1870: William Brown Hanged at Toowoomba Gaol for Robbery Under Arms
William Brown, also known as Bertram, was hanged at Toowoomba Gaol on 29 August 1870 for robbery under arms at Mangalore. A German-born drifter who claimed to have left home at the age of twelve and reached Australia as a cabin boy, Brown was linked to a string of robberies in New South Wales and was reported to have spent several years with Gardiner’s gang in the Barrier Ranges. His identity was confirmed by the loss of his left eye, an injury sustained during an earlier term of imprisonment.
Throughout his final days, he refused to reveal his true name or identify his associates, remarking that his friends would probably never learn what had become of him. Brown was only twenty-one when he was executed.
