Double Bigamy Charge – Alleged False Oath at Denaby

February 1947

South Yorkshire Times, February 22, 1947

Double Bigamy Charge
Alleged False Oath at Denaby

Charges alleging double bigamy were preferred at Doncaster West Riding Magistrates Court on Thursday last against Frank Taylor (49), labourer, St Winifred’s villas, South Ascot, who was committed for trial at Leeds Assizes. Taylor said he would plead “guilty” at the Assizes, and made no statement. He was remanded in custody.

Taylor was accused of bigamously marrying Ada Mary Broadhead at Conisbrough, in February, 1946, and Constance May Heal, at Windsor in 1939, during the lifetime of his wife, Hildegarde M. A. Taylor. Taylor was also charged with making a false oath to procure a marriage licence.

Mr R. C. Linney, prosecuting, stated that Taylor was married in July 1919, at Hammersmith. It was alleged that in 1922 or 1923 he left his wife and that she had not heard of him since. There were two children.

While working in 1937, Mr Linney continued, Taylor met Constance May Heal and went through a form of marriage at Winsor Register Office in December 1939. He was then working as a boat man at Eton College. He described himself as a bachelor on the marriage certificate. There were two children of that union.

In an alleged statement, Mr Linney stated further, Taylor said that after his marriage in 1919 he went abroad in the Army and served in India, returning in 1923. On his return he found his wife living with her people, and on the first day of his return, he quarrelled with her.

Taylor further alleged in the statement, that he had received a letter from his wife in 1938 seeing that she had seen him at Windsor and that she had obtained a divorce from him.

Met at Blackpool

In 1944 he was in the RAF at Blackpool and there he met Ada M. Broadhead, the prosecution alleged further. She was staying with relatives there, through health reasons and was normally employed at a munitions factory at Conisbrough.

She returned to Conisbrough in October 1944. During her stay at Blackpool Taylor proposed marriage to her, but because she was supporting her mother she suggested to him that she would wait until he was demobilised from the RAF.

On February 20th, Miss Broadhead and Taylor visited the Rev. M. Clark at Denaby, and applied for a marriage licence. Continuing Mr Linney said that there, Taylor swore an affidavit, saying that he was a widower. They went through a form of marriage at St Peter’s Church Conisbrough that month.

In a statement continued Linney, Taylor said that he was sorry for the trouble he had caused Miss Broadhead and that during the time he had been with her he had been very happy. Taylor was arrested in September for leaving Miss heal and their two children chargeable.

In court Taylor said. “I have nothing to say and I admit the charges.”