George Alexander Gratton as he was later known was born to two enslaved parents on the island of St Vincent in the Caribbean in July 1808. He had a condition that meant much of his body was white skinned with only some black patches while his face and hair were mostly dark with lighter patches.
Presumably through sale, George came into the possession of a ship's* captain who brought him to England. According to some reports he was at that point an orphan, and had already been exhibited in his nations capital. It was also claimed the little boys life was in danger due to the "superstitious prejudices" of the locals, although how far this was true or a later attempt to justify his removal is unclear. At Bristol the captain sold him to travelling showman John Richardson for a reported 1000 guineas. If true that was equivalent to the cost of buying multiple houses but John was a highly successful showmen already and could afford it. He was known to be a big spender. George was then between 14 months and 19 months old depending on which report you believe. It appears the Captain had sought out Richardson as a buyer rather than the other way round.
John Richardson had been born in Marlow Workhouse. Again, according to which story you believe he either ran away from the workhouse or from a job he had been found at the age of 14 and went to London. There he became involved in running a pub and organising travelling theatricals. These seem to have been largely comic. He was not a "freak show" proprietor as such.
For many years a Bible passed down through the Wildego family of Great Marlow which was said to have been gifted by Richardson to one of their female forebears. This was in recognition of her role in feeding and clothing the young runaway when he had no one else to turn to. Once he had made a success of himself, Richardson remembered her kindness and rewarded her with the Bible and a miniature chalk portrait of the Spotted Boy. The Bible was still in the family hands when the recipient's granddaughter Hannah Wildego died in 1883.
George was exhibited as a toddler for several months in the Summer and Autumn of 1810. He was at St Bartholomew's Fair in London, at Sadler's Wells and at Croydon as well as at Marlow. I have not myself found any mention of his appearing anywhere after 1810 (though there were imitators who did).
The sideshow was called The Beautiful Spotted Boy and was billed as a chance to see the wonder of God's creation. The Star newspaper said George was the "without exception the greatest beauty and most interesting curiosity ever seen" while another dubbed him a "lovely infant". At Sadler's Wells in September 1810 the Spotted Boy was well down the list of attractions but by October his appearance was one of the most highlighted attractions.
Those he appeared on the bill with in September included Grimaldi the clown, the Sampford Ghost, Lambert the Fatman, Sadler's Baboon and The Yorkshire Giant. These did not work for Richardson, they just appeared as part of the same shows.
The comedy performer Charles Edwards must also have worked on the same bill as George at one point as his wife Anne in writing her biography of Charles said that he met the child and developed "a great attachment to him". He visited George regularly. Ann recalled that "the child loved him very much and they played together by the hour". The same affection was said to exist between George and John Richardson. Robert Chambers in his book The Book of Days for instance called George "a child of amiable manners much attached to Richardson". As well he might be, as John's affection aside, who else did he have in the world?
John had George formally baptised when they were together in Surrey. I believe the Gratton name had been given to him by the ship's captain - it was supposedly the name of the overseer of the plantation on which George was born. ("Mr Alexander's, that is the Colonarie Vale sugar plantation of William Alexander which had around 300 slaves working there.) I do not think that it is possible to discover his birth name or those of his parents.
In 1811 John commissioned an artist to paint the boy. In the painting George is posing with a bow and arrow which may reflect how he was taught to pose at the fairs. Typically those with unusual skin or body appearances either sat while people filed past them or stood on a stage and struck a series of poses to allow their appearance to be fully demonstrated. Later John began to educate George, who was said to have a "quick and penetrating mind." But the child is thought to have had tuberculosis and died in February 1813, just short of the age of 5 or 6. (A swelling of the jaw was mentioned as the first symptom, and a fever.)
He was buried in John's native Marlow in a brick vault within the churchyard. Apparently the showman feared the boy's remains would be stolen and so had chosen not to bury him for 3 months. I have not been able to ascertain whether this rumour was true. When John himself died in 1837 he asked to be buried next to him, which is what happened. Their graves can still be seen in All Saints churchyard. In the parish church is the portrait of little George**
The popularity of George as an attraction led to many "spotted boys" popping up at fairs for decades after George's death. To see one (real or subject to some body painting) in a sideshow became as commonplace as seeing a bearded lady or a strong man. I also found one case of a painted statue purporting to be a likeness of George being used as an attraction in the 1830s, after John Richardson's death.
An additional memorial is now in the churchyard for George, alongside his grave. This notes that George is the first known person from St Vincent's to have come to Great Britain.
You may be interested in this post on the blog which is about an African boy who lived in Marlow for a while also in the 1800s. And see this post about Marlow's links to slavery and its abolition.
All mentions of an individual on this blog can be found under the Person Index on the top drop down menu. More posts dedicated to one person can be found under the Biographies Of Individuals menu option.
*Possibly aboard The Friends of Emma, arriving September 1809.
** Another portrait from life was made by Mr D Orme. It shows George sitting on a turtle or tortoise with a Dalmatian dog at his side.
© MarlowAncestors. Written by Charlotte Day and researched by Charlotte Day and Kathryn Day.
Sources:
Memories of Charles Mathews Volume 4 by Mrs Anne Mathews. 1839. Copy in the British Library, digitized by Google.
The Book Of Days or A Miscellany Of Popular Antiquities by Robert Chambers 1864. Published by W and R Chambers.
The History and Antiquities of the County of Buckingham by George Lipscombe. 1847. Digitized by Google.
The Morning Advertiser, 29th September 1810 and 10th October 1810. Copy held in the British Library archives and accessed via the BNA.
The Star (London) 10th October 1810. As above.
The Morning Post 7th April 1810. As above.
Graves Great Marlow.
Literary Journal and Miscellany of Science, Art, History and Politics Vol 2, 1819.
https://www.ucl.ac.uk/lbs/person/view/2146636936
Bucks Advertiser and Aylesbury News, 12 May 1883.
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