My 3xgreat grandfather James Stocking is described as a policeman on the 1861 census, and his son Arthur’s marriage certificate of 1891. On all other records, he is described as a Hawker, Carpet Stool Hawker, Rope Mat Maker or Labourer. How can I find out if he really was a policeman? What sources are available?

On 10 March 1861, a few weeks before that year’s census was taken, his six-month old son Frederick William Stocking was baptised at St Mary Newington, London. At the time, his address is recorded as Paragon Row, and his occupation is shown as Hawker. On census night, 7 April 1861, he is enumerated with his wife and seven children at 26 John Street, Bermondsey; they share the house with James M Hall, a Leather Buyer, and his young family. His stated occupation is clearly written Policeman.

By 12 October 1862, when his son George Thomas Stocking was baptised at St Mary Newington, James Stocking’s occupation is once again Hawker, although his address is now Chatham Place (which was end-on to The Paragon).

The Metropolitan Police was established in 1829 – the year in which James Stocking was born – after Sir Robert Peel successfully put a bill to parliament. The ‘Peelers’ or ‘Bobbies’ were a civilian force and wore blue uniforms and top hots (until 1864) to distance them from the then red coats and helmets of the military (Wikipedia).

Recruitment criteria required applicants to be under the age of 35, in good health, and to be at least 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m). Working shifts lasted 12 hours, 6 days a week, with Sunday as a rest day.

Wikipedia: History of the Metropolitan Police

In 1861, James Stocking was 32 years of age, so eligible in that regard. All data on Stocking menfolk over the generations, where such records exist, suggest that none of them was very tall; that is certainly the case with my, my father’s and grandfather’s generations. Was ‘my’ James really likely to be over 5 ft 7in?

17 local divisions were created between 1829-1830, including M Division (Southwark) and P Division (Camberwell). Both Paragon Row and John Street were both close to Kent Street (now The Old Kent Road) and would probably have come under M Division.

The Metropolitan Police Heritage Centre has useful links to finding out more about those who served. Unfortunately the period April 1857-July 1878 is missing from the Register of Joiners (MEPO 4/333-338) at The National Archives. The site has a timeline relating to the Metropolitan Police; it was a year when their remit extended to policing the dockyards, which may have been the reason for new recruits from the wider area South of the Thames; was James one of these? Or did he work for the Grand Surrey Canal police, or one of the other forces employed by railway or docks companies?

I have found other police ancestors mentioned in trial accounts at The Old Bailey Online, but again, a search here does not find any mention of James Stocking. A search of the British Newspaper Archive (at FindMyPast) for him in London also draws a blank.

Ancestry.co.uk has a collection of ‘London, England, Metropolitan Police Pension Registers, 1852-1932‘, but if he did join the police, he obviously didn’t serve long enough to qualify for a pension, as a year later he was back to hawking again. So, with no other likely sources to confirm that he was a policeman for a short time, this will probably stay a mystery.