Hello All
Not all hidden treasures are huge fortunes or state treasury or payroll money. The following tale is classic tale of hidden money by an aged Man living in a humpy during the 1930’s. When for many people poverty and destitution was very real. The failure of many banks made many people fearful of them and thus resorted to hiding their cash.
Bayswater a trendy suburb of Perth, But in the 1930’s shanties of the poor and destitute sprang up victims of the great depression. Many were the old and feeble tossed out on the scrap heap of life. One such person was a Thomas Scullion an aged pensioner.
Thomas Scullion lived in his humpy from 1931 to at least 1938 and during those incredibly hard and lean years managed to save some money. Living the perilous life in a humpy he would have hidden well his cache from prospective thieves. However one day the unthinkable must have happened and old Thomas perhaps suffering from dementia discovered his small cache was gone.
He as any desperate citizen would report his loss to police. Thomas perhaps because of his advanced years and perhaps manner did not fully convince police that his catch was actually stolen but perhaps misplaced. However the incensed Thomas managed to immortalize himself in a photograph in a newspaper telling of his plight.
Was there any treasure of a few dollars or was it an old man’s ploy to get attention? Was it really stolen or is the money still lie buried in a jam tin somewhere near where the old humpy was?
Perhaps detailed check of old records indication the exact location of where this old humpy was, in one of the any parks and reserves in the 1930’s was used as unofficial campgrounds for the destitute and poor may yield results. In some respects a low cost treasure hunt for a small lost money cache with a face and story to it for any metal detectorist willing to do a little research.
Not the great treasure of a fallen empire but still a treasure story with a human face and story to it, what could better to have the old man’s newspaper picture the old tin and cache of coins on the wall of man cave. Should spark a conversation or two.
Hardluck
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http://www.thunting.com/smf/index.php/topic,38886.msg239862.html#msg239862
There are 2 attachment(s) in this post which you can not view or downloadPlease register for viewing them. The Daily News , Thursday 4 August 1938, page 11 TREASURE CACHE PERTH.jpg unique_building_block_in_bayswater_facing_alf_brooks_park_94674209648390412.jpg
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