On a crisp evening in November 1782, the streets of London were full of fog and hurried footsteps. In the parish of St Martin’s-in-the-Fields, a young labourer named John Reynolds made a choice that would bring him to the bar of the Old Bailey before the month was out.
That night, he stole a silver watch from a passer-by — a small object, but a valuable one. Watches were not mere timepieces; they were symbols of status, savings, and security. Losing one could ruin a working man. Stealing one could ruin the thief.
The theft
The victim, John Langford, was returning home at dusk. The streets were busy, lit by the dim glow of oil lamps. A jostle, a shove, a swift tug — and the watch was gone.
Langford wheeled around.
Langford: “My watch! The fellow’s run off with it!”
A nearby boy saw a man darting toward the Strand, clutching something close to his coat. He shouted the alarm. Within minutes, a constable gave chase.
Reynolds was stopped in a narrow court, panting, coat bulging.
Constable: “What have you there?”
Reynolds: “Nothing of consequence, sir.”
But the silver watch was found tucked inside his waistcoat.
The trial at the Old Bailey — 20 November 1782
On 20 November, Reynolds stood in the crowded courtroom, facing the charge of stealing a silver watch, value forty shillings, the property of John Langford.
Clerk: “How say you — Guilty or Not Guilty?”
Reynolds: “Not guilty. I bought it from a stranger not an hour before.”
It was a common defence — and an unlikely one.
Langford identified the watch instantly, noting the unique mark on the inner case.
The boy who saw Reynolds flee told the court what he had witnessed.
The constable described the chase and the recovery.
The jury required little discussion.
Foreman: “Guilty.”
Sentence and aftermath
For a theft of this value, and with such clear evidence, there was only one likely outcome.
Judge: “The prisoner is sentenced to transportation for seven years.”
Reynolds went from the cramped courtroom to Newgate, and from there to the hulks on the Thames.
In the spring months that followed, he was loaded onto a transport ship, bound for the penal colonies — one more Londoner carried away for the price of a stolen watch.
Why this mattered
The case of John Reynolds shows how, in 1780s London, even a moment of opportunistic theft could shape a life’s entire course.
- A silver watch represented months of wages.
- Theft was treated as a direct threat to public order.
- Transportation was the common cure for what the courts called “thefts of opportunity.”
In one night, Reynolds seized a watch — and lost his freedom.
Source
R v. John Reynolds (t17821120-34), tried at the Old Bailey on 20 November 1782 for stealing a silver watch from John Langford.
Verdict: Guilty. Sentence: Transportation for seven years.
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