Never-before-seen trial briefs reveal incredible truths about Sydney and Melbourne's criminal underworld history
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In an era when brawling between drunken men was something that commonly went unaddressed by authorities, George Barrett was involved in more than a few high-profile fights.
Barrett was a well-known thug and standover man in both Sydney and Melbourne. On December 12, 1947, he was shot dead during a brawl in Fitzroy, Melbourne. At the time, there wasn’t too much sympathy for the notorious criminal, but now, a series of newly released trial briefs show the full story.
The Public Records Office of Victoria has opened the briefs – which have been closed for 75 years – to the public, giving a glimpse into Barrett’s dealings with some of Australia’s most well-known underworld figures.
It all began in 1945 when Barrett ran a business selling beer with a man called Keith Kitchener Hull. He was also friends with notorious Sydney crime figure Donald 'The Duck' Day.
Things soon took a dark turn when Day took a dislike to Hull. It’s not quite clear why, but it’s thought that a woman played a part. Day and some of his heavy-handed mates then gave Hull a beating at a house in Surry Hills, Sydney.
But Day wasn’t done – he returned the next day on the hunt for Hull, who had been seen at a nightclub with Day’s wife.
What happened next would set the stage for the events which followed.
Hull recalled in court: 'He said "it's on" and aimed a revolver at me. It made a clicking sound but did not go off. I did not give him another chance.'
Hull fired three shots into Day, leaving the underworld figure dead in a massive pool of blood.
Kitchener Hull was initially charged with murder but was eventually acquitted on the grounds of self-defence.
If he thought this would be the end of the story, he was sadly mistaken.
The trial briefs have offered a fascinating insight into the cold murders and heated passions of the era, detailing a particularly grisly fight that had moved from Sydney to Melbourne.
Donald Day was a gangster aligned with the notorious sex worker and underworld figure 'The Black Widow' Dulcie Markham. It was said that there was a romantic link between the pair, though the rumour has never been confirmed.
Markham, a high-profile figure in the criminal circles of the day, earned a number of nicknames including 'The One-Way Ticket' – due to her association with eight men who were killed in some way or another.
Two years after Day's death, Markham moved to Melbourne and linked up with an associate of George Barrett, Charles Martin.
Meanwhile, Barton had also been persuaded to move back to Melbourne, as had Keith Kitchener Hull – the man who had earlier shot Barton's mob boss three times in the head.
Sadly, fate wasn't on Hull's side. He crossed paths with Barton and Markham several times in Melbourne, and it was clear they hadn't forgotten the man's earlier misdeed.
In late July 1947, Barrett and Charles Martin went to see Hull for a 'friendly social visit', but the mobster had a different thought when he saw his former lover's associate.
The men got into Hull's truck and went for a drive in St Kilda, eventually stopping in Neptune Street. It's here that Hull made an alarmingly grim claim – that Barrett had aimed a gun at him and said ‘cop this’.
Thankfully, Hull survived the attack, with the bullets only hitting him in the chest and hip. While Hull initially refused to name his attacker to the authorities, his identity was soon revealed.
Four days after the shooting, Dulcie Markham and an accomplice allegedly visited Hull's wife and made threats. This resulted in Markham and her accomplice being charged with conspiring to kill, although the charges were later dropped.
A few weeks after that, Markham made a second visit, this time accompanied by two other men. What happened next was shocking, to say the least: in the presence of Hull’s wife, the group allegedly beat up Hull, striking him in the face with the butt of a pistol.
Hull later revealed in court that it was this shocking attack, along with the threat of violence to his wife, that finally convinced him to identify Barrett as the man who had shot him.
'My wife is in the family way and I consider the tactics of these people standing over a woman is despicable, and not the same as standing over a man, and this is the reason I am giving evidence,' he said.
Barrett was accused of inflicting injuries with the intent to kill. He argued in court, nevertheless, that Hull was the one who pulled the trigger and shouted, 'cop this,' and that he had merely fought with him when the gun went off.
Barrett was then cleared of the allegations by the jury.
After shooting someone and being exonerated on the grounds of self-defence, Hull was eventually shot by another person who, similar to his case, was acquitted.
Just three months later, tragedy struck again in Gertrude Street in Fitzroy; Barrett lay dead on a footpath.
The man accused of killing him, Joseph Turner, testified that Barrett had shot two people before dropping his gun in a scuffle. Turner picked up the weapon and shot Barrett and his accomplice.
He remarked: 'I was thinking that if they got me they would kick me to death or shoot me if they got the gun back.'
Turner was cleared of the charges on the grounds of self-defence, with one newspaper headline summarising the case: 'Barrett was given his own medicine.’
It’s a chilling story, yet one that reveals an ugly truth about life in the criminal underworlds of Sydney and Melbourne in the late 1940s.
Do you have a story that reveals a little-known secret from the past? Share it with us and our members in the comment section below.
Barrett was a well-known thug and standover man in both Sydney and Melbourne. On December 12, 1947, he was shot dead during a brawl in Fitzroy, Melbourne. At the time, there wasn’t too much sympathy for the notorious criminal, but now, a series of newly released trial briefs show the full story.
The Public Records Office of Victoria has opened the briefs – which have been closed for 75 years – to the public, giving a glimpse into Barrett’s dealings with some of Australia’s most well-known underworld figures.
It all began in 1945 when Barrett ran a business selling beer with a man called Keith Kitchener Hull. He was also friends with notorious Sydney crime figure Donald 'The Duck' Day.
Things soon took a dark turn when Day took a dislike to Hull. It’s not quite clear why, but it’s thought that a woman played a part. Day and some of his heavy-handed mates then gave Hull a beating at a house in Surry Hills, Sydney.
George Barrett was accused of injuring someone with the intent to kill them, but he was found not guilty. Credit: Public Records Office of Victoria.
But Day wasn’t done – he returned the next day on the hunt for Hull, who had been seen at a nightclub with Day’s wife.
What happened next would set the stage for the events which followed.
Hull recalled in court: 'He said "it's on" and aimed a revolver at me. It made a clicking sound but did not go off. I did not give him another chance.'
Hull fired three shots into Day, leaving the underworld figure dead in a massive pool of blood.
Kitchener Hull was initially charged with murder but was eventually acquitted on the grounds of self-defence.
If he thought this would be the end of the story, he was sadly mistaken.
The Public Records Act stipulated that the trial briefs in the case against George Barrett and Charles Martin be kept confidential for 75 years. Credit: Public Records Office of Victoria.
The trial briefs have offered a fascinating insight into the cold murders and heated passions of the era, detailing a particularly grisly fight that had moved from Sydney to Melbourne.
Donald Day was a gangster aligned with the notorious sex worker and underworld figure 'The Black Widow' Dulcie Markham. It was said that there was a romantic link between the pair, though the rumour has never been confirmed.
Markham, a high-profile figure in the criminal circles of the day, earned a number of nicknames including 'The One-Way Ticket' – due to her association with eight men who were killed in some way or another.
Two years after Day's death, Markham moved to Melbourne and linked up with an associate of George Barrett, Charles Martin.
Meanwhile, Barton had also been persuaded to move back to Melbourne, as had Keith Kitchener Hull – the man who had earlier shot Barton's mob boss three times in the head.
Sadly, fate wasn't on Hull's side. He crossed paths with Barton and Markham several times in Melbourne, and it was clear they hadn't forgotten the man's earlier misdeed.
In late July 1947, Barrett and Charles Martin went to see Hull for a 'friendly social visit', but the mobster had a different thought when he saw his former lover's associate.
The men got into Hull's truck and went for a drive in St Kilda, eventually stopping in Neptune Street. It's here that Hull made an alarmingly grim claim – that Barrett had aimed a gun at him and said ‘cop this’.
Thankfully, Hull survived the attack, with the bullets only hitting him in the chest and hip. While Hull initially refused to name his attacker to the authorities, his identity was soon revealed.
Four days after the shooting, Dulcie Markham and an accomplice allegedly visited Hull's wife and made threats. This resulted in Markham and her accomplice being charged with conspiring to kill, although the charges were later dropped.
A few weeks after that, Markham made a second visit, this time accompanied by two other men. What happened next was shocking, to say the least: in the presence of Hull’s wife, the group allegedly beat up Hull, striking him in the face with the butt of a pistol.
The public can now access trial materials about Barrett for the first time. Credit: Public Records Office of Victoria.
Hull later revealed in court that it was this shocking attack, along with the threat of violence to his wife, that finally convinced him to identify Barrett as the man who had shot him.
'My wife is in the family way and I consider the tactics of these people standing over a woman is despicable, and not the same as standing over a man, and this is the reason I am giving evidence,' he said.
Barrett was accused of inflicting injuries with the intent to kill. He argued in court, nevertheless, that Hull was the one who pulled the trigger and shouted, 'cop this,' and that he had merely fought with him when the gun went off.
Barrett was then cleared of the allegations by the jury.
After shooting someone and being exonerated on the grounds of self-defence, Hull was eventually shot by another person who, similar to his case, was acquitted.
Just three months later, tragedy struck again in Gertrude Street in Fitzroy; Barrett lay dead on a footpath.
The man accused of killing him, Joseph Turner, testified that Barrett had shot two people before dropping his gun in a scuffle. Turner picked up the weapon and shot Barrett and his accomplice.
He remarked: 'I was thinking that if they got me they would kick me to death or shoot me if they got the gun back.'
Turner was cleared of the charges on the grounds of self-defence, with one newspaper headline summarising the case: 'Barrett was given his own medicine.’
It’s a chilling story, yet one that reveals an ugly truth about life in the criminal underworlds of Sydney and Melbourne in the late 1940s.
Do you have a story that reveals a little-known secret from the past? Share it with us and our members in the comment section below.
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