http://www.theimportanceofbeingtrivial.com/where-jack-and-jill-really-did-go-up-the-hill.html
http://www.bathchronicle.co.uk/Jack-Jill-went-village-hill/story-11336515-detail/story.html
Theories abound as to the origins of the Jack and Jill nursery rhyme. Many think that it pertains to the deaths of King Charles I (who broke his crown) of the United Kingdom and Queen Marie Antoinette of France (who came tumbling after). Others insist that it is a reference to the size restriction imposed by Charles I on the size of beer glasses (a "jack" or "jackpot") in order to pull higher taxes. This then affected another liquid measurement ( a "gil" or "Jill") which was subsequently decreased. (http://www.britannica.com/science/gill-measurement)
Is this the stuff of exciting illustration? No, I say to you. I have instead chosen the interpretation of the nursery rhyme based on the events of 1697, long held dear by the residents of Kilmersdon. They claim that in 1697, Gil, or Jill, fell pregnant out of marriage to Jack, who was hit by a boulder and died before the baby was born. Jill died in childbirth and her son was called "Gilson", a local surname.
With the aid of the graphic pen filter, I created an illustration of a section of the local paper relating the tragic and lurid events of Jack and Jill's demise. William Hogarth (The Rake's Progress) was a popular printmaker and satirist of the early 18th century. His style and depiction of the tumultous and chaotic morals of the time influenced the illustration.
This cuttting from an 18th century newspaper influenced type style and layout.
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