The Dusty Box

Category: WA History

  • The Ghost of Francis Street

    The Ghost of Francis Street

    Have you seen the ghost! is the latest query under the verandah. Dark rumors have been for some time circulated, of a mysterious apparition which at uncanny hours, haunts the solitudes of Francis street. According to the Victorian Express, in 1882 numerous Geraldtonians had indeed seen the spectre, dressed in black and walking along Francis…

  • Bushed – Australia’s Horror

    Bushed – Australia’s Horror

    On 21 January 1896 it was reported that the remains of a man were found lying alongside the overland telegraph line, about five miles from Coorow. Police Constable Simpson of Geraldton was sent to investigate and near the body he found a swag and a bible held open with two sticks. He could not find…

  • A Short-Lived Telephone Box

    A Short-Lived Telephone Box

    In mid-April 1912, the Postmaster General’s Department erected a telephone box close to the centre of the St Georges Terrace, Adelaide Terrace and Victoria Avenue intersection in Perth.

  • Gold in the Garden

    Gold in the Garden

    Uninterested in the conversation inside their Grandfather’s house at Wembley, Don and Courtney decided to head outside to split some logs. Their Grandfather, John Dundas, directed them to an old hollow tree stump which he had removed some time ago. They got to work with their axe and wedges and while they did not chop…

  • The Yalgoo Bomber

    The Yalgoo Bomber

    As he was acting as the Clerk of Courts and Mining Registrar in addition to his normal workload as Postmaster for the town of Yalgoo, William Meleng decided that he had better start the day early. At 5:30 am on Friday, 13 February 1903, he arrived at the post office and began the task of…

  • Lemons on the Terrace

    Lemons on the Terrace

    On 1 July 1899 it was reported at the Perth wholesale markets that there was “no great demand” for lemons. Such dismal market reports were of no consequence to the parks and reserves committee of the Perth City Council. Thinking of the future, they had come up with a plan that would beautify the streets…

  • The Leschenault Shark

    The Leschenault Shark

    In June 1838 a report reached Perth that the American whaling ship Harvest was lost during gale force winds somewhere between Perth and Leschenault (near Bunbury and Australind). The report was vague and while The Perth Gazette and Western Australian Journal chose to print the news anyway, they did so with the proviso that it may…

  • Geraldton’s First Train Incident

    Geraldton’s First Train Incident

    The construction of the Geraldton to Northampton railway began in 1874 and while sections of the track were completed in the following years, it was not officially opened until 1879.

  • The Skeleton in the Dunes

    The Skeleton in the Dunes

    A report reached here by last night’s mail that the skeleton of a man has been found on the coast near the Donnelly River by Mr. G. Giblett. The body is supposed to have been there some time. 20 October 1892 While no doubt shocking, finding a skeleton was not an altogether unusual occurrence in…

  • Pinjarra’s Ghost

    Pinjarra’s Ghost

    In the early 1870s a man by the name of Thomas Scott visited Western Australia and in particular Pinjarra. He was there for about three days when he mentioned that he had passed an elderly woman dressed in a light dress standing on the Pinjarra Bridge. He did not know it at the time but…