3. Celebrating Kate: The criminal-celebrity of Sydney underworld figure, Kate Leigh Kate Leigh, or Kathleen Barry as she was known during her marriage to small time crim and sly grog dealer Teddy Barry, sold cocaine, other opiates and operated a brothel. [17][18], Through alleged personal connections throughout officialdom, she continued business throughout the 1930s and 40s despite frequent police raids and a mass of minor convictions. Hazel McGuinness was charged along with her mother Ada McGuiness with having cocaine (in substantial quantities) illegally in her possession. <>/Font<>>>/Rotate 0/StructParents 13/Tabs/S/Type/Page>> Harry Chapman was charged with stealing a motor cycle and side car (value 175 pounds) and a till containing money, value 17s. The man on the far right in the back row is believed to be Stephen Doyle, and the man to the left of him Kenneth McLelland (or McCrerrand). Filter . [2] She died on 4 February 1964 at St Vincent's Hospital in Darlinghurst, and her funeral was held on 7 February at St Peter's Catholic Church in Devonshire Street, Surry Hills and was attended by over 700 mourners. 478 0 obj <>]/P 671 0 R/Pg 664 0 R/S/Link>> 459 0 obj 268 0 obj endobj 691 0 obj When cocaine was outlawed in 1927, Leigh sold both, at at huge profits. 479 0 obj The kitchen of the crime queen's old house is in dire need of renovation, but real estate agents selling the property say it is a golden opportunity for buyers to renovate the historic property, Although she never drank alcohol or took drugs, Ms Leigh (pictured) happily dealt in both, acted as a standover merchant, sold stolen property and occasionally shoplifted, Ms Leigh was a flamboyant and sometimes vicious character who by the mid-1920s was dubbed 'the most evil woman in Sydney.'. 340 0 obj Kathleen Mary Josephine Leigh (ne Beahan; 10 March 1881 - 4 February 1964) (other names included Kathleen Barry, and Kathleen Ryan) was an Australian underworld figure who rose to prominence as an illegal trader of alcohol and cocaine from her home in Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia during the first half of the twentieth century.Kate Leigh was a leading figure in the notorious Sydney razor . There are the police records but they are sparse; Leigh was adept at keeping clear of the law. The dilapidated Victorian terrace home in Surry Hills, an inner-city suburb of Sydney, is where Kate Leigh sold illegal substances to an assortment of character from politicians and upper class businessmen to thieves and prostitutes. Kate married for the second time on 26 September 1922, to a Western Australian-born musician Edward Joseph 'Teddy' Barry (1892-1948), a sly-grog dealer and small time criminal. Such a monster in human disguise. 294 0 obj It's easy and takes two shakes of a lamb's tail! H/T The Justice & Police Museum/Historic Households Trust | TwistedSifter, If you like this post you may also enjoy 21 Vintage Police Mugshots That Prove 1920s Gangsters Were Really Badass, The Justice & Police Museum/Historic Households Trust. Hunter is listed in the NSW Police Gazette, 1924 as charged, along with William Munro, with receiving stolen goods to the value of 536 pounds 4 shillings and 1 penny, from Snows department store. Cornford was charged with stealing watches, clothing and money from a shop and with stealing two separate motorcycles and sidecars. He appears in the NSW Criminal Register (24 September 1930) as a thief and petty larcenist. <>]/P 635 0 R/Pg 628 0 R/S/Link>> <>]/P 674 0 R/Pg 664 0 R/S/Link>> endobj endobj Leigh was also personally involved in violence, though she was never convicted of any such offense. The serial numbers of this and the Mug shot of Elsie Hall, Dulcie Morgan, Jean Taylor run in sequence, suggesting they were taken on the same day and, judging from the lighting, at the same time of day. The matriarch Inside Story endobj Samuels, Harold Fletcher and M P (Mick) Ryan were three of twenty men and one woman arrested at an International Anti-Imperialism Day demonstration in Martin Place, Sydney, on 1 August, 1930. Occasionally she was arrested for robbery, theft or, like in 1943 when police found 1001 bottles of beer, 84 bottles of whisky and one bottle of win underneath the floorboards of her Surry Hills house. uuid:c25d1d94-b261-11b2-0a00-90068915fc7f We all . 405 0 obj <>]/P 606 0 R/Pg 602 0 R/S/Link>> <>]/P 648 0 R/Pg 641 0 R/S/Link>> It was a miserable place where inmates were routinely abused (until it was closed in 1974), and Kate spent her time there being prepped for domestic service. 293 0 obj The home got its nickname 'mum's' from the pass code of calling around 'to see Mum. Kate Leigh. Language links are at the top of the page across from the title. Caroline Simpson Library & Research Collection | Museums of History NSW endobj Later that year a warrant was issued for her having breached those conditions and a further entry in October lists her as having been arrested and charged, but then released with a caution. <>]/P 615 0 R/Pg 611 0 R/S/Link>> Leigh and Devine are characters in the true crime book Razor by Larry Writer, which dramatises the criminal gang rivalry in Sydney's inner suburbs in the early 20th century when gang members slashed their opponents with cut throat razors. HSn0+xYdVD`MP#)M{H>Rd!~Ar$[m54#IZiVdn`,WxUXd'Lxi)ZZ1s('G#^..!e)dN.=Hj #gZ-L/XdA|> ;r, Celebrating Kate: The criminal-celebrity of Sydney underworld figure, Kate Leigh. Kathleen Mary Josephine Leigh (ne Beahan; 10 March 1881 4 February 1964) (other names included Kathleen Barry, and Kathleen Ryan) was an Australian underworld figure who rose to prominence as a madam, illegal trader of alcohol and cocaine, and for running betting/gambling syndicates from her home in Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia during the first half of the twentieth century. 355 0 obj endobj It would be easy to assume that the controversy arose over the choice of name. . Straw finds it necessary to keep reminding us that she was. But there's another unlikely collection of photos that allow us to get an idea of what fashion was like in the 1920s to 1930s: police mugshots. Her childhood and teenaged years included childhood neglect, time in a girls' home at age 12, and an out-of-wedlock pregnancy; her daughter Eileen May Beahan was born in 1900. Kate anglicised her part-Asian surname from Lee to Leigh, and she was mostly known by that name for the rest of her life, regardless of future marriages. His entry concludes: (i) may be described as an unscrupulous criminal, who will lend his hand to any unlawful undertaking, irrespective of its nature, and invariably assaults, or endeavours to assault, police effecting his arrest. Mrs Kathleen Mary Josephine "Kate" Beahan Leigh The names inscribed here do not appear in police records for 1920-21, and it is likely the women were photographed simply because they were found in the company of known criminals. 213 0 obj Although she never drank alcohol or took drugs, Ms Leigh happily dealt in both and acted as a stand over merchant, sold stolen property and occasionally shoplifted. endobj It quoted her saying she and Ms Devine had buried their rivalry in their old age. <>]/P 507 0 R/Pg 503 0 R/S/Link>> 457 0 obj Those charges were dropped but they were arrested again that same year for stealing a saddle and bridle from Rosebery Racecourse. She anglicised her name to Leigh and by 1922 she was married to sly grog dealer Teddy Barry. The bottom floor of the building houses a caf called 'Sly' that has leased the space until July and the remaining floors of the three-floor terrace are prime for renovation, according to the realtors First national Spencer and Servi. Barry (43) the daughter of Kate was shot through the right arm in her home in O'Sullivan Street, Surry Hills . Her funeral at St Peter's Catholic Church in Devonshire Street, just up the road from her home, was attended by 700 people, including the police and politicians she had known during her career. Straw, a historian, is very good at setting the scene for each stage of her subjects life. endobj Alice Eileen Anna Leigh (1901 - 1967) - Genealogy 'No more remarkable woman ever strode upon the stage of Sydney's nightlife than this middle-aged, matronly dame,' the extract says. 6d, in league with Harold (Tarlow) Tarlington (15) and Alfred Fitch (17). In April 1930 he was further charged, along with Patricia Irving, with conspiring to cheat and defraud divers members of the public of divers large sums of money, for which he received a sentence of 18 months hard labour. endobj Lewis Richard Leigh. 187 0 obj 6 0 obj By the age of 15, Kate married her first husband, Jack Lee, a half Chinese illegal bookmaker and petty criminal. Leigh was portrayed by Danielle Cormack, with Tilly Devine played by Chelsie Preston Crayford, the series itself was based on a Ned Kelly Award winning book written by Chris Walker. . In 1922, her second husband, John Barry, By About time, I say. State Library of NSW Digital Excellence Program, KATE LEIGH'S DAUGHTER MAKES AN EFFORT TO VINDICATE HERSELF, http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article103475918, create private tags and comments, readable only by you, and. <>]/P 687 0 R/Pg 677 0 R/S/Link>> 04 Oct 1931 - DRAMATIC AFTERMATH OF MANSLAUGHTER TRIAL. - Trove 422 0 obj Such a nice, agreeable dame! <>]/P 622 0 R/Pg 621 0 R/S/Link>> Crichton was bound over to appear for sentence if called upon within three years.. Bernstein, alias L Berman, was the subject of a warrant issued in early 1929 charged with obtaining a diamond ring value 14 pounds by false pretences from an Oxford Street jeweller. The NSW Police Archive quoted in Larry Writer's book is part admiring but mostly damning of Kate Leigh's role in the Sydney drug trade. It said she had once been the 'best looking girl' in Surry Hills and had become tremendously wealthy through being a tough businesswoman. 2021-10-05T08:39:08-07:00 Her father Jack was a boot- and shoemaker, her mother Charlotte worked at home (and with a family of ten to look after, worked very hard). After alcohol sales in pubs were banned in 1916, drinkers would come to 212 Devonshire Street (pictured) and Leigh's fleet of illegal grog shops throughout the inner suburbs. 235 0 obj <>]/P 354 0 R/Pg 602 0 R/S/Link>> He received 18 months hard labour on each charge. endobj All this is speculative, of course, and this is where the biographer comes in, to land us on solid ground. [4], Kate married for the second time on 26 September 1922, to a Western Australian-born musician Edward Joseph 'Teddy' Barry (18921948), a sly-grog dealer and small-time criminal. It centred on the stipulation that the cafe was for women. endobj 292 0 obj <>]/P 500 0 R/Pg 493 0 R/S/Link>> Deputy Commissioner of Police, Mr W. R. Lawrence, will attend the funeral of former Sydney underworld identity Mrs Kathleen Ryan, also known as Kate Leigh. The D prefix on the serial number indicates that the photograph was taken on behalf of the Drug Bureau, which in the late 1920s consisted of two men, Detectives Wickham and Thompson. She is well known for shoplifting valuable furs and silks from city department stores. Kate's daughter Eileen also used the name 'Leigh' until she married in 1920. A judge in 1933 (above, left) says that criminal Kate Leigh 'has a good side' when she appeared in court on a charge of receiving stolen goods, whereas in 1953 (above, right) a magistrate declares Leigh's Surry Hills residence' a disorderly house'. [24] Kate Leigh was sentenced to 6 months imprisonment on 7 September 1942 for having sold liquor without a licence at 13 Pearl Street and 2 Lansdowne Street, Surry Hills. 477 0 obj Leslie Louis Bernstein, 29 November 1929. 3 0 obj [10] These activitiesthe defense of these business turfsand ongoing feuds with rival organised crime leaders in NSW led Leigh to be a prominent figure in Sydney's brutal razor gang wars of the 1920s and 1930s. endobj An earlier mug shot of Brosnan shows him to be not the man on the right in this group of three, as inscribed, but rather the offhand individual in the centre, here identified as A Wyatt. You have corrected this article This article has been corrected by You and other Voluntroves This article has . The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. Catherine Mary Josephine Ryan (ne Beahan; aka Lee, Barry; preferred names Kathleen or Kate; 10 March 1881 - 4 February 1964) generally known as Kate Leigh was an Australian underworld figure who rose to prominence as an illegal trader of alcohol and cocaine dealer from her home in Surry Hills, Sydney, Australia during the first half of the endobj Arrow (Sydney, NSW : 1916 - 1933), Fri 25 Mar 1932, The house at Devonshire Street, Surry Hills, as pictured in the real estate advertisement for its sale, At the age of only 13, Kate Leigh gave birth to a daughter, Eileen, who is believed to be the woman in the white hat (pictured, above) in a group shot of criminals at Central Police station early last century, 'Kate's only income was what she could scrounge occasionally hiring out hand-carts to vegetable and fruit hawkers for two shillings and sixpence a day.'. Zach Giroux/Staff. Vivien Leigh and her daughter Suzanne photographed circa 1958. <>]/P 612 0 R/Pg 611 0 R/S/Link>> Kate Leigh, pictured at her 2 Landsdowne Street,Surry Hills house with her second husband, sly grog dealer Teddy Barry dressed as Santa Claus for one of their generous Christmas gift givings, The walls of Kate Leigh's old house have been adorned with graffiti for many years now, Real estate agents say the house is ready for a complete renovation and is an opportunity for someone to tunr the old sly grog shop into a stunning property. On January 31, 1964, Kate Leigh suffered a stroke at 212 Devonshire Street and she was taken to St Vincents Hospital where she died on February 4, aged 82. Feminism in the 1980s was a complicated matter, as it is now. Its true that if men shared their power with women, if there were less segregation of genders into separate spheres of activity, then men as well as women would benefit. 439 0 obj Play it now! 'No more remarkable woman ever strode upon the stage of Sydney's nightlife than this middle-aged, matronly dame,' the extract says. <>]/P 665 0 R/Pg 664 0 R/S/Link>> He was an illegal bookmaker and petty criminal.They separated in 1905 when he was imprisoned for assault and robbery. 26. It was Kate Leigh's final marriage and it lasted six months. In 1905, Lee was imprisoned for assault and robbery and Kate was accused of lying under oath to protect her husband and convicted of perjury and for being an accomplice to the assault. Langby was charged with stealing watches, clothing and money from shops and with stealing a motorcycle and sidecar. Click on current line of text for options. It doesnt matter how we dress, whether or not we are beautiful or comely, our very being disturbs. photocopies or electronic copies of newspapers pages. NOTE: Only lines in the current paragraph are shown. Leigh, Kathleen Mary (Kate) (1881-1964) A former N.S.W. had, and I want my version of the story published.' <> By the 1950s, in her seventies, Leigh had become a matriarch of her community, the model for Delie Stock in Ruth Parks Harp in the South. Every school lunch hour they cram her shop, laughing at her jokes. 'For she deals in a commodity that means the warping of the moral outlook, the damning of the eternal soul. Thomas Maria, Arthur Wyatt, and Patrick Dangar (alias Brosnan), c. 1920. Hazel was given a suspended sentence. The man third from the left in that row may be the pickpocket and three-card trickster known as . Safe-blower &c and he appears again in a photo supplement of 1927 as Podmore, Alfred alias Matthew Campbell. Her conviction was overturned on appeal, but the marriage was over. [31] She was survived by her daughter, Eileen May Ranson (ne Beahan, 19001987). Erin's book was. Erin Eileen Leigh (Author of Navigating the Newborn Months - Goodreads endobj Although labelled G Mammona, the mug shot shows Giuseppe Mammone, who was presumably interviewed and photographed in connection with the stabbing murder of Domenico Belle on Newtown Station, on the morning of 11 February 1930. Suzanne Farrington was born Suzanne Holman, on October 12, 1933, at a nursing home at 8 Bulstrode Street in London, England. endobj A POWERFUL car, with a chauffeur at the wheel, pulled up at "The Arrow" office one day during the week, and out stepped a woman. endobj Since you've made it this far, we want to assume you're a real, live human. 'Broke and embattled, Kate did her best to earn a little money, selling illegal alcohol from friends' homes and rented rooms,' the book says, but the NSW Government had put her out of business in 1955 by extending hotel trading hours to 10pm. On January 31, 1964, Ms Leigh suffered a stroke at her home and was taken to St Vincents Hospital where she died on February 4, aged 82. <>]/P 552 0 R/Pg 545 0 R/S/Link>> But it also leads to repetition, some of which can seem like padding. [5], Leigh was also engaged in a violent feud with her rival Tilly Devine, a Sydney madam based in Woolloomooloo that lasted 20 years. Catherine Mary Josephine (Beahan) Ryan (1881-1964) | WikiTree FREE Ms Leigh was then in her late fifties and 212 Devonshire Street was one of her rougher establishments, while another Surry Hills house at 2 Landsowne Street was her largest grog shop. The four bedroom, one bathroom property is where she lived and ran her criminal empire until she died. The Worst Woman in Sydney: The Life and Crimes of Kate Leigh <>]/P 681 0 R/Pg 677 0 R/S/Link>> Here it is. AppendPDF Pro 6.3 Linux 64 bit Aug 30 2019 Library 15.0.4 endobj Woman Discharged for Surry Hills Shooting", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Kate_Leigh&oldid=1151888838, People associated with Kings Cross, New South Wales, Short description is different from Wikidata, Use Australian English from September 2013, All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English, Self-contradictory articles from November 2013, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2013, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Gangster, brothel madam, cocaine trafficker, This page was last edited on 26 April 2023, at 21:30. endobj By the 1940s, Leigh was known as a larger than life character - wealthy, greedy, funny and generous to those she felt sorry for - whose name as a female criminal was rivalled only by another, Leigh's bitter foe, brothel queen Tilly Devine. 353 0 obj It is she replied, she was my mother. Horoscope Sagittarius. You need to login before you can save preferences. Kathleen Mary (Kate) Leigh - Australian Dictionary of Biography endobj The home where she lived on Devonshire Street - one of 20 properties she operated as sly grog shops, including three on the same Surry Hills street - is now up for sale. pital authorities were ever in touch with. But, unlike Devine, Leigh prided herself on never being charged with prostitution and abstaining from liquor and drugs. <> Three months later a police witness at Sydney Licensing Court stated that the premises at 2 Lansdowne Street, Surry Hills was "a notorious sly grog shop The Worst in Sydney". The irony is that it is only as a result of its remarkable gentrification that Leigh has finally received her due. Another view of thre makeshift kitchen inside 212 Devonshire Street Surry Hills, the Sydney property that was a sly grog shop and drug den in the 1940s, Bitter lifelong rivals Kate Leigh (above, left) and brothel madam Tilly Devine (above right) made up in later years when the two crime queens were nearing the end of their careers, Kate Leigh was living in 212 Devonshire Street, Surry Hils (pictured from the 1950s right up until her death from a stroke in 1964, when she was 82 years old.