A RELATIVE of a woman brutally murdered by her estranged husband as she held her baby son has welcomed a book about the tragic case.
Stuart McMillan’s gran Isabella McNaught was in the house the night her sister’s throat was cut by John Gallacher in February 1924.
“Gran Isabella never spoke about the incident - and I don’t blame her in the slightest as it must have been horrendous,” explains Stuart.
Stuart attended the book launch of 16 Incle Street, a new book by Glasgow writer Jeff Holmes which examines the horrific case and the subsequent trial, which created headlines across the UK.
Jeff learned about the tragic story while searching old newspapers in Paisley Central Library.
“I was writing a newspaper column about stories from Paisley’s past and I came across the story about John Gallacher murdering his wife Maggie,” he adds.
“I included it in the column and I received a phone call from Stuart, who is a mate of mine, to say that the incident had involved his family.
“It was one of those moments when time stood still.”
Jeff adds: “As gruesome as it is - which isn’t normally my genre - I was fascinated by this story from the start.”
Gallacher, 29, an out-of-work riveter, and Maggie, 26, had been married for several years and were living in a cramped room on Wallace Street with their three-year-old son and 17-month-old baby.
The couple fought regularly, and there were no job prospects for Gallacher on the horizon, so Maggie and the boys moved back to her mother’s home at 16 Incle Street.
Gallacher was in the habit of visiting her there on a Saturday around teatime, explains Jeff.
“He would give her a few shillings to help with the children, but on this one night, for some reason, he went back to the house later and asked to see his wife.
“He walked in uninvited and asked Maggie to go and stay with him, saying he missed her and the kids.
“She said she would if he got a house for them, but that she wasn’t going back to living in rooms.”
Jeff adds: “This seemed to rile him and he stood up. She was facing away from him and holding the baby. He produced a razor and slit her throat, catching the baby with the razor as well.”
Maggie managed to stagger to a neighbour’s house, where an ambulance was called, but she died a short time later. Gallacher fled but eventually gave himself up to police in nearby Johnstone, and he was charged with murder.
Jeff adds: “He was sentenced to hang. The death penalty was such a hot topic at the time that when Gallacher’s young brother came up with the idea of a petition to get the death sentence commuted to life imprisonment, there was a realistic chance that it could work.
“The case was discussed all over Great Britain.”
Researching the book took two years, says Jeff.
“A valuable source of information was the Paisley Poor Law records held at Paisley Heritage Library,” he explains. “Both Gallacher and his wife had made separate claims for relief and therefore interviews had to take place with the parish. The amount of detail on both families was a massive help.”
Maggie’s sister – Stuart’s gran – helped raise her sister’s sons.
Stuart explains: “She was on hand to help with baby Thomas, and he would grow into a man that I had nothing but the greatest of respect for.
“Tom was my cousin Dorothy’s father and I called him Uncle Tom. He was always immaculately dressed, a very smart and intelligent man, and I loved nothing better than sitting listening to him talk.”
He adds: “Again, he never spoke about what went on that night at 16 Incle Street, but now I completely understand because it must have been very painful.”
Stuart also introduced Jeff to Tom’s daughter, who was “very supportive” of the project.
Jeff says writing the book was “really difficult at times.” He is donating all profits from sales of the book to Renfrewshire Women’s Aid.
He explains: “It was a hideous crime. What really shocked me was that wife assault was such a common occurrence in Paisley in the early 1900s that it became normalised. When it happened, no one really batted an eyelid, which is very sad.
“When you go on a journey such as I have with this book and all the research, you realise just what a fantastic job the women’s aid charity does. It’s incredibly sad that they’re needed, but if I can help just a wee bit then that’s great.”
To get a copy of the book, email jeff.holmes4@btinternet.com
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