X Robert Rees JONESDear Annie,Thank you for your nicely worded request forinformation concerning Robert you would besurprised how many enquires we get from people whonever say please or thank you, but first I have topoint out a few things. Sadly we do not have aphotograph, that is to say we may, there areliterally hundreds of photographs of officers, buttheir names were never recorded on the reverse ofthe photograph.The Cheshire Constabulary was formed in April1857; there are many thousands of records, theseare held by the Cheshire Record Office, Chester.As a retired Police officer and voluntary PoliceMuseum Researcher I am slowly extracting theserecords. Cheshire Police Officer Enrolment Recordsare held under Reference CJP7 Volumes 1-5. Thesefive volumes are very large and in poor condition,run from 1857- 22 March 1913; the informationwhich you seek would therefore be recorded inVolume 4. The information regarding his marriagesis retained in CJP24/2, 1847-1966.I say all this because I want to try and reassureyou that what I give you is as it appears in therespective volumes. However if you so wish, youcan of course have the records confirmed by theChester Records Office Archivist. But it would beremiss of me if I did not point out that TheRecord Office will charge you a minimum of £27 persearch per volume; therefore your total bill wouldbe £54, so please be aware. The Museum charges,for searching the two volumes are on a reducingscale i.e. dependant on the information recorded,the maximum amount payable is £10, whichrepresents good value. Your remittance is £5 andas we are working on a trust basis please forwardpayment by cheque made payable to the "Museum ofPolicing in Cheshire" and forward it to TheCurator, Mr. Peter Wroe, Museum of Policing inCheshire, Warrington Police Station, ArpleyStreet, Warrington, Cheshire. WA1. 1LQ.If you also read the history of the CheshireConstabulary "To the Best of Our Skill andKnowledge" which is on the Museum Web Site, I feelcertain that a useful picture can be obtained oflife in the force at the time, my own opinion isthat discipline was draconian and those whostrayed outside the rule's were fined way abovewhat they earned or dismissed. Also therestrictions on their private life, an officer wasnot allowed to drink on or off duty even in hisown home. It all comes down to the fact that upuntil the 1960's every Chief Constable of Cheshirewas an ex military officer and they of coursebrought with them the military codes of practice.Can I ask you when you get a moment would you senda quick mail so I can mark of your enquiry ascompleted? If you have any further questionsplease don't hesitate to contact me. Jim Talbot.Volunteer Trustee and Researcher, Cheshire Museumof Policing.Collar Number/Rank. PC 253 Robert Rees JONESBorn. 1869 Dinas, Merionethshire.Date of Entry. 7th March 1891Date of Leaving. 9th January 1897Final Date of Leaving. 9th January 1897How Discharged. Resigned through ill health.Normally it would be recorded that if an officerresigned through ill health he would, depending onhis service be awarded a Gratuity, in particularif he was injured on duty and as a result of thatinjury incapable of carrying out his normal policeduties. I have checked the pension recordsCJP20/2/1 1857-1965, which also shows Gratuitypayments and nothing is recorded. So it tends tosuggest that the Pub Brawl you mentioned was notthe reason why he resigned but perhaps some otherunderlying illness. Further the Force GeneralOrders of the day i.e. the everyday running of theForce, which we have from day one April 1857, alsorecords events, like injuries, commendations,additional pay awards etc, and again there isnothing recorded for Robert.Initial Posting. HQ Reserve, Chester.Other Postings and Dates. 11th April 1891Leftwich, 29th April 1893 Malpas, 15th May 1894Seacombe.Miscellaneous Information. Previous OccupationLabourer. Religion Protestant, Height 5' 10", Age22, Eyes Brown, Hair Brown, Complexion Fresh,Build Proportional, Certificate of service withCharacter marked "Very Good" sent to him 13thJanuary 1897.Misconduct. 6th July 1892 under the influence ofdrink when on Special Duty at Chester CityElections, Fined 15/-, by the Chief Constable.(This was a very hefty fine, and I would ventureto suggest it was this high because Robert was onSpecial duties at Chester, which would havebrought him into contact with Chester City Police,which was an independent force, and thereforebringing discredit upon the Cheshire Constabulary,which would have only been in the area as a resultof the elections.Promotion. None recorded.Weekly Pay. 7th March 1891 23/11d, 1st July 189125/1d, 1st April 1892 26/3d, 1st April 189326/10d, 1st April 1894 28/-, 1st April 1896 29/2d.Awards/Good Conduct. None recorded.Further information. I have attached a photographof the very first police station in Malpas whereRobert was stationed in 1893 the property is nowof course in private hands, but still standing.Marriage RecordOfficer. Robert Rees JONESOccupation. Police ConstableAge. 24 yearsCondition. BachelorPlace of residence at Marriage. NorthwichDate of Marriage. 25th November 1891Place Married. Parish Church, Llangedwyn.Fathers Name. John JonesFathers Occupation. Farmer, Denbigh.Spouse. Mary DAVIESOccupation. Not recorded.Age. 25 yearsCondition. SpinsterPlace of residence. TygarynFathers Name. Ellis DaviesFathers Occupation. Farmer, Denbigh.