1857: The Bullet That Shaved His Whiskers: “Long Mickey” Hanged at Oatlands for Murder
George Sturgeon, a settler near Oatlands in Tasmania, was found shot dead on a bush track in July 1856, killed by a gang of bushrangers after leaving home with money in his pocket. A huge reward sent police after the gang, including a notorious outlaw known as “Long Mickey”, by then the self-styled terror of the Midland Districts.
He was finally cornered in a shepherd’s hut over a year later and opened fire through the walls as police closed in. One shot passed clean through the thatch gripped in a pursuing constable’s hand; a return shot shaved off part of Long Mickey’s whisker, and he surrendered, begging not to be ill-used, as he knew he would hang for the Sturgeon killing.
Convicted after trial, he was hanged inside the gaol at Oatlands on 27 October 1857.
On the scaffold Long Mickey thanked the priest who had attended him, declared he had never committed murder, and insisted his companion had not killed anyone either, before asking those present to pray for his soul.
