Vintage Photos of Afghan Camel Drivers in Queensland, Australia

European exploration and settlement of inland Australia depended heavily on the expertise of Muslim cameleers from Afghanistan and British India. During the late 19th century their network of transport routes opened up the arid interior, and they were often seen working through the interior parts of Queensland. The women in the Queensland outback looked forward to a visit from the Afghan camelleers and hawkers. They brought news, haberdashery and household items.

Group of Afghani men in national dress

Camel driver and a caravan of camels returning home

Afghan cameleer escorts Mrs Walter Lawrence Silver on the wallaby track, ca. 1904

Afghan Emeute at Richmond, ca. 1907

Afghan Emeute at Richmond, ca. 1907

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Interesting Vintage Photos of Motorcyclists in Queensland, Australia

Motorcycles are a fun way to get around. Motorcycles can help with work on the farm or provide entertainment through stunts or speedway racing. These photographs capture motorcycles from the early 1920s onwards.

Joan Grimes, Australian Women's Emergency Legion, learns to ride a motorcycle, to fit her for the job as a dispatch rider, if needed, 1939.

Three Blackall residents on a motorcycle, ca. 1930

A young man is at the top of a small ladder attached to his motorcycle, ca. 1955.

Officials cutting the starting ribbon at a speedway motorcycle race in Brisbane, 1930.

Motorcyclists lined along Bourbong Street, Bundaberg, ca. 1937.

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Pictures of South Australian Women Working in a Munitions Factory During World War II

By April 1941, it became apparent that Australia's workforce was diminishing. As more Australian men enlisted for the military, there was a drain on the labour force. Non-essential industrial production was cut down and the labour forces employed in these industries were redirected by the Directorate of Manpower to military factories.

Shortages of items not related to war, such as food products and clothing, forced the government to introduce rationing. The Directorate of Manpower needed to find another source of labour and turned to women.

The number of women employed in industry between 1939 and 1943 exploded from 1000 to 145 000. The total number of women employed in various jobs in the Australian workforce numbered over 800 000.

Women found employment in traditionally male jobs but were often only being paid a fraction of a man's wage. Attempts to remedy the situation ended in defeat as women were repeatedly opposed by the male-dominated unions and the government, afraid that women would expect equal treatment after the War.

The huge increase in the employment of women in World War II was a significant social change, but it was not matched by a change in government attitude towards women. Wages were not changed and it was made clear that women were expected to return to their traditional roles when the War ended.

These amazing photographs captured scene of women working in a munitions factory in South Australia during World War II

A woman working at a machine making parts for ribs of Beaufort bombers in a munitions factory in South Australia.

A young woman cutting driving bands for anti-aircraft shells in a munitions factory in South Australia.

Two young women oxy welding parts of ammunition boxes.

Women working in a munitions factory assembling Gaine anti-aircraft shell fuse components.

A young woman assembling an oil tank for a Beaufort bomber in a munitions factory in South Australia.

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30 Rare and Amazing Vintage Photographs Capture Street Scenes of Sydney From the Late 19th Century

Historic photos have offered a glimpse into what everyday life was like for people living in Sydney in the late 19th century. The images from the State Library of New South Wales show the city’s changing state, were taken by Arthur K. Syer.

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Black and White Photos of Daily Life in Sydney in the 1970s

Photographer Syd Shelton shot these amazing black and white photographs in Sydney in 1974.

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These Mugshots From 1920s Australia Are Significantly Cooler Than Mugshots From Today

Dressed in their finest suits and ties with their top hats cocked towards the camera, these men and women seem to be posing for expensive portraits. But behind their tidy appearances are guilty eyes that hide some of the most sinister crimes policeman of the day had dealt with. These are mugshots of Australian convicts who were dealt with by police for chilling murders, robberies burglaries and other crimes from the 1920s.

Sydney Living Museums via the Historic Houses Trust that contain a plethora of mugshots from the 1920s. And the photos themselves were not only kept in impeccable condition but they also have details such as the person’s name, the crime they committed and more.

On the website’s blog, they talk about the over 2,500 glass plate negatives and some cellulose negatives. The photographer perhaps asked the folks to pose themselves. More of the images are after the jump.

Doris Winifred Poole, criminal record number 639LB, 31 July 1924. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, NSW. Doris Poole appeared before the Newtown Police Court charged with stealing jewellery and clothing. She had previously been convicted on a similar charge in North Sydney and so received a six-month sentence with light labour. (Photo by NSW Police Forensic Photography Archive, Justice & Police Museum, Histiric Houses Trust of NSW)

Emily Gertrude Hemsworth, criminal record number 657LB, 14 May 1925. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, NSW. Emily Hemsworth killed her three-week-old son but could not remember any details of the murder. She was found not guilty due to insanity. Hemsworth was to be detained in custody until judged fit to return to society – it is unknown if she was ever released. Aged 24. (Photo by NSW Police Forensic Photography Archive, Justice & Police Museum, Histiric Houses Trust of NSW)

Jean Wilson, criminal record number 644LB, 25 September 1924. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, NSW. Jean Wilson had numerous convictions for housebreaking and theft. She preferred stealing jewellery as it could be easily pawned for money. She also robbed her employer. Wilson was charged with larceny, for which she served a 12-month sentence. Aged: 23. (Photo by NSW Police Forensic Photography Archive, Justice & Police Museum, Histiric Houses Trust of NSW)

Kathleen Ward, criminal record number 658LB, 14 May 1925. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay. Kathleen Ward had convictions for drunkenness, indecent language and theft. She obviously enjoyed thumbing her nose at the authorities, as can be seen in this image where she appears to have deliberately fluttered her eyes in order to ruin the long-exposure photograph. (Photo by NSW Police Forensic Photography Archive, Justice & Police Museum, Histiric Houses Trust of NSW)

Matilda Devine, criminal record number 659LB, 27 May 1925. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, NSW. Matilda “Tilly” Devine used a razor to slash a man's face in a barber's shop and was sentenced to two years gaol. She was Sydney's best-known brothel madam and her public quarrels with sly-grog queen Kate Leigh provided the media with an abundance of material. Aged 25. (Photo by NSW Police Forensic Photography Archive, Justice & Police Museum, Histiric Houses Trust of NSW)

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30 Amazing Vintage Photographs Capture Street Scenes of Sydney, ca. 1885-1890

Candid street scenes in Sydney showing transport deliveries, barrow shopping, queues at Circular Quay, shipping, street cleaning, children playing, scenes at horse races and at a fair and farming scenes. The subjects indicate that they were probably taken with a hidden camera.

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Early Photos of Hyde Park, Sydney From the 1900s

Hyde Park, the oldest public parkland in Australia, is a 16.2 hectares (40 acres) park in the central business district of Sydney, New South Wales. Hyde Park is on the eastern side of the Sydney city centre.

Hyde Park was named after the original Hyde Park in London. The park is pock marked with drain lids, many of which lead down to Busby's Bore, the first large-scale attempt at a water source system after the backing up of Tank Stream, the Sydney colony's primary water source. Busby's Bore was built between 1827 and 1837 using convict labour and fresh water from Lachlan Swamp (which later became known as Centennial Park) to the city.

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Beautiful Vintage Portraits of Aussie Ladies

William J Hall (1877-1951) and his father, William Frederick Hall, both worked as photographers in Sydney in the late 19th century and early 20th century. The extensive collection of their images contains portraits, places and many sailing scenes.

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Exquisite Glass Plate Mugshots From Between the 1910s and 1930s

These are wife killers, petty thieves, dealers of fake opium, hustlers — plucked from the street by the police of 1920s Sydney, Australia and photographed, fresh from the scene of the crime.

These photographs reveal a lot more than the usual mugshot. The suspects strike poses. A few look disheveled and deranged, but some look decidedly guilty. They lean casually into their own pockets, hats tipped, eyes scowling. They look in character, the alleged crime still fresh on their mind.

There are thousands of vintage glass plates photographs taken by the New South Wales Police Department from between the 1910s and 1930s, now hosted by the The Sydney Justice & Police Museum. These are just some of them.

Emily Gertrude Hemsworth, 14 May 1925. State Reformatory for Women, Long Bay, New South Wales Police Department. ”Emily Hemsworth killed her three-week-old son but could not remember any details of the murder. She was found not guilty due to insanity. Hemsworth was to be detained in custody until judged fit to return to society — it is unknown if she was ever released. Aged 24.”

Sidney Kelly – June 25, 1924. New South Wales Police Department.

Frederick Edward Davies, July 14, 1921. “The handwritten inscription on this unnumbered Special Photograph reads ‘Frederick Edward Davies stealing in picture shows and theatres Dets Surridge Clark and Breen Central 14-7-21.’ Police held sneak thieves in particularly low regard, which may account for the decision to photograph Davies in front of the police station’s toilet stalls.”

George Whitehall – February 24, 1922. “George Whitehall, carpenter, handed himself into Newtown police after hacking to death his common-law wife, Ida Parker on Thursday afternoon 21 February 1922, at their home in Pleasant Avenue, Erskineville. This photo was apparently taken the following morning at Newtown Police Station.”

Frank Murray alias Harry Williams – February 4, 1929. “Harry Williams was sentenced to 12 months hard labour on March 1929 for breaking, entering and stealing. Although he ‘consorts with prostitutes’ and ‘frequents hotels and wine bars in the vicinity of the Haymarket,’ he is described as being of ‘quiet disposition.’”

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