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A Tombstone for a Hearth
In September 1930, plumber John Cumming was employed to carry out drainage works along Post Office Lane in Geraldton. He had excavated eighteen inches below the surface when he came across part of a tombstone – the rounded upper portion and half of the right side.
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Seven of Diamonds
On 11 August 1921, the Minister for Agriculture, Henry Maley, collected his morning mail. Among the envelopes was an ordinary grey one, postmarked Mornington Mills. He opened it. Inside was a single playing card, the seven of diamonds. There was nothing written or drawn on the card. Assuming it was a prank, he tore it…
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Caught by His Prints
At 7:30 pm on 12 August 1906, the Bradbury family left their home on Thomas Street in West Perth and attended the Congregational Church service. Frank Bradbury (aged 12) was last to leave and shut the door behind him without locking it. At 9 pm the family returned to find the door wide open and…
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A Cabin Boy’s Adventure
Arriving in Bunbury on 28 February 1932, the King Lud began loading wheat and was one of many ships anchored at the jetty during (what was noted to be) an “unexpected busy period“. It departed for Fremantle on 8 March and arrived on the following day. Upon their arrival, a report was made to the…
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Knock Off & Bring Them Back
The first test between Australia and England at Lord’s started off disastrously. On 22 June 1896 Australia won the toss and elected to bat. Henry Donnan and Joseph Darling were the opening batsmen and their partnership had barely gotten underway when Donnan was run out for one. George Giffen was next and on the first…
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£1 Hudson
Eager to prove that the Great Depression was not affecting the financial world as badly as newspapers were reporting, Sydney Atkinson of Sydney Atkinson Motors decided to offer a used car for sale for £1 to the first person through the doors at 9 am on Friday, 28 March 1930.
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Battle of the Bellmen
On 21 May 1886 Tommy Hopkins was walking down Hay Street, preparing to ring his bell and announce to the public that Messrs. E. Solomon and Co. had a sale. Eyeing him as he traversed the streets, Billy Boy the Bellman was far from pleased. As town crier, Perth was his domain while Tommy had…
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The Women’s Rush
Following the discovery of the Golden Eagle nugget at Larkinville on 15 January 1931, gold was at the forefront in the minds of Western Australians. Reminiscent of earlier gold rush years, some men left their jobs to travel to the field in the hope they would strike it rich. Gold was the hot topic of…
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Grim Yarns
There is a sickly odour of the sepulchre permeating the atmosphere, and the chief employment of the idle is to stand around and swap ghoulish stories – yarns that are dank, dismal and dirty, and reminiscent of dry bones, festering corpses, foul whiffs from the charnel house, blue mouldy of ghostly visions, and grisly spooks…
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Identification Made Easy
A hearing relating to a charge of assault came before the Criminal Court in Perth on 15 March 1906. No details were provided in the newspaper report but it nevertheless highlighted how a method of identification could be deemed inappropriate if carried out incorrectly. A crime was committed, the victim made a complaint and an…
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The Dusty Box 