William Murphy was sentenced to death at Beaumaris courthouse in 1910 for murdering his mistress on Christmas Day after she had left him for another man. He was hanged at Caernarfon.

Those who had been executed were buried within the walls of the prison where they were held before the sentence was delivered. This gravestone was excavated at Caernarfon during the 1930s, when the building was converted into council offices. The gravestone displays the criminal's initials, date of execution and directions to the grave.

A judge would have worn a black hat, as seen above the gravestone, when delivering a death sentence.