Lincoln Prison on March 30th 1857

The Reverend Henry Richter knew Lincoln Prison well through his long association as chaplain at Lincoln Castle for 35 years during the 19^th century. He remained at the Castle until he retired, aged 84, when the prison was closed. The prison archives hold a wealth of material, including nearly 10,000 journal entries covering Richter’s time at Lincoln, which tell us much about his character and the daily lives of the Victorian prisoners.

He had worked as a schoolmaster for more than 20 years before becoming chaplain at Lincoln, and his journals reflect that education was still an important part of his work. Alongside bible classes, he spent the majority of his time teaching the prisoners to read and write, and to master basic arithmetic.  Some of his journal notes show that he had great skill in coaxing prisoners to repent and confess to their crimes.

His journal entry for March 30^th 1857 reflects the harsh conditions for Prisoner Bedford:

“Find Bedford very inimitable. On asking him if he recollected what I said in the Sermon yesterday he answered he paid no attention to it, he had made up his mind, & he did not care whether he lived or died: he would take his chance.”