Selina Rushbrook | |
|---|---|
,_1905.jpg) Selina Rushbrook, Swansea Prison photograph 5 November 1905 | |
| Born | Selina Ann Jenkins June 1880 Swansea, Wales |
| Died | 17 February 1907 (aged 26) North Dock, Swansea, Wales |
| Nationality | Welsh |
| Occupation(s) | Prostitute, brothel keeper, petty criminal |
| Spouse | Ebenezer Rushbrook (m.1901) |
| Parents |
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Selina Jenkins Rushbrook (born Selina Ann Jenkins; June 1880 – 17 February 1907), was a Welsh petty criminal, prostitute and brothel keeper from Swansea, Wales. Raised by her mother following her father's death when she was four years old, she moved out of her family home as a teenager and served her first prison sentence at the age of 18, by which time she was already working as a prostitute. She received many convictions for prostitution, public order offences and theft in subsequent years. In 1901 she married shoemaker Ebenezer Rushbrook, and continued to work as a prostitute and thief. The couple moved to Bridgend, and although both Selina and Ebenezer Rushbrook were convicted of theft in 1902 she appears not to have come to the attention of the authorities for the three years following that incident.
In late 1905 or early 1906 the Rushbrooks separated, and Selina returned to Swansea to work as a prostitute. In February 1907, while leading prospective client Ernest Witts towards a secluded area of Swansea Docks, she fell from a footbridge into the lock. Although Witts attempted to grab her he failed to reach her and was left holding her shawl. He made no further effort to save her as he was unable to swim and instead went to fetch help; roughly three hours later, police recovered her body from the lock.
In her lifetime, Rushbrook attracted little notice beyond official records and local newspaper accounts. Her life was examined by local historian Elizabeth Belcham in her book Swansea's 'Bad Girls': Crime and Prostitution 1870s–1914.