#Perth History

[forgottenaustralia]

Lindsay 'Rocky' Herbert Vagne (aka Vane), originally from Nowra, NSW, developed a keen interest in snakes and tattooing very early on. Some early records have him performing a snake show at Lismore Showground, with a newspaper reporting that he "crashed his sulky," killing some of his snakes as he travelled there (6 May 1914). With articles about him at the Lismore show, dated around November of the same year.

The next dated source of Rocky has him trying to take snakes onto a train in Marborough, Victoria.

Rocky arrived in Perth in mid-1920's and began travelling around to carnivals like White City/ Uglieland showing snakes that he had captured, which included Tiger Snakes collected possibly from Garden Island.

Around 1925 Rocky was apparently a member of 'Gus Leighton's Snake Academy', with an article written in the paper, featuring 'Professor Rocky', Gus, a man named Milo and a woman named 'Madame Lutricia'.

In 1927, Rocky is documented performing with his wife, Annie Vagne nee Whitby, under her stage-name 'Cleopatra' at the Digger's Fair.

In 1928, one of Rocky’s snakes bit his wife Annie on the thumb while performing, and she unfortunately died a short time later.

Rocky must have had a daughter with Annie (or prior) as a photo of him and an aged daughter appear in the paper, shortly after the death of 'Cleopatra'.The daughter goes unnamed.

Later, an inquest into the death of Mrs. Vagne gets underway, with Rocky insisting on the hospital being responsible for 'neglect' by removing a ligature he had placed on her thumb, which was bitter by a Tiger Snake.

After her death, Rocky continued shows at Uglieland (White City), invoking some scrutiny in the papers.

In 1929 Rocky was charged with abducting a 16 year old girl, and arrested at Boulder, before being remanded at Kalgoorlie.The charges were later withdrawn when it was found the girl accompanied him alongside her mother.

Later that year (1929), Rocky employed Harry Melrose (48) as his show assistant, who was also bitten and then died.

At some point Rocky married his second Wife, Miriam Rita Tchan in 1929, who later took him to court to divorce him in 1936, citing, that he was a drunkard who kept snakes under the bed and deserted her, apparently having done so in 1932 stating he was "tired of being tied up".

In April 1934, Rocky was convicted of being ‘in a dwelling with intent’ and sentenced to 3 years imprisonment. While Rocky was still imprisoned, Mrs. Vagne was granted her divorce, as well as granted custody of 'her child'. (Whether this was a child she and Rocky had or a child from Rocky's previous marriage in unknown, though one article states there was one child between their union).

Within the court proceeding Rocky brought his 8 year old daughter in as 'evidence', stating that she had 'taken the bite of every snake in the well at one point or another and was still in perfect health.' With the reporter writing: 'Never before, perhaps, was seen a child bearing so many scars. Her little knees were red and pimply. Her face was a mass of pimples and scars. Below the short sleeves of her little one-piece frock, her frail little arms showed many marks left by the reptile fangs'.

The case ended with him being given 24 hours to get out of the state.

It has been theorised that Rocky dumped his snakes onto Carnac Island, explaining the booming population of approximately 400 Tiger Snakes that currently inhabit the island. Whether truth of folktale is still debated.

In 1937, after having left Western Australia, for South Australia after being forced to leave the state, Rocky was once more performing with snakes, where after being bitten by one and collapsing 100 snakes escaped, being reported in the newspaper.

In 1941, Rocky married his third wife, Joyce Alice Mary Trevorrow, who learned to be a snake charmer from Rocky.

In 1943 newspapers reported on a car Rocky was driving in Victoria, where he was transporting snake for Melbourne Zoo along with another snake catcher named 'Leona', with the car catching fire and 100 snakes dying.

In 1944, Rocky owned a tattoo shop on Flinders Street in Melbourne. It’s likely Rocky was tattooing while in Perth, given the first evidence of his career as a tattoo artist dates to c.1915 in NSW. He had a tattoo parlour located at 84 James Street in Northbridge from around 1933.

While working at his tattoo shop, a man attempted to steal a Tiger Snake from Rocky, this man (George Tchan) was bitten and taken to Royal Melbourne Hosptial.This name also matches the name of Rocky's second Wife father. So there is probably some deeper story there.

In 1946, while in Tasmania, Rocky was bitten once too many times, succumbing to his snake bite and dying, with an obituary in the paper mentioning his wife Joyce, and a daughter Sylvia.

His widow, Joyce, continued on performing snake shows.

In 2024, during conservation works in the Main Cell Block of Freemantle Prison, archaeologists retrieved artefacts hidden underneath the floor, which included fragments of a tattoo art dated to c.1934 and attributed to ‘Rocky Vane’.

The fragmented designs found under the floor would have originally been one larger piece drawn and painted by Rocky, referred in the tattoo industry as ‘flash’, that he could use to advertise his tattoo works to other prisoners.

The fragments of Rocky’s designs are now being carefully conserved and adopted into Fremantle Prisons museum collection.

[barbucomedie]

D-Shaped Buckle from Caputh, Scotland dated between the 11th and 12th Centuries on display at the Perth Museum in Perth, Scotland

Photographs taken by myself 2024

[scotianostra]

St Madoe's Stone , Perth Museum.

The most complete of all the pictish/Celtic stoones I saw on display on Monday, this was found lying down in St Madoes Churchyard, Perthshire during 1830's. . In the 1920s it was moved, in its base, to stand against the wall beside the church door. In the 1990s it was taken to Perth Museum & Art Gallery.

One side, as seen in my gif, is dominated by the ring-headed cross that fills what we can accept as the front of the slab. It is surrounded by biting dogs and with two lion-like creatures facing each other across the top of the stone.

The other side of the slab shows three cloaked and hooded riders, probably churchmen (possibly a reference to the road and its users between St Andrews and Scone) and below them three Pictish symbols: a crescent and v-rod, a double-disc and z-rod and a Pictish beast. The symbols are much worn due to exposure to the elements when it stood in thechurchyard.

In the first thousand years AD, the country we now call Scotland was dominated by changing groups of Celtic peoples, most notably the Picts. From AD 250-900, they controlled most of Scotland north of the River Forth. We do not know what they called themselves. The Picts – meaning “the painted ones” – is the name the Romans gave them. Their language has disappeared and no Pictish manuscripts are known to have survived. But their art does survive on over 300 pieces of carved stonework and a much smaller number of portable objects such as jewellery.

There at least 17 sites around the Perth area, they include Stone Circles, a Pictish Free-Standing Cross, Pictish Symbol Stones and stones with cup marks, cup and ring marks are by far the most common motif, if you remember, or have ever inspected the Caiy Stone, at Oxgangs, which I visited and posted pics of last year, there are 6 of thes type of marks on this stone.

Perth Museum has several fragments of smaller stones which I shall post at a later time.

[thesilicontribesman]

Bronze Age Sickle, Perth Museum, Perth and Kinross, Scotland

[vintageeurope]

Perth, Scotland 1860/1880

[livesunique]

Scone Palace, Scone, Perth, Scotland

[lesbianspaceproject]

Australian Lesbians: Help advance social research into lesbian experience

This research project aims to collaboratively explore what makes a space safe in the past and present, online and in person, to understand why such spaces exist and the impact it can have on lesbians. It seeks to capture insights about lesbian experiences and perspectives to ensure practical pathways for meaningful social change.

You have the opportunity to represent the lesbian community, engage and collaborate in an advocacy process to develop ideas, strategies, and actions for change, Bring a voice to the marginalised, and impact governmental and community policy.

Participating in this project is voluntary and involves one of the following:

Collaborative group interviews in person, over three sessions, once every six months. Each session spans three to four hours. You would collaborate with the researcher and other lesbians on the design and focus of the overall project, learning valuable skills and meeting lesbians in your community. You would be considered a “co-researcher”. For those in Western Australia only.

One-on-one interview either in person, over the phone, or via video call spanning two hours at most. Australia wide.

Anonymous online survey at your convenience. Australia wide.

This project is a part of the completion of my Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Western Australia. I’ve previously conducted research into local lesbian history and I have a passion for grassroots activism, advocacy, and women’s history. This project has UWA Human Research Ethics approval.

If you are interested in participating in this project or have any questions, please email ava.vanaurich@research.uwa.edu.au and specify your preference of the above participation options!

The primary supervisor for this project is Dr Chantal Bourgault Du Coudray and can be contacted via email at chantal.bourgault@uwa.edu.au.

[absolutebl]

10 BL Pairs That Should be Reunited in New Rolls!

1. Son Woo Hyun & Kim Kang Min

I am taking them away from Hwang Da Seul and handing them over to WATCHA (Light On Me, Semantic Error).

Try.

Again.

Korea.

2. Golden Blood’s Sugus & Tenon (PitchBank). 

They never co-branded, tho, so it seems highly unlikely but I absolutely loved their chemistry. 

3. Pluem & Chimon 

I just like their screen presence together and I think their energy suits GMMTV’s style so if they deigned to give them a meaty script like they do with SantaEarth, these 2 could handle it. It seems GMMTV is done with this pair though, and Pluem wasn’t in the 2023 line up at all. 

4. Park Seo Ham & Park Jae Chan

But I explicitly do NOT want a second season of Semantic Error. BL has a bad track record with second seasons.

I want them to play opposite personality types. Just to see if they can recreate the magic. We fantasy casting? I want it to be teacher/student trope, with Jae Chan as a sunshine sweetheart bubbly pursuer of the relationship and Seo Ham as some hurt broken angry closed off gentle giant professor type with a heart of gold.

5. Komiya Rio & Inoue Sora 

Eternal Yesterday was sad from the very first moment, we all knew what we were in for. But these two had killer chemsitry on screen together so I’d love to see them in a HEA BL. Now Japan never does couple branding (anymore - they will do second seasons tho), so this will not happen, but still, I loved them together. 

6. Chris & Jake 

Look, we all know they’d be game, and I’ve given up on a 2nd season of H3: Trapped, so I’ll just take them in another series together. Speaking of... 

7. Lance Chiu & Kawai Akihiro

I adored See You After Quarantine? and I LOVE an international pairing, so I really want these two to anchor  proper full length BL for either Taiwan or Japan, I’m not fussy. For the tiniest bit of shared screen time they had amazing chemistry. So there is a large part of me that wants to hand them over to Japan and see what they could do with an actually solid existing pair and a killer script. 

8. YinWar 

I was super disappointed in Love Mechanics but I love these two on screen together so I really want to see more of them. 

9. PerthLay

I have given up hope on the second season of My Engineer, so I just want them to do something, anything, together so long as they are the leads and it’s a full Thai season. 

10. SamYu 

What? Of course they make my list. This is me after all. 

More on this subject:

Crazy BL Actor Pairing I'd Love to See

BL’s Top 10 Most Deserving Unresolved

Top 10 Kpop Idol BL Fantasy Cast List

MY ULTIMATE FANTASY CAST AND BL MASTERPIECE

(source) 

[chicademartinica]

I rewatched the Dangerous Romance trailer and I realized that I didn’t catch that in this scene this dude is trying to pimp Chimon’s character. And that Perth wants to save him but fucks it up. If we get a storyline with prostitution looming over the poor character’s head ??!!! (It’s giving an extreme version of Hao Ting trying to “save” Yu Ci Gu from the bar and messing with his money. I’m intrigued.)

[borgiabeacon]

Emu War

In 1932, hordes of 30 kg emus invaded Western Australia's farmland, destroying crops and wreaking havoc. The government responded with a full-scale military operation, deploying soldiers armed with machine guns.

Yet, the emus, more agile and resilient than anticipated, turned the effort into the chaotic spectacle now known as the "Emu War."

We all know that in Australia, everything either wants to kill you or steal your food. And we love it.

[yuckdotcom]

may 2022

[waikorns-blog]

Okay okay…but what if Perthchimon did the remake of history3 trapped…honestly it’s just bc of chimon haircut reminds me of tang yi

It’s just my opinion,,,don’t mind me 🫠🤷🏻‍♀️

[barbucomedie]

Pair of Swords from Japan dated to the 19th Century on display at the Perth Museum in Perth, Scotland

In Edo period Japan these pairs of swords were called daishō often translated to "Big-little" refering to the larger katana and shorter wakizashi. In the following Meiji period the wearing of these swords was banned, something that the ruling Samurai did to indicate their status. With this ban many swords went up for sale and were bought up by visiting dignitaries and merchants from Europe. They would go on to be part of many museum collections around Europe.

Photographs taken by myself 2024

[scotianostra]

St John's Kirk, Perth.

[ruleof3]

[if-you-fan-a-fire]

“Conviction Quashed,” Ottawa Journal. December 15, 1937.  Page 1. --- TORONTO, Dec. 14 - Conviction of Lillian Veley, at Perth, on a charge of supplying instruments to procure an abortion, was quashed by Appeal Court today. She had been sentenced to two years.