THE CONCLUSION OF THE VERA WATT POISONING CASE. FOR THE FIRST PART, CLICK HERE. When the Coronial Inquest into the death by poisoning of Mrs Vera Watt ended in January 1942. her ex-lover Conald Pagett was committed for trial and remanded in Long Bay Gaol. However, on
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THE A.P.C. OF MURDER ….… click here for previous episode. The coronial inquest into the death of 36 year old Mrs Vera Doris Watt on December 1 1941 opened on December 29. She had died from strychnine, placed
Read more →In the 1940s and 50s A.P.C pills and powders were one of the most popular ‘over the counter ‘ drugs in Australia. They were sold under the brand names of Vincent’s or Bex. The highly successful advertising slogan for Bex was ‘ Stressed? All you need
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On September 9 1922, twenty one year old William Guy Higgs married Helena Potter in a society wedding at Hunters Hill. The couple honeymooned in the beautiful Blue mountains. The groom was the fourth born of seven sons, and chose his older brother Hubert as best man.
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Forty eight year old Ronald Lachlan Leslie was a wealthy, retired grazier living in the Sydney suburb of Manly. He was a happily married family man with two young children. On Wednesday, October 12 1927 he set out to drive to the central western town of Forbes,
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HAVE YOU EVER BEEN CONVICTED BY THE CIVIL POWER? Australian residents enlisting in World War I were required to answer a series of personal questions. At the time, military authorities had no idea what lay behind recruit Robert Coombes’ answer to No. 6, regarding apprenticeships; ‘Mr Pike,
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Shortly before midnight on Tuesday, April 8 1930, what has been described as the most daring robbery in the history of Australia took place. The heist was conceived by Roy Wilkinson, a 24 year old railway porter. Wilkinson had been serving as escort on the mail train from Sydney to Mudgee, which
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A CONTINUATION OF THE STORY OF EDWARD RIDLEY In May 1933, police were called to a crime scene at a damp hovel below what had once been Ridley and Sons Department Store complex, on the Lower East Side of New York. The Ridley family had disposed of the property when the giant
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Edward Ridley Snr emigrated to New York City from Nottinghamshire in the early 1840’s. From humble beginnings as a hawker of ribbons and other small items he eventually built a vast emporium at Grand and Allen Streets, on the Lower East Side. It was one of the city’s
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