MOSMAN BAY WHARF – THE SAFE BLOWERS

I love this photo of a ferry approaching the wharf in Mosman Bay, on Sydney’s Lower North Shore. My partner Rob and I lived just above the wharf in the 1980s and 90s, travelling to the city each day  by ferry. There was once a suggestion that a channel should be cut through Cremorne Point  (see arrow) to reduce the time of the journey. 😃

But I digress. For many years (even when we lived there) the wharf boasted a post office and several small shops. I don’t think there are any left now.

In the 1920s the relative  isolation of the wharf after midnight made the businesses  vulnerable to thieves and the wharf became a regular target.

Note the tram on the left. Only buses now.

The most infamous crime occurred on September 18 1922.

A car load of men arrived at Mosman Bay before dawn and  broke into the refreshment rooms  operated by Felix Caleo. The men  cleaned out his entire stock of Aspros, tobacco, cigars, cigarettes and confectionary. The haul was worth hundreds of pounds, but the crooks’ eyes were on a even  greater prize. Armed with safe breaking equipment they  broke into the post office.

GOING OFF WITH A BANG!

Local residents were woken by a huge explosion at 4,00am, followed by fire  sirens. The  post office was alight. Once the flames were  extinguished police were confronted by  a scene of carnage.  The 3 cwt  safe  had been dragged from its stand in a corner and lowered  onto its back. Dynamite had been inserted into the lock and the safe covered with mailbags. The latter was  a failed  attempt to muffle the noise of the blast.

However, far too much gelignite was used. The heavy  door  flew off, rose 15 feet in the air and punched a hole in the ceiling! 😎  The mailbags covering the safe were blown to pieces and the contents  caught fire.

Considering the amount of damage done,  the return was underwhelming; a measly twenty quid.  Never mind, they did have all those smokes and lollies from the shop.  The mood was good as they left  with a cheeky and celebratory tooting of their car horn. It turned out that it was the shortest get-away drive imaginable.

The robbery had been planned just up the road at 163 Avenue Road and that’s where the stolen goods were unloaded The tenant of the house was one of the  gang members; habitual criminal Donald Anderson.

PAYING THE PENALTY

Many houses of known safe-breakers were raided over the next few weeks and eventually a number of arrests were made, including Anderson and several of his mates. At the Avenue Road house a good deal of evidence was found, including explosives and two empty cash boxes from the safe.

When the case went to trial an important witness for the prosecution was another career criminal, Stanley Williams. Williams had been staying with Anderson at the time of the Mosman Bay job, although he did not take part in it.   Why he  assisted police I have no idea, but a report of his  testimony  read as follows;

On the night of September 17 all of the accused were present. After having tea and playing cards the accused conversed and witness heard Murphy say,  ‘I hope we  have better luck tonight than we did at the Liverpool hold-up.’ Witness went to bed at 11.o0pm, but was disturbed about 4.00am and asked Anderson what the row was about. He relied,  ‘ Get up and have a look.’ Witness went into the opposite room and saw a miscellaneous  collection of tobacco and confectionary…in the kitchen witness saw Taylor, Graham and Murphy and another man who were talking about the stuff they had taken from the Mosman Post Office. Witness saw the cash boxes….’ (The Sun, Nov. 6 1922)

The defence tried to paint Stanley Williams as an unreliable witness due to his own lengthy record, but it made no difference and the gang spent the next few years in the clink.  The mention of the Liverpool hold up led to the solving of two other cases the men had been involved in, including the armed robbery of a family a few months earlier.

SIX YEARS ON THERE WAS ANOTHER POST OFFICE SAFE BLAST AT THE WHARF

Here are a couple of photos from the 1928 crime. The safe door was blown off in similar fashion, but at least it didn’t penetrate the ceiling.