WA Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder and WA Police have teamed up to present a program of three talks about the murder, mystery and intrigue of policing the Goldfields on Sunday 29 May.
Gold and Greed will bring to life Kalgoorlie’s most famous murders, that of Inspectors Pitman and Walsh, as well as tales of Goldfields police and activities of the Gold Stealing Detection Unit.
WA Police Assistant Commissioner Regional WA Michael Burnby will be speaking in detail about the Pitman and Walsh murders of 1926, giving a fresh look at one of the most gruesome crimes of the day.
Inspector Craig Parkin has some rollicking police stories from the Goldfields’ colourful past – not just the gory and horrid, but the quirky and just plain odd.
Dom Blackshaw of the Gold Stealing Detection Unit will give an overview of the history of the Gold Squad from its inception in 1907, through the dark days of Walsh and Pitman’s deaths, to the boom and bust times of the Goldfields.
WA Museum Kalgoorlie-Boulder Manager Zoe Scott said, “If you thought Kalgoorlie Cops was pretty fascinating, wait until you hear what police, crooks and murderers got up to on the Goldfields in the early 20th century!
“This is a great program about Kalgoorlie’s past and shows how gold, greed, and life on the Goldfields combined to make Kalgoorlie the very ‘wild west’.”
Accompanying the talks there will be a small exhibition of the Pitman and Walsh story on display at the Western Australian Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder.
The Gold and Greed lecture is part of The Harry Butler lecture series: In the Wild West proudly presented by the WA Museum in partnership with Chevron Australia. The series showcases the work of Museum scientists, curators and associates in the areas of natural and social sciences.
Gold and Greed will be held at the Western Mining Conference Centre, 44 MacDonald St, Kalgoorlie, on Sunday 29 May at 3.00 pm.
LECTURE: Gold and Greed
WHEN: 3.00pm, Sunday 29 May 2011.
WHERE: Western Mining Conference Centre (WMC Conference Centre), 44 MacDonald Street, Kalgoorlie.
BOOKINGS ESSENTIAL: 9021 8533 (WA Museum – Kalgoorlie-Boulder)
COST: By gold coin donation.
Flora Perrella, Western Australian Museum T: 9212 3856 M: 0424 027 646
