h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My grandfather's mother's grandfather, he was one of the Bow Street Runners, London's first organised police force.

Wow!

He was also a spy and a publican which, no doubt, is where my ever-lasting thirst comes from

Spy? Out with it!

Do a web search for Cato Street Conspiracy

Okay.

George also perodically visited places such as France and Holland to infiltrate gangs of smugglers. The info he gained was passed back to England and the authorities would be waiting for the bad guys.

How marvelously efficient.
I'm assuming the cutoms fellows were appreciative and paid him?

Yes, but it wasn't a lot. Most years he would make about 400 guineas. In the early 1800s, (George was born in 1792) this was the sort of money the lower-middle-class earned.

When he retired, a few of the European countries he had done undercover work for paid him small annuities.

You obviously know more about him than I have been able to find on the web.
Source?

George features in three books that I am aware of. Triumphs of Detection, The History of the Bow Street Runners and Chronicles of Bow Street Police Office.

I've read the third one. It was written in 1898 and revised in 1975. The other two are not available here in New Zealand.

That reminds me.
I was reading an online account of the NZ native comics scene.
How the PTB had a real tough attitude toward comic books for a good portion of the last century.

Anyway, I will look some more.

He was born where?
He died when and where?

http://www.nwkfhs.org.uk/JOURNAL.HTM
North West Kent Family History Society
Vol 8 No2 June 1998
Stella Rhys
'George Thomas Joseph Ruthven and the Cato Street Conspiracy'
Story of G.T.J. RUTHVEN 1792-1844 and involvement in Cato St.Conspiracy of 1820 [3½ pp]

Thanks. I've sent the info to my brother in Australia who is working on a family tree.

Here's one for you - www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/PRcato.htm - the relevant stuff about George is down the page a bit

I've seen that.

I found a list of his children in a genealogical site.

I'd never heard of the name Ruthven that I knew of, but a web search shows that it is not uncommon. And there are a number of George Ruthvens, including a policeman who died in the line of duty in 1954 in New York state, out in one of the counties...and a large number of men with George Ruthven as first and middle names...

His grandson, also named George Ruthven sailed for Australia aged 16. Buried in Adelaide, (I've visited the grave) he established the branch of the family that I am part of.

You said: "I found a list of his children in a genealogical site." - How about posting a link?

There was a reason I didn't have a link for that, but I can't remember what it was.
Anyway, it was a fellow in Devon.
He was researching the Applebee and Ruthven families.
You can run a Google on that.
Here are the children's names:
George John William b. 1816
Thomas Joseph Samuel b. 1828
Henry Charles b. 1829
Christopher Charles Robert b. 1830
Adolphus Devereux b. 1832
Luisa Ellen Isabella b. 1833
Grace b. 1834
Mary Ann Sarah Jane b. 1836
Grace b. 1834
Catherine b. 1839
Alfred , no date
It sounds like he had two separate families, or some of them were born and named on the continent.