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The tragic life of the Spotted Boy
He was born on the island of St
Vincent with an unusual skin
pigmentation which earned him a
place on the macabre freak show
circuit in England. He died a young
boy and is entombed with one the
18th century's greatest showman at
All Saints Church in Marlow.
Here DAVID LANGTON follows the story
of the Spotted Boy and his
extraordinary friendship with
Marlow-born showman John Richardson
DICKENS wrote about him and Gilbert
and Sullivan sung about him in short
John Richardson was one of the great
entertainers of his time.
The man, born in Marlow, fled his
humdrum life as a farm labourer in
the riverside town in search of fame
and fortune in the big smoke.
His gamble paid off and Mr
Richardson died both wealthy and
famous.
His journey from country farm hand
to celebrated showman is, however,
not quite as curious as how he came
to rest forever alongside the famous
Spotted Boy.
Being on the fair circuit in the
early 19th century, Mr Richardson
travelled the country and was
witness to many strange and unusual
sights.
At this time the likes of John
Merrick, the tragic elephant man,
bearded ladies, and midgets
entertained the masses behind cages
in the gruesome freakshows.
Mr Richardson came across a sorry
young boy at one such show while
performing at the famous
Bartholemews Fair in Smithfield
Market, London.
The Spotted Negro Boy, as he was
known, had been brought from the
Caribbean island of St Vincent and
was afflicted with a skin disorder
known as vitiligo a loss of
pigmentation in the skin causing
permanent white marks.
An elegy at the fair had the lines:
"The human monsters shall require
renown the spotted Negro and the
armless maiden."
Mr Richardson's heart went out to
the young boy and he bought him for
a small fortune £1,000. Little is
known of the boy's history, simply
that he arrived in the country
through Bristol when he was only
15-months-old and neither of his
parents suffered from vitiligo.
Mr Richardson, who never married and
had no children of his own,
christened the boy George Alexander
Gratton.
He was said to have treated him like
a son, educating him and taking him
on tours around the country. He
would sometimes exhibit the boy
between the plays he performed.
Doctor G. Lipscombe, the famous 19th
century Bucks historian, wrote: "Mr
Richardson proves a most benevolent
patron to this little orphan and
afterwards educated him with the
upmost tenderness until his
premature death in 1813."
While Mr Richardson had made his
mark as a 'penny showman' performing
some 21 times a day, he never turned
his back on Marlow and was said to
have kept close ties with the town.
One can only imagine the look on a
the public's face as Mr Richardson
walked down the High Street, Marlow,
with this unique young boy at his
side.
Mr Richardson's renown grew and grew
and attracted the attention of
luminaries such as Charles Dickens.
He writes in Sketches by Boz: "The
immense booth with large stage in
front, so brightly illuminated with
variegated lamps and pots of burning
fat, is Richardson's, where you have
a melodrama (with three murders and
a ghost), a pantomime, a comic song,
an overture and some incidental
music all done in five and twenty
minutes."
Mr Richardson was described as
becoming some type of manger at the
fair, where his booth could seat
1,000 people and raise a staggering
£1,200 in just three days.
All may have been going well
professionally but tragedy was about
to strike. His adopted son died in
1813, described as falling victim to
our cold climate. He was either four
or eight. There is conflicting
information as to which age it was.
Devastated by the death, Mr
Richardson had the boy buried in a
plot he had picked out for himself
years earlier at All Saints Church
on The Causeway in Marlow.
The boy was buried amidst much pomp
and ceremony, although exactly what
went on and how lavish the affair
was is unreported.
All that is known is an oil portrait
of the boy was donated to the church
by Mr Richardson. For many years the
painting, by Coventry, hung in the
vestry where it fell into a state of
disrepair.
About ten years ago, a group of
concerned Marlovians, headed by
Anthony Wethered, had the painting
restored and it now hangs above the
nursery area at the back of the
church.
After the boy's death, the big fairs
fell out of fashion, offending
public sensibility with their
'vulgarity'.
By 1831 Bartholemews was on its last
legs but continued with performances
until 1855, being the last surviving
fair.
Mr Richardson never lived to see the
final demise of his fame and
fortune, and died at the age of 70
in November 1837.
As per his wishes he was reunited
with the his 'son' and was
entombed in the same vault, his
headstone bolted to the back
of the boy's.
By David Langton
April 4th 2001
Hand Colored Engraving circa 1834
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