09/06/2024
As many of you know, I recently moved into the Old Pentridge Prison complex in Coburg—behind the old bluestone walls. I’m sure there’s a metaphor there somewhere! And I’ve been researching the history of the area beyond the prison. I came across the article below which appeared in THE AGE newspaper 98 years ago. But first a little explanation. It appears a ‘push’ was the slang term for a gang of young men. And the ‘Boundary Hotel’ mentioned in the article, is now ‘The First and Last Hotel,’ located on 1141 Sydney Rd, Coburg North VIC 3058. Here’s the article from 2 January 1926:
PUSH WAR AT COBURG.
BOUNDARY HOTEL RAIDED
DISGRACEFUL OUTRAGE
Batons and Iron Bars Used.
Ten Men Seriously Injured.
A disgraceful attack associated with a ‘push' vendetta was made shortly before 6 p.m. yesterday at the Boundary Hotel, Sydney-road, North Coburg. Two taxi cabs crammed with men armed with bludgeons and iron bars, pulled up outside the hotel. Leaving two of their number to guard the taxi drivers a dozen men swarmed into the hotel, tore the telephone from the wall to prevent the police being summoned and proceeded to beat every human being they encountered into insensibility with solid red gum battens and short iron bars.
The hotel is on the boundary between Coburg and Campbellfield, and is kept by Mrs. White. It is frequented by a formidable band of young men known to the Coburg police as the Fawkner push, and the district surrounding the hotel is known to the police as ‘Mexico.’
Police inquiries so far indicate that at 5.40 p.m. the Yellow Cab Co. received a telephone call from Collingwood for two taxi cabs to go to Fawkner. The cabs were supplied, and picked up fourteen men at the street corner indicated. The cars proceeded direct to the Boundary Hotel.
Several respectable local residents were in the hotel having a quiet drink when the Collingwood invasion arrived. The first man to enter tore down the telephone.
Mr. Martin White, husband of the licensee, at once protested. “Here, what's your game?” he asked. The reply was a blow from a red gum bludgeon, which effectively disposed of his objection. The whole hotel was then raided, and wherever a head was found a baton or an iron bar was used. In five minutes the hotel was like a shambles. Men were lying on the floor unconscious, with blood pouring from deep scalp wounds, or doubling up in agony from a cowardly application of the ‘boot.’ In ton minutes the miniature war was over, and the 'push,' leaving a dozen of their victims lying on the blood-stained floor, rushed back to their taxi cabs and fled.
Mrs. White, the only uninjured person left in the hotel, hurried to the post office and telephoned the Coburg police and Russell-street. Sergeant McGuiness, of Coburg, with Constables Prott and McGifford, jumped into a motorcar, and raced to the hotel. The police patrol car, carrying Senior Constables Roche and Quin, plainclothes Constables Saker and Alexander, and Constable Peach hurried at full speed to the scene. The cowardly assailants, however, had made good use of their fifteen minutes start, and, turning off Sydney-road at Bell-street, had disappeared in the direction of Preston.
Two motor ambulances from the Civil Ambulance Service were lurried to the wrecked hotel, and work of sorting out and removing the injured was begun. Dr. Rennick, of Coburg, was summoned and several of the men, whose condition was serious, were removed to a Coburg private hospital. Others were patched up sufficiently to be removed their homes, and two were taken to Melbourne Hospital.
SERIOUSLY INJURED
PERCY JORY, 7 Lawrence-avenue, Fawkner
Severe scalp wounds and fractured skull.
ALFRED FINNISTER, Boundary-road, Merlynston
Lacerated head and concussion.
DOUGLAS McCARTER, Lorne-street, Fawkner
Cut eye and cheek, internal Injuries.
JAMES JACK, 21 Orvetio-street, Merlynston
Scalp wounds and concussion.
ROBERT PINCHBECK, Rosebery-avenue, Preston
Scalp wounds, bruised shoulder.
MICHAEL PARKER, Hollyrood-street, Coburg
Lacerated scalp.
JOSEPH POPE, Broughton-street, North Melbourne
Scalp wounds.
HENRY JOHN HERRON, Orvetio-street, Merlynston
Scalp wounds.
THOMAS HUGHES, Galeka-street, Coburg
Cut head and injured shoulder.
JOHN HAYES, Orvetio-street, Merlynston
Severe scalp wound and internal injuries.
Four or five other men, less seriously injured, were, after receiving first-aid treatment, able to go home, and their names could not be obtained. Mr. White, who was the victim of the first blow struck, escaped serious injury, though he was badly shaken.
The Coburg police believe that the raid was a reprisal for treatment meted out to a member of the “Wanderers” put by the Fawkner push recently. In all the circumstances, it is perhaps unfortunate that there were no members of the ‘push’ at the hotel when the distributors of mob vengeance arrived.
Most of the men injured are between 25 and 30 years of age, and Sergeant McGuinness of Coburg describes them as decent, hard-working, men and unlikely to have done anything to provoke such a murderous attack.
The Coburg police have anticipated trouble in this locality during the holidays, and Constable Prott, and the sergeant and plain-clothes Constable Dorman, patrolled the vicinity all night on Thursday. The patrol was continued by Constable Prott all day yesterday and he left the neighbourhood of the Boundary Hotel ten minutes before the two car loads of ruffians arrived.
Investigation by practically the full strength of the Russell-street plain-clothes police in the patrol cars later established, on the return journey, one of the yellow cabs had broken down near the tramway sheds in Nicholson-street. The men all decamped, hurrying off in the direction of Fitzroy. This cab was located by the police and brought to Russell-street. In a statement to plain-clothes Constable Saker, the driver said the reason he did not leave the hotel and give the alarm was that a man was left to guard him, and his fare had not been paid.
One of the red-gum bludgeons used by the attackers was found outside the hotel by Constable Dorman. It was about the same length as a regulation police baton, had a piece of string tied at one end as a wrist strap, and was of red gum 3 inches in diameter. An extensive blood stain bore evidence to the part it had played in the disgraceful affray.
The Boundary Hotel can be seen in the background of this clip, which I believe is from Alvin Rides Again (1974), where Alvin is in a car chase, a hearse hot on his tale.
First & Last Hotel Fawkner 1974.
