The Diary of a Resurrectionist, 1811-1812 to Which are Added an Account of the Resurrection Men in London and a Short History of the Passing of the Anatomy Act

The “Diary of a Resurrectionist” here reprinted is only of a fragmentary character. It is, however, unique in being an actual record of the doings of one gang of the resurrection-men in London. Many persons have expressed a wish that so interesting a document should be published; permission having been obtained to print the Diary, an endeavour has been made to gratify this wish. To make the reprint more interesting, and to explain some of the allusions in the Diary, an account of the resurrection-men in London, and a short history of the events which preceded the passing of the Anatomy Act, have been prepared. The great crimes of Burke and Hare drew especial attention to body-snatching in Edinburgh, and consequently there have been published ample accounts of the resurrection-men in Scotland.[1] For this reason, Edinburgh has been omitted from the present work. As to the genuineness of the Diary there can be no doubt. It was presented to the Royal College of Surgeons of England by the late Sir Thomas Longmore. In his early days, Sir Thomas was dresser to Bransby Cooper, and assisted him in writing the Life of Sir Astley Cooper. At the suggestion of Lord Abinger, it was decided to introduce an account of the resurrection-men into the book. The information for this was partly obtained by Mr. Longmore from personal communication with some of the resurrection-men, who were then living in London. One of these handed over portions of a Diary he had kept during his resurrectionist days. This was preserved for some years at Netley, and was afterwards presented to the College, as stated above. A few extracts from the Diary were printed in the Life of Sir Astley Cooper