentioned record.

Next up I searched service records for a Geoff/Geoffrey/Jeff/Jeffery Monroe/Monro who was a Canadian airman stationed in Great Britain during the period. For this search I searched records in the National Archives, but also managed to obtain access to the records of Canadian Royal Air Force, as well as searching the Imperial War Museum, and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission archives. None of them showed a Geoff/ Geoffrey/Jeff/Jeffery Monroe/Monro dying in York.

Searching the newspaper archives in Britain, America, Canada, New Zealand and Australia failed to turn up a death relating to a Geoff/ Geoffrey/Jeff/Jeffery Monroe/Monro in York during the period in question.

With all the archives searched, it was clear that the story of Geoff/Geoffrey/Jeff/Jeffery Monroe/Monro was falsified, a made-up fictional tale, that had been copied and retold, regurgitated and resold time and time again.

There was, however, an accident at the pub which illustrates just how much real history is lost while fictional history is created. On Wednesday August 9th 1944, The Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer reported that an inquest had been held on the body of Sergeant Air Gunner Gerard Tierney, a 35 year old, from Sun Hill House, Hey Lees, in Oldham. He had been at the Golden Fleece in York when he had accidentally fallen from a window and broke his back. He was subsequently removed from the property to the Military Hospital but died on August 7th. It was stated that Tierney, who had only married ten weeks prior, had served in the army for 11 years before joining the R.A.F. On August 4th he went to bed in a room at the hotel, and the following morning it was revealed that he had fallen out of the bedroom window, down a shaft, through a skylight and dropped a total distance of 19ft 8in.

His death was registered thus;

Surname: Tierney, Forename: Gerard, Age: 35, District: Yorkshire, Sub District: York – East, Year: 1944, Quarter: Sept, Vol: 9C, Page: 798a

Records show that Gerard Tierney died on August 7th 1944, and that he was the son of William and Mary Tierney, and husband of Doris Tierney. His service number was 1077613, and he had enlisted with the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve, serving with 41 Squadron in Group 4.

He was buried at Oldham, in the Greenacres Cemetery, Section D, Row 1A, Grave 121. On his gravestone it reads: “On whose soul sweet Jesus, have mercy.”

Commonwealth War Graves Commission Grave Registration

TIERNEY, Sgt, GERARD, 1077613, R.A.F.(V.R), 7th August 1944. Age 35, Son of William and Mary Tierney, husband of Doris Tierney of Lees, Sec: D, Row: 1A, Grave: 121

His Grave Registration Report Form reads:

P.R.G. 121, No and Rank: 1077613 Sgt, Initials, and Name: G. Tierney, Unit: R.A.F.(V.R.), Date of Death: 7.8.44, Details of Grave: C.H.

The entry in the Commonwealth War Graves Commission for his grave transcription record reads:

1192/1/A/6 D.1A.121, 1077613 Sergeant G. Tierney, Royal Air Force, 7th August 1944, Age 35, (Cross) On whose soul, Sweet Jesus, have mercy.

Given that his age at the time of death was 35 in 1944, I went back to look for earlier records and made some interesting discoveries.

Surname: Tierney, Forename: Gerard, Registration Year: 1909, Registration Quarter: Jan – Feb – March, Registration District: Oldham, Inferred County: Lancashire, Vol: 8D, Page: 594.

In the 1911 Census Gerard Tierney is residing with his grandparents and parents at 26 Conduct Street, Oldham, his surname and the surnames of his family are spelt “Tarney,” but this was not uncommon. The entry reads:

[Ref: RG14, RDN469, ED17, P24455, 1911]

Joseph Woodruff 39 Head Machel Woodruff 43 Wife William Tarney 34 Son in Law Mary Tarney 29 Daughter Gerard Tarney 3 G/Son Annie McAvady 7 G/Daug

You will remember from the records of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission that the parents of Gerard Tierney were William and Mary, and that when Gerard Tierney was buried he was buried in Oldham Cemetery. All the details match and show that this is the same individual. The 1939 Register shows Gerard Tierney working in Oldham, Lancashire, working as a grave digger. His details in the register state that he was born on December 25th 1908, and resided at 13 Eric Street, Oldham, with his sister’s Annie, Winifred, Catherine and Mary, and his father, who was the head of the house and named William. You will remember that the Commonwealth War Graves Commission listed that his father was named William also. You will also remember that when Gerard Tierney died he was buried in Oldham. [1939 Register Reference: RG101/4561A]

The discovery of the real identity of the airman at the public house has never before been published in relation to the pub; no other book, magazine, or newspaper has brought to light the real identity, but for the first time the mystery is solved. But the story does not end there.

During my research I was to discover that several forums with information about British and Canadian air force crews had listed Gerard Tierney in their discussions, but they all claimed that the airman’s death was “unsolved,” with many claiming that it was a mystery.

Could it be that the original story was heard but the name was unsure, and as such the character of Geoff Monroe was created? It appears as though countless writers, researchers, and authors have failed to fact check the story and continue to perpetuate the myth regarding Mr. Monroe.

Now, for the first time in writing, we not only solve a British Mystery that has dumbfounded military researchers, but we provide the real name and real story for the ghostly apparition encountered by visitors to York’s most infamous public house.

R.I.P. GERARD TIERNEY

What’s your Poison?

Percy is given a pill, from Famous Crimes Past & Present. S ome years ago, I read on a now defunct internet homepage about London’s spectral world, that a school in Wimbledon had been subjected to a prolonged haunting in the 1880s and 1890s: a crippled boy who had been one of the students at this establishment had been deliberately poisoned to death and expired in great agony. Soon after, the other pupils saw his ghost and heard the whirr of his spectral wheelchair. Not unnaturally, they demanded to leave the school at the earliest opportunity, and the parents were also reluctant to keep their children at such a sinister establishment. The headmaster vainly tried to convince them that there were no longer any poisoners at the school, dosing the boys with noxious chemicals, but the pupils all left, and the murder school was closed down as a result. The ruined former headmaster had to become assistant in a shoe shop, selling footwear to the boys he had once taught; he eventually died mysteriously himself, being swept out to sea while bathing and drowning miserably. But was there any truth to this story, which at first seemed too good to be true? Yes there certainly was!

George Henry Lamson came from a respectable American family. His father was Rector of the American Episcopal Church in Paris, and George soon became perfectly bilingual; he graduated from his French school in the late 1860s, and went on to become a medical student, making excellent progress at the great Paris teaching hospitals. At the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, the Rev. Mr Lamson became Chaplain to the American Ambulance, and George, who had studied medicine for several years in spite of his youth, became dresser to Dr John Swinburne. Both of them distinguished themselves throughout the war, and remained in Paris during the Commune, before moving to Ventnor in the Isle of Wight to join the remainder of the Lamson family. After graduating as a Doctor of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, he set up a practice in the State of New York, but it did not flourish. After his adventurous father had got involved in the Balkan wars of independence, George joined him in Serbia and Romania, being twice decorated for his valiant service at the military hospitals.

After passing his final medical examinations in 1878, and obtaining a licence to practice in Britain, George Henry Lamson settled down in Rotherfield, Sussex, taking the large house Horse Grove for his practice, marrying Miss Kate George John in 1878 and fathering a daughter. He also gained two ailing brothers-inlaw, Hubert John who was afflicted with tuberculosis and Percy Malcolm John who suffered from severe scoliosis of the back, and lived at Blenheim House, a boarding school in Wimbledon. In June 1879, there was a jolly family gathering at Horse Grove, with Hubert John coming to visit. Although Hubert was far from well, he was obviously capable of locomotion and fit enough to travel. There was tragedy when Hubert died suddenly and mysteriously during this visit. George Henry Lamson wrote his death certificate, giving the cause of death as pulmonary consumption and amyloid degeneration. As a result of Hubert’s demise while still a minor, Mrs Kate Lamson inherited £479 in India Stocks and £269 in Consols, money that went into the Doctor’s pockets since there was no Married Women’s Property Act back in 1879. Delighted to have got his hands on some hard cash, he soon spent much of it on his various amusements.