Harry Houdini Part II

 

Australian flights

March 18, 1910

On Friday, March 18, 1910, following more than a month of delays due to inclement weather conditions, Houdini completed one of the first powered aeroplane flights ever made in Australia. He made three flights in his French Voisin biplane, at the Old Plumpton Paddock, at Diggers Rest, Victoria, ranging from 1 minute to 3½ minutes – reaching an altitude of 100 ft in one of his flights, and travelling more than two miles in another. Nine of the 30 spectators present on that day signed a certificate verifying Houdini's achievement.

March 20, 1910

Hampered by the windy conditions on the Saturday, and unable to fly safely, Houdini took to the air again early on Sunday morning, 20 March 20, 1910:

After a short preliminary flight, lasting 26 sec., Houdini took wing again, and, amid loud applause from the hundred or more spectators, who were on the ground, described three circles at altitudes, varying from 20ft to over 100ft, covering a distance of between three and four miles in 3min 45½sec. The Argus, 21 March 1910.

March 21, 1910

On Monday morning, 21 March 1910, some 30 spectators witnessed Houdini make an extended flight at Diggers Rest of 7min. 37secs., covering at least 6 miles, at altitudes ranging from 20 ft. to 100 ft. Australian aviator Basil Watson's father, mother, and younger sister, Venora, were among the spectators; and their names were included in the list of 16 spectator signatures on the certificate that verified Houdini's achievement.

After Australia

After completing his Australia tour, Houdini put the Voisin into storage in England. He announced he would use it to fly from city to city during his next music hall tour and even promised to leap from it handcuffed, but he never flew again.

Debunking spiritualists

In the 1920s, Houdini turned his energies toward debunking psychics and mediums in order to show how they were taking advantage of the bereaved, a pursuit that was in line with the debunkings by stage magicians since the late nineteenth century.

Houdini's training in magic allowed him to expose frauds that had successfully fooled many scientists and academics. He was a member of a Scientific American committee that offered a cash prize to any medium who could successfully demonstrate supernatural abilities. None were able to do so, and the prize was never collected. The first to be tested was medium George Valiantine of Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania. As his fame as a "medium-buster" grew, Houdini took to attending séances in disguise, accompanied by a reporter and a police officer. Possibly the most famous medium he debunked was Mina Crandon, also known as "Margery".

Joaquín Argamasilla, known as the "Spaniard with X-ray Eyes", claimed to be able to read handwriting or numbers on dice through closed metal boxes. In 1924, he was exposed by Houdini as a fraud. Argamasilla peeked through his simple blindfold and lifted up the edge of the box so he could look inside it without others noticing. Houdini also investigated the Italian medium Nino Pecoraro, who he considered to be fraudulent.

Houdini's exposure of phony mediums inspired other magicians to follow suit, including The Amazing Randi, Dorothy Dietrich, Penn & Teller, and Dick Brookz.

Houdini chronicled his debunking exploits in his book, A Magician among the Spirits, co-authored with C. M. Eddy, Jr., who was not credited. These activities compromised Houdini's friendship with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle, a firm believer in spiritualism during his later years, refused to give credence to any of Houdini's exposés. Doyle came to believe that Houdini was a powerful spiritualist medium and had performed many of his stunts by means of paranormal abilities and was using those abilities to block the powers of the mediums that he was supposedly debunking. This disagreement led to the two men becoming public antagonists and Doyle came to view Houdini as a dangerous enemy.

Before Houdini died, he and his wife agreed that if Houdini found it possible to communicate after death, he would communicate the message "Rosabelle believe", a secret code which they agreed to use. "Rosabelle" was their favorite song. Bess held yearly séances on Halloween for ten years after Houdini's death. She did claim to have contact through Arthur Ford in 1929 when Ford conveyed the secret code, but Bess later said the incident had been faked. The code seems to have been such that it could be broken by Ford or his associates using existing clues. Evidence to this effect was discovered by Ford's biographer after he died in 1971. In 1936, after a last unsuccessful séance on the roof of the Knickerbocker Hotel, she put out the candle that she had kept burning beside a photograph of Houdini since his death. In 1943, Bess said that "ten years is long enough to wait for any man."

The tradition of holding a séance for Houdini continues, held by magicians throughout the world. The Official Houdini Séance was organized in the 1940s by Sidney Hollis Radner, a Houdini aficionado from Holyoke, Massachusetts. Yearly Houdini séances are also conducted in Chicago at the Excalibur nightclub by "necromancer" Neil Tobin on behalf of the Chicago Assembly of the Society of American Magicians; and at the Houdini Museum in Scranton by magician Dorothy Dietrich, who previously held them at New York's Magic Towne House with such magical notables as Houdini biographers Walter B. Gibson and Milbourne Christopher. Gibson was asked by Bess Houdini to carry on the original séance tradition. After doing them for many years at New York's Magic Towne House, before he died, Walter passed on the tradition of conducting of the Original Séances to Dorothy Dietrich.

In 1926, Harry Houdini hired H. P. Lovecraft and his friend C. M. Eddy, Jr., to write an entire book about debunking religious miracles, which was to be called The Cancer of Superstition. Houdini had earlier asked Lovecraft to write an article about astrology, for which he paid $75 (equivalent to $1,291 in 2023). The article does not survive. Lovecraft's detailed synopsis for Cancer does survive, as do three chapters of the treatise written by Eddy. Houdini's death derailed the plans, as his widow did not wish to pursue the project.

Appearance and voice recordings

Unlike the image of the classic magician, Houdini was short and stocky and typically appeared on stage in a long frock coat and tie. Most biographers give his height as 5 feet 5 inches (1.65 m), but descriptions vary. Houdini was also said to be slightly bow-legged, which aided in his ability to gain slack during his rope escapes. In the 1997 biography Houdini!!!: The Career of Ehrich Weiss, author Kenneth Silverman summarizes how reporters described Houdini's appearance during his early career:

They stressed his smallness – "somewhat undersized" – and angular, vivid features: "He is smooth-shaven with a keen, sharp-chinned, sharp-cheekboned face, bright blue eyes and thick, curly, black hair." Some sensed how much his complexly expressive smile was the outlet of his charismatic stage presence. It communicated to audiences at once warm amiability, pleasure in performing, and, more subtly, imperious self-assurance. Several reporters tried to capture the charming effect, describing him as "happy-looking", "pleasant-faced", "good natured at all times", "the young Hungarian magician with the pleasant smile and easy confidence".

Harry Houdini's voice

Houdini made the only known recordings of his voice on Edison wax cylinders on October 29, 1914, in Flatbush, New York. On them, Houdini practices several different introductory speeches for his famous Chinese Water Torture Cell. He also invites his sister, Gladys, to recite a poem. Houdini then recites the same poem in German. The six wax cylinders were discovered in the collection of magician John Mulholland after his death in 1970. They are part of the David Copperfield collection.

Legal issues

In September 1900, Houdini was summoned by the German police prior to his first performance in the country who suspected his act was fake. Subsequently in Berlin, he was stripped naked and forced to perform an escape routine in front of 300 policemen. Houdini was tightly restrained with "thumbscrews, finger locks, and five different hand and elbow irons". He was able to escape in 6 minutes, and later used the stunt in advertising. Subsequently in 1901, a newspaper in Cologne accused him of attempting to bribe a police officer in order to rig an escape attempt, and paying a civilian police employee to aid him with another performance. Houdini sued the newspaper and the police officer for slander. As part of the trial, Houdini was asked to open without the aid of tools one of the police officer's handcrafted locks, for which the officer had said that Houdini had tried to bribe him. Houdini was able to do so, and won the case.

Personal life

Houdini became an active Freemason and was a member of St. Cecile Lodge No. 568 in New York City.

In 1904, Houdini bought a New York City townhouse at 278 West 113th Street in Harlem. He paid US$25,000 (equivalent to $847,778 in 2023) for the five-level, 6,008-square-foot house, which was built in 1895, and lived in it with his wife Bess, and various other relatives until his death in 1926. In March 2018, it was purchased for $3.6 million. A plaque affixed to the building by the Historical Landmark Preservation Center reads, "The magician lived here from 1904 to 1926 collecting illusions, theatrical memorabilia, and books on psychic phenomena and magic."

In 1919, Houdini moved to Los Angeles to film. He resided in 2435 Laurel Canyon Boulevard, a house of his friend and business associate Ralph M. Walker, who owned both, sides of the street, 2335 and 2400, the latter address having a pool where Houdini practiced his water escapes. 2400 Laurel Canyon Boulevard, previously numbered 2398, is presently known as The Houdini Estate, thus named in the honor of Houdini's time there, the same estate where Bess Houdini threw a party for 500 magicians years after his death. After decades of abandonment, the estate was acquired in 2006 by José Luis Nazar, a Chilean/American citizen who has restored it to its former splendor.

In 1918, he registered for selective service as Harry Handcuff Houdini.

Death

Houdini died on October 31, 1926 at the age of 52 from peritonitis (swelling of the abdomen), possibly related to appendicitis and possibly related to punches to his stomach he had received about a week and a half earlier.

Witnesses to an incident at Houdini's dressing room in the Princess Theater in Montreal on October 22, 1926, speculated that Houdini's death was caused by Jocelyn Gordon Whitehead (1895–1954), who repeatedly struck Houdini's abdomen.

The accounts of the witnesses, students named Jacques Price and Sam Smilovitz (sometimes called Jack Price and Sam Smiley), generally corroborated each other. Price said that Whitehead asked Houdini "if he believed in the miracles of the Bible" and "whether it was true that punches in the stomach did not hurt him". Houdini offered a casual reply that his stomach could endure a lot. Whitehead then delivered "some very hammer-like blows below the belt". Houdini was reclining on a couch at the time, having broken his ankle while performing several days earlier. Price said that Houdini winced at each blow and stopped Whitehead suddenly in the midst of a punch, gesturing that he had had enough, and adding that he had had no opportunity to prepare himself against the blows, as he did not expect Whitehead to strike him so suddenly and forcefully. Had his ankle not been broken, he would have risen from the couch into a better position to brace himself.

Throughout the evening, Houdini performed in great pain. He had insomnia and remained in constant pain for the next two days, but did not seek medical help. When he finally saw a doctor, he was found to have a fever of 102 °F (39 °C) and acute appendicitis, and was advised to have immediate surgery. He ignored the advice and decided to go on with the show. When Houdini arrived at the Garrick Theater in Detroit, Michigan, on October 24, 1926, for what would be his last performance, he had a fever of 104 °F (40 °C). Despite the diagnosis, Houdini took the stage. He was reported to have passed out during the show, but was revived and continued. Afterwards, he was hospitalized at Detroit's Grace Hospital where he died from peritonitis on October 31, aged 52.

It is unclear whether the dressing room incident caused Houdini's eventual death, as the relationship between blunt trauma and appendicitis is uncertain. One theory suggests that Houdini was unaware that he was suffering from appendicitis, and he might have taken his abdominal pain more seriously had he not coincidentally received blows to the abdomen.

After taking statements from Price and Smilovitz, Houdini's insurance company concluded that the death was due to the dressing-room incident and paid double indemnity.

Houdini grave site

Houdini's funeral was held on November 4, 1926, in New York, with more than 2,000 mourners in attendance. He was interred in the Machpelah Cemetery in Glendale, Queens, with the crest of the Society of American Magicians inscribed on his grave site. A statuary bust was added to the exedra in 1927, a rarity, because graven images are forbidden in Jewish cemeteries. In 1975, the bust was destroyed by vandals. Temporary busts were placed at the grave until 2011 when a group from the Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania, placed a permanent bust with the permission of Houdini's family and of the cemetery.

The Society of American Magicians took responsibility for the upkeep of the site, as Houdini had willed a large sum of money to the organization he had grown from one club to 5,000–6,000 dues-paying membership worldwide. The payment of upkeep was abandoned by the society's dean George Schindler, who said "Houdini paid for perpetual care, but there's nobody at the cemetery to provide it", adding that the operator of the cemetery, David Jacobson, "sends us a bill for upkeep every year but we never pay it because he never provides any care." Members of the Society tidy the grave themselves.

Machpelah Cemetery operator Jacobson said that they "never paid the cemetery for any restoration of the Houdini family plot in my tenure since 1988", claiming that the money came from the cemetery's dwindling funds. The granite monuments of Houdini's sister, Gladys, and brother, Leopold were also destroyed by vandals. For many years, until recently, the Houdini grave site has been only cared for by Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz of the Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania. The Society of American Magicians, at its National Council Meeting in Boca Raton, Florida, in 2013, under the prompting of Dietrich and Brookz, voted to assume the financial responsibilities for the care and maintenance of the Houdini Gravesite. While the actual plot will remain under the control of Machpelah Cemetery management, the Society of American Magicians, with the help of the Houdini Museum in Pennsylvania, will be in charge of the restoration.

Houdini's widow, Bess, died of a heart attack on February 11, 1943, aged 67, in Needles, California, and while on a train en route from Los Angeles to New York City. She had expressed a wish to be buried next to her husband, but instead was interred 35 miles due north at the Gate of Heaven Cemetery in Westchester County, New York, as her Catholic family refused to allow her to be buried in a Jewish cemetery.

Proposed exhumation

On March 22, 2007, Houdini's grand-nephew (the grandson of his brother Theo) George Hardeen announced that the courts would be asked to allow exhumation of Houdini's body to investigate the possibility of Houdini being murdered by spiritualists, as suggested in the biography The Secret Life of Houdini. In a statement given to the Houdini Museum in Scranton, the family of Bess Houdini opposed the application and suggested it was a publicity ploy for the book. The Washington Post stated that the press conference was not arranged by the family of Houdini. Instead, the Post reported, it was orchestrated by the book's authors William Kalush and Larry Sloman, who had hired the public relations firm Dan Klores Communications to promote the book.

In 2008, it was revealed the parties involved had not filed legal papers to perform an exhumation.

Legacy

Houdini's brother, Theodore Hardeen, who returned to performing after Houdini's death, inherited his brother's effects and props. Houdini's will stipulate that all the effects should be "burned and destroyed" upon Hardeen's death. Hardeen sold much of the collection to magician and Houdini enthusiast Sidney Hollis Radner during the 1940s, including the water torture cell. Radner allowed choice pieces of the collection to be displayed at The Houdini Magical Hall of Fame in Niagara Falls, Ontario. In 1995, a fire destroyed the museum. The water torture cell's metal frame remained, and it was restored by illusion builder John Gaughan. Many of the props contained in the museum such as the mirror handcuffs, Houdini's original packing crate, and milk can, and a straitjacket, survived the fire and were auctioned in 1999 and 2008.

Radner loaned the bulk of his collection for archiving to the Outagamie Museum in Appleton, Wisconsin, but reclaimed it in 2003 and auctioned it in Las Vegas, on October 30, 2004.

Houdini was a "formidable collector", and bequeathed many of his holdings and paper archives on magic and spiritualism to the Library of Congress, which became the basis for the Houdini collection in cyberspace. Houdini's book collecting has been explored in an essay in The Book Collector.

In 1934, the bulk of Houdini's collection of American and British theatrical material, along with a significant portion of his business and personal papers, and some of his collections of other magicians were sold to pay off estate debts to theatre magnate Messmore Kendall. In 1958, Kendall donated his collection to the Hoblitzelle Theatre Library at the University of Texas at Austin. In the 1960s, the Hoblitzelle Library became part of the Harry Ransom Center. The extensive Houdini collection includes a 1584 first edition of Reginald Scot's Discoverie of Witchcraft and David Garrick's travel diary to Paris from 1751. Some of the scrapbooks in the Houdini collection have been digitized. The collection was exclusively paper-based until April 2016, when the Ransom Center acquired one of Houdini's ball weights with chain and ankle cuff. In October 2016, in conjunction with the 90th anniversary of the death of Houdini, the Ransom Center embarked on a major re-cataloging of the Houdini collection to make it more visible and accessible to researchers. The collection reopened in 2018, with its finding aids posted online.

A large portion of Houdini's estate holdings and memorabilia was willed to his fellow magician and friend John Mulholland (1898–1970). In 1991, illusionist and television performer David Copperfield purchased all of Mulholland's Houdini holdings from Mulholland's estate. These are now archived and preserved in Copperfield's warehouse at his headquarters in Las Vegas. It contains the world's largest collection of Houdini memorabilia and preserves approximately 80,000 items of memorabilia of Houdini and other magicians, including Houdini's stage props and material, his rebuilt water torture cabinet and his metamorphosis trunk. It is not open to the public, but tours are available by invitation to magicians, scholars, researchers, journalists and serious collectors.

In a posthumous ceremony on October 31, 1975, Houdini was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7001 Hollywood Blvd.

The Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania, bills itself as "the only building in the world entirely dedicated to Houdini". It is open to the public year-round by reservation. It includes Houdini films, a guided tour about Houdini's life and a stage magic show. Magicians Dorothy Dietrich and Dick Brookz opened the facility in 1991.

The Magic Castle in Los Angeles, California, a nightclub for magicians and magic enthusiasts, as well as the clubhouse for the Academy of Magical Arts, features Houdini séances performed by magician Misty Lee.

The House of Houdini is a museum and performance venue located at 11, Dísz square in the Buda Castle in Budapest, Hungary. It claims to house the largest collection of original Houdini artifacts in Europe.

The Houdini Museum of New York is located at Fantasma Magic, a retail magic manufacturer and seller located in Manhattan. The museum contains several hundred pieces of ephemera, most of which belonged to Harry Houdini.

In McSorley's Old Ale House, there are many items of historical paraphernalia, including a pair of Houdini's handcuffs, which are connected to the bar rail.

In popular culture

Houdini appeared as himself in Weird Tales magazine in three ghostwritten fictionalizations of sensational events from his career (issues of March, April, and May–June–July 1924). The third story, "Imprisoned with the Pharaohs," was written by horror writer H. P. Lovecraft based on Houdini's notes. The Houdini-Lovecraft collaboration was envisioned to continue, but the magazine ceased publication for financial reasons. When it resumed later in 1924, Houdini no longer figured in its plans.

Houdini (1953) – played by Tony Curtis

Man of Magic – a 1966 musical about Houdini's life, produced by Harold Fielding. Stuart Damon played the title role in the show, which opened at the Opera House in Manchester on 22 October 1966 before transferring to the Piccadilly Theatre in London where it opened on 15 November and ran for 135 performances. Music was by Wilfred Josephs, under the pseudonym Wilfred Wylam.

The Great Houdini a.k.a. The Great Houdinis (1976) – played by Paul Michael Glaser (TV movie)

A Magician Amongst the Spirits, a 1982 BBC radio drama about Houdini's life written by Bert Coules

"Houdini" (1982) – sung by Kate Bush (Song), a song which explores Bess Houdini attempting to contact Houdini after his death using the secret code they formed together for this purpose.

"Simon and Simon" "The Grand Illusion" (1983) the Brothers investigate an illusionist death and the recovery of Houdini's stolen book of magic secrets.

"The Real Ghostbusters" "The Cabinet of Calamari" (1987) – the ghost of Houdini escapes the Ghostbusters traps in order to recover his stolen book of magic secrets.

"Young Harry Houdini" (1987) – A highly fictionalized portrayal of Houdini during his childhood, portrayed by Wil Wheaton, as part of The Disney Sunday Movie series.

FairyTale: A True Story (1997) – played by Harvey Keitel, a film about the Cottingley Fairies hoax.

Houdini (1998) – played by Jonathon Schaech (TV Movie)

Death Defying Acts (2007) – played by Guy Pearce.

"Houdini" (2012) – sung by Foster the People (Song)

Houdini (2014) – played by Adrien Brody (TV miniseries)

Michael Weston played Harry Houdini in the short-lived 2016 TV series Houdini & Doyle

The Ministry of Time—Episode 6, Season 2, Tiempo de magia (2016), played by Gary Piquer

Mentioned by name in the Sci-fi Netflix series Dark (2017-2020) - Episode 5, Season 1.

Doctor Who – Harry Houdini's War (2019) – played by John Schwab (Big Finish audio play)

d'ILLUSION: The Houdini Musical – The Audio Theater Experience (2020) – played by Julian R. Decker (Album musical/audiobook)

"Houdini" (2023) – sung by Dua Lipa (Song)

"Houdini" (2024) – sung by Eminem (Song)

Publications

Houdini published numerous books during his career (some of which were written by his good friend Walter B. Gibson, the creator of The Shadow)

The Right Way to Do Wrong: An Exposé of Successful Criminals (1906)

Handcuff Secrets (1907)

The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin (1908), a debunking study of Robert-Houdin's alleged abilities.

Magical Rope Ties and Escapes (1920)

Miracle Mongers and Their Methods (1920)

Houdini's Paper Magic (1921)

A Magician among the Spirits (1924)

Houdini Exposes the Tricks Used by the Boston Medium "Margery" (1924)

Imprisoned with the Pharaohs (1924), a short story ghostwritten by H. P. Lovecraft.

How I Unmask the Spirit Fakers, article for Popular Science (November 1925)

How I do My "Spirit Tricks”, article for Popular Science (December 1925)

Conjuring (1926), article for the Encyclopædia Britannica's 13th edition.

Filmography

Merveilleux Exploits du Célébre Houdini à Paris – Cinema Lux (1909) – playing himself

The Master Mystery – Octagon Films (1918) – playing Quentin Locke

The Grim Game – Famous Players–Lasky/Paramount Pictures (1919) – playing Harvey Handford

Terror Island – Famous Players Lasky/Paramount (1920) – playing Harry Harper

The Man from Beyond – Houdini Picture Corporation (1922) – playing Howard Hillary

Haldane of the Secret Service – Houdini Picture Corporation/FBO (1923) – playing Heath Haldane

 

 

Harry Houdini Part I

 

Erik Weisz (March 24, 1874 – October 31, 1926), known as Harry Houdini (/huːˈdiːni/ hoo-DEE-nee), was a Hungarian-American escape artist, illusionist, and stunt performer, noted for his escape acts.

Houdini first attracted notice in vaudeville in the United States and then as Harry 'Handcuff' Houdini on a tour of Europe, where he challenged police forces to keep him locked up. Soon he extended his repertoire to include chains, ropes slung from skyscrapers, straitjackets under water, and having to escape from and hold his breath inside sealed milk can with water in it.

In 1904, thousands watched as Houdini tried to escape from special handcuffs commissioned by London's Daily Mirror, keeping them in suspense for an hour. Another stunt saw him buried alive and only just able to claw himself to the surface, emerging in a state of near-breakdown. While many suspected that these escapes were faked, Houdini presented himself as the scourge of fake spiritualists, pursuing a personal crusade to expose their fraudulent methods. As president of the Society of American Magicians, he was keen to uphold professional standards and expose fraudulent artists. He was also quick to sue anyone who imitated his escape stunts.

Houdini made several movies but quit acting when it failed to bring in money. He was also a keen aviator and became the first man to fly a powered aircraft in Australia, on March 18, 1910 at Diggers Rest, a field roughly 20 miles (32 km) from Melbourne.

Early life

Erik Weisz was born in Budapest, Republic of Hungary to a Jewish family. His parents were Rabbi Mayer Sámuel Weisz (1829–1892) and Cecília Steiner (1841–1913). Houdini was one of seven children: Herman M. (1863–1885), who was Houdini's half-brother by Rabbi Weisz's first marriage; Nathan J. (1870–1927); Gottfried William (1872–1925); Theodore (1876–1945); Leopold D. (1879–1962); and Carrie Gladys (1882–1959), who was left almost blind after a childhood accident.

Weisz arrived in the United States on July 3, 1878, on the SS Frisia with his mother (who was pregnant) and his four brothers. The family changed their name to the German spelling Weiss, and Erik became Ehrich. The family lived in Appleton, Wisconsin, where his father served as rabbi of the Zion Reform Jewish Congregation.

According to the 1880 census, the family lived on Appleton Street in an area that is now known as Houdini Plaza. On June 6, 1882, Rabbi Weiss became an American citizen. Losing his job at Zion in 1882, Rabbi Weiss and family moved to Milwaukee and fell into dire poverty. In 1887, Rabbi Weiss moved with Erik to New York City, where they lived in a boarding house on East 79th Street. He was joined by the rest of the family once Rabbi Weiss found permanent housing. As a child, Erik Weiss took several jobs, making his public début as a nine-year-old trapeze artist, calling himself "Ehrich, the Prince of the Air". He was also a champion cross country runner in his youth.

Magic career

When Weiss became a professional magician he began calling himself "Harry Houdini", after the French magician Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, after reading Robert-Houdin's autobiography in 1890. Weiss incorrectly believed that an i at the end of a name meant "like" in French. However, "i" at the end of the name means "belong to" in Hungarian. In later life, Houdini claimed that the first part of his new name, Harry, was homage to American magician Harry Kellar, who he also admired, though it was likely adapted from "Ehri", a nickname for "Ehrich", which is how he was known to his family.

When he was a teenager, Houdini was coached by the magician Joseph Rinn at the Pastime Athletic Club.

Houdini began his magic career in 1891, but had little success. He appeared in a tent act with strongman Emil Jarrow. He performed in dime museums and sideshows, and even doubled as "The Wild Man" at a circus. Houdini focused initially on traditional card tricks. At one point, he billed himself as the "King of Cards". Some – but not all – professional magicians would come to regard Houdini as a competent but not particularly skilled sleight-of-hand artist, lacking the grace and finesse required to achieve excellence in that craft. He soon began experimenting with escape acts.

In the early 1890s, Houdini was performing with his brother "Dash" (Theodore) as "The Brothers Houdini".  The brothers performed at the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 before returning to New York City and working at Huber's Dime Museum for "near-starvation wages".  In 1894, Houdini met a fellow performer, Wilhelmina Beatrice "Bess" Rahner. Bess was initially courted by Dash, but she and Houdini married, with Bess replacing Dash in the act, which became known as "The Houdinis". For the rest of Houdini's performing career, Bess worked as his stage assistant.

Houdini's big break came in 1899 when he met manager Martin Beck in St. Paul, Minnesota. Impressed by Houdini's handcuffs act, Beck advised him to concentrate on escape acts and booked him on the Orpheum vaudeville circuit. Within months, he was performing at the top vaudeville houses in the country. In 1900, Beck arranged for Houdini to tour Europe. After some days of unsuccessful interviews in London, Houdini's British agent Harry Day helped him to get an interview with C. Dundas Slater, then manager of the Alhambra Theatre. He was introduced to William Melville and gave a demonstration of escape from handcuffs at Scotland Yard. He succeeded in baffling the police so effectively that he was booked at the Alhambra for six months. His show was an immediate hit and his salary rose to $300 a week (equivalent to $10,987 in 2023).

Between 1900 and 1920 he appeared in theatres all over Great Britain performing escape acts, illusions, card tricks and outdoor stunts, becoming one of the world's highest paid entertainers. He also toured the Netherlands, Germany, France, and Russia and became widely known as "The Handcuff King". In each city, Houdini challenged local police to restrain him with shackles and lock him in their jails. In many of these challenge escapes, he was first stripped nude and searched. In Moscow, he escaped from a Siberian prison transport van, claiming that, had he been unable to free himself, he would have had to travel to Siberia, where the only key was kept.

In Cologne, Houdini sued a police officer, Werner Graff, who alleged that he made his escapes via bribery. Houdini won the case when he opened the judge's safe (he later said the judge had forgotten to lock it). With his new-found wealth, Houdini purchased a dress said to have been made for Queen Victoria. He then arranged a grand reception where he presented his mother in the dress to all their relatives. Houdini said it was the happiest day of his life. In 1904, Houdini returned to the U.S. and purchased a house for $25,000 (equivalent to $847,778 in 2023), a brownstone at 278 W. 113th Street in Harlem, New York City.

While on tour in Europe in 1902, Houdini visited Blois with the aim of meeting the widow of Emile Houdin, the son of Jean-Eugène Robert-Houdin, for an interview and permission to visit his grave. He did not receive permission but still visited the grave. Houdini believed that he had been treated unfairly and later wrote a negative account of the incident in his magazine, claiming he was "treated most discourteously by Madame W. Emile Robert-Houdin". In 1906, he sent a letter to the French magazine L'Illusionniste stating: "You will certainly enjoy the article on Robert Houdin I am about to publish in my magazine. Yes, my dear friend, I think I can finally demolish your idol, which has so long been placed on a pedestal that he did not deserve."

In 1906, Houdini created his own publication, the Conjurers' Monthly Magazine. It was a competitor to The Sphinx, but was short-lived and only two volumes were released until August 1908. Magic historian Jim Steinmeyer has noted that "Houdini couldn't resist using the journal for his own crusades, attacking his rivals, praising his own appearances, and subtly rewriting history to favor his view of magic."

From 1907 and throughout the 1910s, Houdini performed with great success in the United States. He freed himself from jails, handcuffs, chains, ropes, and straitjackets, often while hanging from a rope in sight of street audiences. Because of imitators, Houdini put his "handcuff act" behind him on January 25, 1908, and began escaping from a locked, water-filled milk can. The possibility of failure and death thrilled his audiences. Houdini also expanded his repertoire with his escape challenge act, in which he invited the public to devise contraptions to hold him. These included nailed packing crates (sometimes lowered into water), riveted boilers, wet sheets, mail bags, and even the belly of a whale that had washed ashore in Boston. Brewers in Scranton, Pennsylvania, and other cities challenged Houdini to escape from a barrel after they filled it with beer.

Many of these challenges were arranged with local merchants in one of the first uses of mass tie-in marketing. Rather than promote the idea that he was assisted by spirits, as did the Davenport Brothers and others, Houdini's advertisements showed him making his escapes via dematerializing, although Houdini himself never claimed to have supernatural powers.

After much research, Houdini wrote a collection of articles on the history of magic, which were expanded into The Unmasking of Robert-Houdin published in 1908. In this book he attacked his former idol Robert-Houdin as a liar and a fraud for having claimed the invention of automata and effects such as aerial suspension, which had been in existence for many years. Many of the allegations in the book were dismissed by magicians and researchers who defended Robert-Houdin. Magician Jean Hugard would later write a full rebuttal to Houdini's book.

Houdini introduced the Chinese Water Torture Cell at the Circus Busch in Berlin, Germany, on September 21, 1912. He was suspended upside-down in a locked glass-and-steel cabinet full to overflowing with water, holding his breath for more than three minutes. He would go on performing this escape for the rest of his life.

 

During his career, Houdini explained some of his tricks in books written for the magic brotherhood. In Handcuff Secrets (1909), he revealed how many locks and handcuffs could be opened with properly applied force, others with shoestrings. Other times, he carried concealed lockpicks or keys. When tied down in ropes or straitjackets, he gained wiggle room by enlarging his shoulders and chest, moving his arms slightly away from his body.

His straitjacket escape was originally performed behind curtains, with him popping out free at the end. Houdini's brother (who was also an escape artist, billing himself as Theodore Hardeen) discovered that audiences were more impressed when the curtains were eliminated so they could watch him struggle to get out. On more than one occasion, they both performed straitjacket escapes while dangling upside-down from the roof of a building in the same city.

For most of his career, Houdini was a headline act in vaudeville. For many years, he was the highest-paid performer in American vaudeville. One of Houdini's most notable non-escape stage illusions was performed at the New York Hippodrome, when he vanished a full-grown elephant from the stage. He had purchased this trick from the magician Charles Morritt. In 1923, Houdini became president of Martinka & Co., America's oldest magic company. The business is still in operation today.

He also served as president of the Society of American Magicians (a.k.a. S.A.M.) from 1917 until his death in 1926. Founded on May 10, 1902, in the back room of Martinka's magic shop in New York, the Society expanded under the leadership of Harry Houdini during his term as national president from 1917 to 1926. Houdini was magic's greatest visionary: He sought to create a large, unified national network of professional and amateur magicians. Wherever he traveled, he gave a lengthy formal address to the local magic club, made speeches, and usually threw a banquet for the members at his own expense. He said "The Magicians Clubs as a rule are small: they are weak ... but if we were amalgamated into one big body the society would be stronger, and it would mean making the small clubs powerful and worthwhile. Members would find a welcome wherever they happened to be and, conversely, the safeguard of a city-to-city hotline to track exposers and other undesirables".

For most of 1916, while on his vaudeville tour, Houdini had been recruiting – at his own expense – local magic clubs to join the S.A.M. in an effort to revitalize what he felt was a weak organization. Houdini persuaded groups in Buffalo, Detroit, Pittsburgh, and Kansas City to join. As had happened in London, he persuaded magicians to join. The Buffalo club joined as the first branch, (later assembly) of the Society. Chicago Assembly No. 3 was, as the name implies, the third regional club to be established by the S.A.M., whose assemblies now number in the hundreds. In 1917, he signed Assembly Number Three's charter into existence, and that charter and this club continue to provide Chicago magicians with a connection to each other and to their past. Houdini dined with, addressed, and got pledges from similar clubs in Detroit, Rochester, Pittsburgh, Kansas City, Cincinnati and elsewhere. This was the biggest movement ever in the history of magic. In places where no clubs existed, he rounded up individual magicians, introduced them to each other, and urged them into the fold.

By the end of 1916, magicians' clubs in San Francisco and other cities that Houdini had not visited were offering to become assemblies. He had created the richest and longest-surviving organization of magicians in the world. It now embraces almost 6,000 dues-paying members and almost 300 assemblies worldwide. In July 1926, Houdini was elected for the ninth successive time President of the Society of American Magicians. Every other president has only served for one year. He also was President of the Magicians' Club of London.

In the final years of his life (1925/26), Houdini launched his own full-evening show, which he billed as "Three Shows in One: Magic, Escapes, and Fraud Mediums Exposed".

Notable escapes

Daily Mirror challenge

In 1904, the London Daily Mirror newspaper challenged Houdini to escape from special handcuffs that it claimed had taken Nathaniel Hart, a locksmith from Birmingham, five years to make. Houdini accepted the challenge for March 17 during a matinée performance at London's Hippodrome theatre. It was reported that 4000 people and more than 100 journalists turned out for the much-hyped event. The escape attempt dragged on for over an hour, during which Houdini emerged from his "ghost house" (a small screen used to conceal the method of his escape) several times. At one point he asked if the cuffs could be removed so he could take off his coat. The Mirror representative, Frank Parker, refused, saying Houdini could gain an advantage if he saw how the cuffs were unlocked. Houdini promptly took out a penknife and, holding it in his teeth, used it to cut his coat from his body. Some 56 minutes later, Houdini's wife appeared on stage and gave him a kiss. Many thought that in her mouth was the key to unlock the special handcuffs. However, it has since been suggested that Bess did not in fact enter the stage at all, and that this theory is unlikely due to the size of the six-inch key. Houdini then went back behind the curtain. After an hour and ten minutes, Houdini emerged free. As he was paraded on the shoulders of the cheering crowd, he broke down and wept. At the time, Houdini said it had been one of the most difficult escapes of his career.

After Houdini's death, his friend Martin Beck was quoted in Will Goldston's book, Sensational Tales of Mystery Men, admitting that Houdini was tested that day and had appealed to his wife, Bess, for help. Goldston goes on to claim that Bess begged the key from the Mirror representative, and then slipped it to Houdini in a glass of water. It was stated in the book The Secret Life of Houdini that the key required to open the specially designed Mirror handcuffs was six inches long, and could not have been smuggled to Houdini in a glass of water. Goldston offered no proof of his account, and many modern biographers have found evidence (notably in the custom design of the handcuffs) that the Mirror challenge may have been arranged by Houdini and that his long struggle to escape was pure showmanship. James Randi believes that the only way the handcuffs could have been opened was by using their key, and speculates that it would have been viewed "distasteful" to both the Mirror and to Houdini if Houdini had failed the escape.

Milk Can Escape

In 1908, Houdini introduced his own original act, the Milk Can Escape.  In this act, Houdini was handcuffed and sealed inside an oversized milk can filled with water and made his escape behind a curtain. As part of the effect, Houdini invited members of the audience to hold their breath along with him while he was inside the can. Advertised with dramatic posters that proclaimed "Failure Means a Drowning Death", the escape proved to be a sensation.  Houdini soon modified the escape to include the milk can being locked inside a wooden chest, being chained or padlocked. Houdini performed the milk can escape as a regular part of his act for only four years, but it has remained one of the acts most associated with him. Houdini's brother, Theodore Hardeen, continued to perform the milk can escape and its wooden chest variant into the 1940s.

After other magicians proposed variations on the Milk Can Escape, Houdini claimed that the act was protected by copyright and in 1906, brought a case against John Clempert, one of the most persistent imitators. The matter was settled out of court and Clempert agreed to publish an apology.

Chinese water torture cell

Around 1912, the vast number of imitators prompted Houdini to replace his milk can act with the Chinese water torture cell. In this escape, Houdini's feet were locked in stocks, and he was lowered upside down into a tank filled with water. The mahogany and metal cell featured a glass front, through which audiences could clearly see Houdini. The stocks were locked to the top of the cell, and a curtain concealed his escape. In the earliest version of the torture cell, a metal cage was lowered into the cell, and Houdini was enclosed inside that. While making the escape more difficult – the cage prevented Houdini from turning – the cage bars also offered protection should the front glass break.

The original cell was built in England, where Houdini first performed the escape for an audience of one person as part of a one-act play he called "Houdini Upside Down". This was done to obtain copyright protection for the effect, and establish grounds to sue imitators – which he did. While the escape was advertised as "The Chinese Water Torture Cell" or "The Water Torture Cell", Houdini always referred to it as "the Upside Down" or "USD". The first public performance of the USD was at the Circus Busch in Berlin, on September 21, 1912. Houdini continued to perform the escape until his death in 1926.

Suspended straitjacket escape

One of Houdini's most popular publicity stunts was to have himself strapped into a regulation straitjacket and suspended by his ankles from a tall building or crane. Houdini would then make his escape in full view of the assembled crowd. In many cases, Houdini drew tens of thousands of onlookers who brought city traffic to a halt. Houdini would sometimes ensure press coverage by performing the escape from the office building of a local newspaper. In New York City, Houdini performed the suspended straitjacket escape from a crane being used to build the subway. After flinging his body in the air, he escaped from the straitjacket. Starting from when he was hoisted up in the air by the crane, to when the straitjacket was completely off, it took him two minutes and thirty-seven seconds. There is film footage in the Library of Congress of Houdini performing the escape. Films of his escapes are also shown at The Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

After being battered against a building in high winds during one escape, Houdini performed the escape with a visible safety wire on his ankle so that he could be pulled away from the building if necessary. The idea for the upside-down escape was given to Houdini by a young boy named Randolph Osborne Douglas (March 31, 1895 – December 5, 1956), when the two met at a performance at Sheffield's Empire Theatre.

Overboard box escape

Another of Houdini's most famous publicity stunts was to escape from a nailed and roped packing crate after it had been lowered into water. He first performed the escape in New York's East River on July 7, 1912. Police forbade him from using one of the piers, so he hired a tugboat and invited press on board. Houdini was locked in handcuffs and leg-irons, and then nailed into the crate which was roped and weighed down with two hundred pounds of lead. The crate was then lowered into the water. He escaped in 57 seconds. The crate was pulled to the surface and found still to be intact, with the manacles inside.

Buried alive stunt

Houdini performed at least three variations on a buried alive stunt during his career. The first was near Santa Ana, California in 1915, and it almost cost him his life. Houdini was buried, without a casket, in a pit of earth six feet deep. He became exhausted and panicked while trying to dig his way to the surface and called for help. When his hand finally broke the surface, he fell unconscious and had to be pulled from the grave by his assistants. Houdini wrote in his diary that the escape was "very dangerous" and that "the weight of the earth is killing".

Houdini's second variation on buried alive was an endurance test designed to expose mystical Egyptian performer Rahman Bey, who had claimed to use supernatural powers to remain in a sealed casket for an hour. Houdini bettered Bey on August 5, 1926, by remaining in a sealed casket, or coffin, submerged in the swimming pool of New York's Hotel Shelton for one and a half hours. Houdini claimed he did not use any trickery or supernatural powers to accomplish this feat, just controlled breathing. He repeated the feat at the YMCA in Worcester, Massachusetts on September 28, 1926, this time remaining sealed for one hour and eleven minutes.

Houdini's final buried alive was an elaborate stage escape that featured in his full evening show. Houdini would escape after being strapped in a straitjacket, sealed in a casket, and then buried in a large tank filled with sand. While posters advertising the escape exist (playing off the Bey challenge by boasting "Egyptian Fakirs Outdone!"), it is unclear whether Houdini ever performed buried alive on stage. The stunt was to be the feature escape of his 1927 season, but Houdini died on October 31, 1926. The bronze casket Houdini created for buried alive was used to transport Houdini's body from Detroit to New York following his death on Halloween.

Film career

In 1906, Houdini started showing films of his outside escapes as part of his vaudeville act. In Boston, he presented a short film called Houdini Defeats Hackenschmidt. Georg Hackenschmidt was a famous wrestler of the day, but the nature of their contest is unknown as the film is lost. In 1909, Houdini made a film in Paris for Cinema Lux titled Merveilleux Exploits du Célèbre Houdini à Paris (Marvellous Exploits of the Famous Houdini in Paris). It featured a loose narrative designed to showcase several of Houdini's famous escapes, including his straitjacket and underwater handcuff escapes. That same year Houdini got an offer to star as Captain Nemo in a silent version of Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Seas, but the project never made it into production.

It is often erroneously reported that Houdini served as special-effects consultant on the Wharton/International cliffhanger serial The Mysteries of Myra, shot in Ithaca, New York, because Harry Grossman, director of The Master Mystery also filmed a serial in Ithaca at about the same time. The consultants on the serial were pioneering Hereward Carrington and Aleister Crowley.

In 1918, Houdini signed a contract with film producer B. A. Rolfe to star in a 15-part serial, The Master Mystery (released in November 1918). As was common at the time, the film serial was released simultaneously with a novel. Financial difficulties resulted in B. A. Rolfe Productions going out of business, but The Master Mystery led to Houdini being signed by Famous Players–Lasky Corporation/Paramount Pictures, for whom he made two pictures, The Grim Game (1919) and Terror Island (1920).

The Grim Game was Houdini's first full-length movie and is reputed to be his best. Because of the flammable nature of nitrate film and their low rate of survival, film historians considered the film lost. One copy did exist hidden in the collection of a private collector only known to a tiny group of magicians that saw it. Dick Brookz and Dorothy Dietrich of The Houdini Museum in Scranton, Pennsylvania, had seen it twice on the invitation of the collector. After many years of trying, they finally got him to agree to sell the film to Turner Classic Movies, who restored the complete 71-minute film. The film, not seen by the general public for 96 years, was shown by TCM on March 29, 2015, as a highlight of their yearly 4-day festival in Hollywood.

While filming an aerial stunt for The Grim Game, two biplanes collided in mid-air with a stuntman doubling Houdini dangling by a rope from one of the planes. Publicity was geared heavily toward promoting this dramatic "caught-on-film" moment, claiming it was Houdini himself dangling from the plane. While filming these movies in Los Angeles, Houdini rented a home in Laurel Canyon. Following his two-picture stint in Hollywood, Houdini returned to New York and started his own film production company called the "Houdini Picture Corporation". He produced and starred in two films, The Man from Beyond (1921) and Haldane of the Secret Service (1923). He also founded his own film laboratory business called The Film Development Corporation (FDC), gambling on a new process for developing motion picture film. Houdini's brother, Theodore Hardeen, left his own career as a magician and escape artist to run the company. Magician Harry Kellar was a major investor. In 1919 Houdini moved to Los Angeles to film. He resided in 2435 Laurel Canyon Boulevard, a residence owned by Ralph M. Walker. The Houdini Estate, a tribute to Houdini, is located on 2400 Laurel Canyon Boulevard, previously home to Walker himself. The Houdini Estate is subject to controversy, in that it is disputed whether Houdini ever actually made it his home. While there are claims it was Houdini's house, others counter that "he never set foot" on the property. It is rooted in Bess's parties or séances, etc. held across the street, she would do so at the Walker mansion. In fact, the guesthouse featured an elevator connecting to a tunnel that crossed under Laurel Canyon to the big house grounds (though capped, the tunnel still exists).

Neither Houdini's acting career nor FDC found success, and he gave up on the movie business in 1923, complaining that "the profits are too meager".

In April 2008, Kino International released a DVD box set of Houdini's surviving silent films, including The Master Mystery, Terror Island, The Man From Beyond, Haldane of the Secret Service, and five minutes from The Grim Game. The set also includes newsreel footage of Houdini's escapes from 1907 to 1923, and a section from Merveilleux Exploits du Célébre Houdini à Paris, although it is not identified as such.

Aviator

In 1909, Houdini became fascinated with aviation. He purchased a French Voisin biplane for $5,000 (equivalent to $163,500 in 2023) from the Chilean aviators José Luis Sánchez-Besa [Fr] and Emilio Eduardo Bello, and hired a full-time mechanic, Antonio Brassac. After crashing once, he made his first successful flight on November 26 in Hamburg, Germany.

The following year, Houdini toured Australia and brought along his Voisin biplane with the intention to be the first person to fly in Australia.

Melbourne people will shortly have an opportunity of witnessing the ascent of a flying machine, for Houdini, whose Voision [sic] bi-plane has arrived, has determined to make a flight before his season closes at the [New] Opera House [in Melbourne, at the end of March]. The 60 to 80 horse-power motor used is of the E.N.V. pattern. The machine has been erected at Diggers' Rest. Table Talk, March 3, 1910.

North Head Quarantine Station Part II

 

Cemeteries

Three cemeteries functioned throughout the history of the Station. The approximate location of the First Cemetery (Site IIIA1, c. 1837–1853), is at the junction of the Wharf and Hospital roads, however no visible evidence remains, so it is not a landscape element except to those with knowledge of its existence.

The unfortunate positioning of the First Cemetery, always in the view of the well and recovering, was soon recognised, and the subsequent cemeteries were moved out of the perceived landscape of those quarantined. The Second Cemetery (Site L1, 1853–1881), is located east of the 3rd Class precinct. Three headstones remain in situ (two obscured by vegetation), and the outline of another two graves visible. The cemetery is separated from the experiential landscape of the quarantined unless they chose to visit it. The Third Cemetery (Site VA1, 1881–1925), is within the School of Artillery, on Commonwealth property. Two hundred and forty one burials are registered, and the cemetery retains many headstones and markers, protected by a chain wire three-metre high person-proof fence. This cemetery is even more removed from the Quarantine Station landscape than the second cemetery was. The Second and Third cemeteries become obscured and prone to bushfire if native vegetation is not regularly slashed. Erosion of grave sites occurs if the cemeteries are heavily visited or if stabilizing vegetation, especially grasses, is removed. There has been natural weathering and corrosion of sandstone headstones and wooden cross grave markers. Uncontrolled public access to these cemeteries, especially the Third, can result in vandalism or theft of remaining headstones and grave markers.

Some headstones from the First and Second cemeteries are now located in the artefact store within Building A20. Further research is required to relocate obscured graves.

The cemeteries are powerful reminders of the purpose of the Quarantine Station, its successes and failures and of its internees. They have historical, archaeological, genealogical and educational significance and special significance for descendants of those interred in them.

An archaeological assessment of the North Head Quarantine Station cemeteries; and an archaeological inspection report of the Third Quarantine Station cemetery have been prepared by the NPWS. These documents provide specific policy recommendations related to the conservation and management of the cemeteries, which are accepted as recommendations of this Conservation Management Plan.

Fences and walls

The Quarantine Station study area landscape includes a variety of fences and walls which are integral to the history and past functioning of the place. Fencing, generally 1.8-metre-high (6 ft) paling fences, was the primary means of enforcing the separation of different groups of internees at the Quarantine Station. The impact of the fences and clearing of bushland, on the appearance of the Station can be judged from historic photographs. The loss of the majority of fences creates a false impression of the Quarantine Station's layout and reduces the ability to experience the segregation that passengers were required to maintain. In this sense the cultural landscape significance of the fences has been lost, but could be regained by reconstruction.

These include:

Prominent sandstone block, 1.8-meter-high (6 ft) barrier walls, built in the 1930s Great Depression by workers on unemployment relief programs. These are located along boundary lines which show the subdivision of the Quarantine ground at that time for hospital, recreation and military purposes; a double chain wire three feet [one meter] high fence at the entry gate to the place which served as a "neutral zone" across which internees could talk with visitors;

Wooden paling fences around the staff cottages;

Chain wire 1.8-metre-high (6 ft) fences around the Isolation and Hospital precincts which separated them from healthy areas;

Foreshore stone and concrete walls at the Quarantine Beach wharf;

Low sandstone block kerbing and retaining walls on the main access roads; and

Section of remnant paling fences in bush around the Hospital area.

The sandstone block walls are generally in fair-to-good condition. Some sections, however, have collapsed due to water erosion undermining their footings. Further sections are in imminent danger of collapse. Blocks in the wall end near The Old Man’s Hat have seriously eroded due to wind and salty sea spray. Wire fences are substantially intact, though are prone to rusting. Existing timber fences around staff cottages are of recent construction [1985-90], mostly in good condition, though prone to distortion due to high winds. The stone walls and site fencing generally are important legacies of quarantine isolation practices.

Obelisk

A prominent sandstone obelisk 9.1-metre-high (30 ft) stands on the south-eastern edge of the Station. An obelisk is shown at this location on site plans dating from 1807 to 1809, though it is not known if the existing one is the original. The memorial is in fair condition but requires some stonework repairs at the base. It may prove to be highly significant, if it is the original, as the oldest surviving structure on North Head and one of the oldest on Sydney Harbor. The obelisk is one of the few landscape elements relating to a non-quarantine function, though as navigation markers they relate to the overall maritime themes that include quarantine.

Roads and paths

Roads and paths throughout the place include the bitumen roads, sandstone-paved roads and pedestrian paths to The Old Man’s Hat area and between the wharf and hospital areas. There is a hierarchy of paths and roads, ranging from sealed vehicle roads, through sealed footpaths and ramps, to unsealed tracks, especially into the surrounding bushland. These reflect how the landscape was lived in, and the strong separation of the managed landscape of the Station precincts and the informality of the surrounding areas such as The Old Man’s Hat.

Stone cairn (Site IIIA3)

A sandstone cairn stands adjacent to the 2nd Class Passenger Accommodation building P12. Built during the late 1830s, this is the sole remaining cairn of a line of thirteen which denoted the early boundary of the quarantine ground. It is in good condition. This cairn is the earliest surviving in situ structure associated with the place's quarantine function and demonstrates the early need for isolation and security.

Natural heritage

Overview and description

The study area for the natural heritage plan specifically requires consideration of the water body and the sea bed between Cannae Point and Spring Cove, including Quarantine Beach and store Beach; the Third Quarantine Cemetery within the former Defence land at North Head, and associated installations. The natural heritage items are those items recorded as occurring in the subject study area, or those items with a high probability of occurring within the area, based on studies, surveys and reports of the flora and fauna on North Head generally. Native bushland in the North Head Defense property and other parts of the North Head component of Sydney Harbour National Park is contiguous with bushland within the study area and fauna may move from one area to another.

Some fauna may occur sporadically or seasonally in different parts of North Head, and others such as raptors have territories which span large areas regardless of roads, walls or fences. Therefore, some of the conservation significance of the study area is linked to the wider context of North Head as a whole and even beyond. For example, the significance of the Little Penguin colony is considered in the context of other colonies and the feeding range of individual birds.

The maintenance of genetic diversity within plant communities is aided by free movement of bird, mammal and insect pollinators. Wind-borne pollen is dispersed widely; however maximum distances between plants which still allow effective pollination are seldom studied and, in consequence, little understood. It is axiomatic that larger units of vegetation enhance the prospects of long-term survival of genetic diversity in remnant plant communities.

Thus the biodiversity values of plants and animals in the study area are discussed in the broader context of those parts of North Head which are within Sydney Harbour National Park. Such an approach is appropriate for this Conservation Management Plan because the areas to the north and south of the Quarantine Station are declared as National Park, and their management for nature conservation in perpetuity is determined by the plan of management required under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974. The approach is also consistent with the requirements identified in the Commonwealth to State Land Exchange Agreement of 1979.

Little penguin colony, Little Collins Beach

Little Collins Beach has the only known mainland NSW breeding ground for the endangered Little Penguin, a colony which is protected by volunteers, each breeding season, to control predators. This was the scene of a massacre in 2015 when a fox attacked and killed 27 penguins, depleting the population. The colony extends from North Head to Manly Wharf.

Heritage listing

The North Head Quarantine Station Study Area is an integral element of the North Head peninsula. The Aboriginal and Natural values of the NHQS relate to the peninsula as a whole; and the European/Asian cultural values relate to the most of the peninsula, for the whole area was once Quarantine Reserve. The area represents a place of cultural and natural diversity reflecting the evolution of Sydney from Aboriginal occupation through European settlement to the landscape of today, representing many social, historic, recreational, environmental and educational values. The Heads maintain an iconic presence to the city as the gateway to Port Jackson and Sydney Harbour, and the city.

The Aboriginal heritage values of the North Head area are an intrinsic part of the significance of the place. Numerous Aboriginal traditions from various parts of the continent refer to and intermesh the creation of their natural and cultural environment; Sydney Harbour can be seen as the outcome of such a creative period. Aborigines were demonstrably present in the Sydney Basin many thousands of years before the present coastline was formed and would have experienced the actual creation of Port Jackson and Sydney Harbour with its rich and complex environment. The North Head area along with the other areas that form Sydney Harbor National Park retains Aboriginal heritage values in a physical setting that is substantially intact although embedded in the important urban setting of Sydney.

On a national scale, the Port Jackson environment, including North Head, formed the scene of or backdrop for some of the earliest and formative interaction between Aborigines and the British explorers and settlers. Archaeological sites remnant at NHQS are seen as symbolizing Aboriginal prehistory and contact history. Just as the Heads became a symbol to "New" Australians of a possible new and better life, they are seen by many Aborigines as a symbol of their loss and disenfranchisement. Evidence of Aboriginal occupation is evident in more than forty recorded sites. An exceptional wealth of further information may be contained in the archaeology of the place and in particular in the Pleistocene sand dunes; the only undisturbed, vegetated high-level sand dunes in the Sydney region. Rare and endangered species of flora and fauna are refuge at the place and in the wider area of North Head. Considered alone or ecologically as part of North Head, the Quarantine Station area includes significant geodiversity and biodiversity components of the natural heritage of New South Wales. The Station is situated on an isolated cliff-bound tied island complex formed by the interaction of strong bedrock and erosion associated with changes of sea level tens of thousands of years ago. The headland is capped by Pleistocene high-level sand dunes which also occur within the Station complex. The natural biodiversity consists of isolated, remnant and disjunct communities, populations and species, six of which are scheduled on the Threatened Species Conservation Act [NSW] 1995. In addition to the threatened plant species there are over 450 other species of vascular plants and ferns representing 109 plant families. This level of genetic diversity is remarkable and scientifically important.

The endangered population of Little Penguin is significant as the only population of this species which breeds on the mainland of NSW. The characteristics which have enabled this population to persist in one of the busiest commercial harbors in the world are important for scientific study. The endangered population of Long-nosed Bandicoot is also scientifically important as a remnant population of specie which was formerly common and widespread in the Sydney region. The few remaining trees of Camfields Stringybark are a significant component of the entire genetic resource of this vulnerable species.

North Head Quarantine Station

The Quarantine Station occupies the first site officially designated as a place of Quarantine for people entering Australia. It is the nation's oldest and most intact facility of its type and can thus be ascribed national significance. Together with Point Nepean Station, and in terms of the story of quarantine and its role in controlled migration to Australia, the two Stations have to be considered as being nationally significant quarantine sites. The Station's use remained essentially unchanged from 1828 to 1984, and all buildings and development on the site reflect the changing social and scientific demands of Quarantine during that period. The formation and development of the Quarantine Station relates directly to the growth of Australia as a remote island nation. It symbolizes the distance travelled and perils faced by many immigrants who first stood on Australian soil at the Quarantine Station. The site has symbolic significance for these reasons. The history of the site reflects the changing social and racial values of the Australian community and the development of medical practices in controlling infectious diseases. The site has historic significance in demonstrating and elucidating major themes in Australian history, immigration, the development of society and government, social welfare and health care, treatment of disease, transport and conservation. Evidence of the hardships experienced by European and Asian internees during their detention in Quarantine and the tragic deaths of some of them, is powerfully conveyed by the inscriptions on the gravestones, monuments and amongst the random inscriptions scattered throughout the site. The rugged topography of the southern rock cliffs in the area of the Old Man’s Hat, where the power of the sea is manifest, and where the healthy and sick internees sought relief from the confinement of the Quarantine Station, contrasts strongly with the sanctuary of Quarantine and Store Beaches, where European vessels were first quarantine and from where the food gathering and cultural activities of Aboriginal people were abruptly halted. The views to the Station and to North Head from the city of Sydney; and from the Station down the length of Port Jackson are significant for their iconic value. The class system which permeated Colonial society in this country is illustrated clearly in the extant building fabric and in cultural landscape which contains the subtle evidence of the fences and paths which were contrived to maintain absolute separation between the classes and races, and between the healthy and the sick, the dying and the dead, at the Quarantine Station. The whole place displays evidence of natural systems, historic built forms and historical associations with the experience of quarantine have been retained largely intact due to its relative isolation on North Head.

North Head Quarantine Station was listed on the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999 having satisfied the following criteria.

The place is important in demonstrating the course, or pattern, of cultural or natural history in New South Wales.

European/Asian heritage

The North Head Quarantine Station is the oldest and most intact of the quarantine stations in Australia. It was always the pre-eminent place of quarantine among the colonies, both because of its early beginnings, and because it led in many of the advances in quarantine practice. The Station's function remained unchanged from 1828 to 1984 and all buildings and developments illustrate the changing social and scientific demands of quarantine during that period. The station was also central to the development of the colony of NSW's responses to local epidemics of infectious diseases. The history of the Quarantine Station, which is well illustrated by its buildings, sites, landscapes and the functions that took place there interconnects with a number of key themes in NSW's history. The demands of quarantine, and the spotlight this cast on health standards, forced improvements in the conditions experienced by immigrants travelling to NSW, through the nineteenth century in particular. The procedures established for the quarantine of inbound shipping set the foundation for responding to the various local smallpox, plague and influenza epidemics up until the 1920s. The Quarantine Station also provided a safe haven to which the ill could be removed and treated. On a broader scale, the Quarantine Station dramatically demonstrates, in its development of arrangements to separate and deal differently with different classes and races of people, the changes in the social attitudes of the colony and State. This separation based on social status was most clearly evidenced by the barrier fences erected between the various class "compounds". The final transfer of the Quarantine Station to the State reflected the now-common pattern whereby land formerly reserved for special purposes, and protected from the development pressures of the urban areas surrounding them became valued for the cultural and natural values they possessed and were re-gazetted for conservation purposes when no longer needed for their special purposes.

Natural heritage

Some of the earliest collections of marine specimens were made at Spring Cove and are now housed in the Australian Museum. These collections were made in the 1830s and therefore have significance in the natural history of Sydney Harbor. The Little Penguin population is the only remaining mainland population of this species in New South Wales. This is important to the natural history of this species. Continued survival of the Little Penguin is equally important to the future pattern of conservation management of endangered species. The successful management of other threatened species in the Quarantine Station is similarly important to the course of NSW's natural history. The effects on other biodiversity elements of the further decline or loss of these threatened species is unknown but could be significant to the natural history of the place.

The place has a strong or special association with a person, or group of persons, of importance of cultural or natural history of New South Wales's history.

Aboriginal heritage

North Head is associated with the Aboriginal presence, ownership and use of the land prior to and after European settlement as a site where the Cameraigal Aboriginal clan first saw the European settlers. As part of the wider Manly area it is associated with named Aboriginal persons, such as Bungaree's wife Gooseberry, Bennelong and Wil-le-me-ring, who played a part in the early European settlement of Sydney. Due to an apparent misunderstanding, Governor Phillip was speared by Wil-le-me-ring in a bay in or near the Quarantine area, possibly Spring Cove or Little Manly Cove.

European/Asian heritage

The Quarantine Station has played an important part in the lives of many Australians, with over 13,000 persons, including convicts and free migrants to NSW and many Sydney residents, being quarantined, of who an estimated 572 have died and are buried there. The inscriptions at the site are an unusual testimony to those associations. The Station has also been closely associated with the administration of health by NSW and the Commonwealth, and a number of health administrators prominent in the development of NSW's public health policies and practices have had close and long associations with the Station. These included Deas Thomson, Capt. H.H. Browne, Dr Savage, Dr Allyne, Dr J. H. L. Cumpston, and Dr W. P. Norris. The Station also has association with the architects and designers and builders who created the Station; particularly the office of the NSW Colonial Architect to 1908, and the Commonwealth Department of Works and Railways, particularly George Oakeshore of the Sydney office. There has been no comprehensive survey of the architects/designers involved in the NHQS buildings. The Station played a pivotal role in the post-WWII period with the housing of illegal immigrants as detainees and refugees to Australia. The Station thus reflects the maritime arrival and "processing" not only of quarantined immigrants, but also of illegal and refugee arrivals. The 'down-turn' in Station activity paralleled the post-WWII change to airborne migration. Finally, the Station was the setting for socio-political dramas such as the revolt of the returned and quarantined troops after WWI; and the confrontations between secular and religious authorities in NSW over access by religious entities to the Quarantine Station.

The place is important in demonstrating aesthetic characteristics and/or a high degree of creative or technical achievement in New South Wales.

European/Asian heritage

The Quarantine Station has a cultural landscape that is distinctly associated with its unusual functions. It was a landscape of rigid control, which is associated with and reinforced the institutional and functional nature of the place. The present day Harbor context is now recognised as being a visually attractive setting of natural bush and harbor views. The unity of the design and form of the buildings, set within grassy precincts, which convey a pleasant village-like feeling, unusual within the Sydney metropolitan area. The Quarantine Station bears witness to the evolution of public health policy in NSW and Australia generally, and the development of practices and procedures designed to protect the colony, state and nation from infectious disease. The quarantine system, which reached its full form in the first decades of this century, was a significant technical achievement, and was in part developed at the North Head Quarantine Station where it is well demonstrated in the surviving fabric. Aspects of this technical achievement can be seen in the remanent quarantine technology at the Station e.g. the fumigation chamber, shower blocks and autoclaves.

Natural heritage

The aesthetic characteristics derived from the natural values of heath vegetation and sandstone cliff geomorphology within the Quarantine Station are an integral part of the outstanding aesthetic values of North Head conserved as part of the Sydney Harbor National Park. These values are derived from the expanse of uninterrupted cliff face and vegetated headlands. They are appreciated and enjoyed both from offshore and within Port Jackson. Together with those of South Head, they have enormous emotional impact on people arriving and leaving Sydney by sea. This impact is greater because the sheer cliff faces are capped with continuous low heath vegetation rather than tall forest or prominent buildings. Spectacular views of the drowned valley system of North and Middle Harbors are seen from within the Quarantine Station.

The place has strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group in New South Wales for social, cultural or spiritual reasons.

Aboriginal heritage

Aboriginal heritage values at North Head, including the Quarantine Station area, are important to the Aboriginal community in general, and to the local community especially for a wide range of reasons, social, cultural and spiritual. Aboriginal presence in the area is older than Sydney Harbour as it is known today. Port Jackson and Sydney Harbor has been the scene of some of the earliest fateful interactions between Aborigines and the British invaders. The surviving North Head Aboriginal sites are seen as symbolizing Aboriginal history of recent centuries as well as earlier times. The area is one of the last within Sydney Harbour environment where Aboriginal heritage values have been retained in a physical setting that is substantially intact along with Dobroyd, Middle, Georges, Bradleys, South and Balls Heads; Mount Treffle at Nielsen Park; and the Hermitage Reserve. This environment allows the Aboriginal community to educate the younger and future generations as well as others about Aboriginal history, life styles and values and provides a chance of experiencing some of the atmosphere and quality of traditional Aboriginal life. Aspects of these spiritual and heritage values are embedded in or embodied by physical remains such as rock inscriptions, paintings, images or deposits with archaeological material remaining as evidence of past Aboriginal presence, but these are seen as an inseparable part of the present natural setting. Evidence of Aboriginal occupation has been recorded in more than forty locations in the North Head area.

European/Asian heritage

The Quarantine Station has strong associations for several groups in the community for social and cultural reasons. These associations include connections to the Aboriginal community, for whom the Quarantine Station is a component of the North Head/Manly area. This area has strong associations with previous Aboriginal ownership and use; with the impact of European settlement on the Aborigines; and through specific acts of Aboriginal resistance in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. North Head Quarantine Station also has associations with the former Quarantine Station staff, who worked on the station while it was an active quarantine; with former passengers subjected to quarantine, and their families (e.g. as exemplified by the Constitution memorial and family commemoration of their forebears' quarantine experience); and with the Manly community, as part of the wider North Head landscape, which has significantly contributed to the 'sense of place' of that community. The station also has significance to Asian immigrants or seamen who arrived in Australia and was retained at the Station. Many of these internees made their permanent home in Australia.

The place has potential to yield information that will contribute to an understanding of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales.

Aboriginal heritage

Aboriginal people have occupied the Sydney basin for at least 20,000 years. The Harbor has been a focus for Aboriginal habitation since its occupation over 6000 years ago. So much of the physical evidence of Aboriginal people's occupation of North Head is either undiscovered or lies outside the immediate North Head Quarantine Station Study Area. Many of the known sites have limited potential to yield new information due to the nature or state of physical preservation. However, given the limited capacity in this study for thorough archaeological assessment. It is possible that some sites or as yet undetected sites exist that might have greater potential to yield information that contributes to our understanding of Aboriginal occupation of the area.

European/Asian heritage

The surviving fabric of the place, both through its elements, components and sub-surface archaeological evidence, have considerable research value at a State level, with the potential to provide information on the operation of the Quarantine Station and of those in quarantine, and so to add to our knowledge of its history. The station is significant for its ability to educate the general public in its history.

Natural heritage

The area of North Head including the Quarantine Station is a remnant fragment containing once highly common vegetation types in the Sydney region. Many of these vegetation types and the wildlife they support are confined to disturbed remnants with the original vegetation having been cleared for urban and industrial development. Over 450 species of plants are found on North Head. Ninety species of native birds have been recorded in the Quarantine area including some species covered by international migratory bird agreements. The long period of "isolation" of North Head as a "tied island" initially allowed the species of flora and terrestrial fauna on the Head to evolve independently from those found elsewhere in the Sydney Basin. Although no longer tied, and now subject to the introduction of exotic flora and fauna, this early isolation has enhanced the value to science of the biodiversity on North Head. The response of plants and animals to periodic burning and periods without burning has potential to yield information important to the understanding of the natural history of the Hawkesbury Sandstone flora and fauna.

The place possesses uncommon, rare or endangered aspects of the cultural or natural history of New South Wales.

European/Asian heritage

The Quarantine Station, as NSW's primary quarantine facility for 166 years, held a unique place in the State's history, and its remarkably well preserved set of quarantine structures, landscape features and inscriptions make it a place of great rarity. The functions it fulfilled are no longer used to control quarantinable diseases, and the North Head Quarantine Station has the best representative collection of quarantine related buildings, equipment and human memorabilia [in the form of the inscriptions] of any Australian quarantine station. The moveable heritage associated with the Station; [and comprehensively documented by the NPWS] is of great cultural significance; particularly in situ within the Station. The Station is also significant in Australia's European and Asian history as being one of the few Australian sites taken into conservation ownership and management directly after its original function and use had been ended.

Natural heritage

Three species, one subspecies and populations of two other species are listed in schedules of the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995. These species are the Little Penguin, Eudyptula minor (Schedule 1, endangered population, Manly); Long-nosed Bandicoot, Perameles nasuta (Schedule 1, endangered population North Head); the Sunshine Wattle, Acacia terminalis ssp terminalis (Schedule 1, endangered); Camfields Stringybark, Eucalyptus camfieldii (Schedule 2, vulnerable); the Powerful Owl, Ninox strenua (Schedule 2, vulnerable); and the Red-crowned Toadlet, Pseudophryne australis (Schedule 2, vulnerable). In addition to the threatened plant species there are over 450 other species of vascular plants and ferns representing 109 plant families. This level of genetic diversity if scientifically interesting and aesthetically pleasing. The endangered population of Little Penguin is significant as the only population of this species which breeds on the mainland of NSW. The characteristics which have enabled this population to persist in one of the busiest commercial harbors in the world are interesting for scientific study. The endangered population of Long-nosed Bandicoot is also scientifically interesting as a remnant population of a species which was formerly common and widespread in the Sydney region. The few remaining trees of Camfields Stringybark are a significant component of the entire genetic resource of this vulnerable species.

The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a class of cultural or natural places/environments in New South Wales.

The Quarantine Station has the best collection of features in Australia reflecting the practice of quarantine, once operating at a number of stations around the nation. NSW had the first, and the last, operational quarantine station at North Head, and the surviving evidence at the station demonstrates many of the key milestones in quarantine development in this country. The moveable heritage of Quarantine Station is considerable in size, and has cultural significance in its own right.

 

North Head Quarantine Station Part I

 

The North Head Quarantine Station is a heritage-listed former quarantine station and associated buildings that are now a tourist attraction at North Head Scenic Drive, on the north side of Sydney Harbor at North Head, near Manly, in the Northern Beaches Council local government area of New South Wales, Australia. It is also known as North Head Quarantine Station & Reserve and Quarantine Station & Reserve. The property is owned by the Office of Environment and Heritage, an agency of the Government of New South Wales. The buildings and site were added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999. The entire 277-hectare (680-acre) North Head site, including the Quarantine Station and associated buildings and facilities, was added to the Australian National Heritage List on 12 May 2006, and now forms part of the Sydney Harbour National Park.

The complex operated as a quarantine station from 14 August 1832 to 29 February 1984. The concept behind its establishment was that, as an island-nation, the Colony of New South Wales, as it then was, was susceptible to ship-borne disease. Those who might have an infectious disease would be kept in quarantine until it was considered safe to release them. The isolation and strategic role of North Head was recognised in 1828 when the first vessel, the Bussorah Merchant, was quarantined at Spring Cove. The importance and future role of North Head was reinforced by Governor Darling's Quarantine Act of 1832, which set aside the whole of North Head for quarantine purposes in response to the 1829–51 cholera pandemic in Europe.

The station is now home to a hotel, conference centre, and restaurant complex known as Q Station, and remains part of the Sydney Harbour National Park. One of the early quarantine officers was Dr James Stuart, a keen naturalist and painter. For many years Percy Nolan, an alderman and mayor of Manly, pushed for the removal of the Quarantine Station from Manly and called for its use as public open space. Over sixty years later, this far-sighted proposal became a reality.

In the 1960s and 70s, the officer then in charge of the Quarantine Station, Herb Lavaring BEM (1917–1998), took it upon himself to preserve and compile a museum of artifacts and other items of note and significance to the station's operations, including domestic implements, medical instruments, and hand tools for tasks ranging from blacksmithing to building construction. Lavaring collected these materials over the period 1963–1975 and also commenced restoration work on the diverse range of rock carvings and headstones from the major burial grounds. The items collected by Lavaring were preserved, and many have since found their way into state and federal collections, including the National Museum in Canberra, where a muzzle-loading rifle and a set of manacles are preserved (the latter being used to ensure that no one left the station without medical clearance).

One of the most historic features of the quarantine station is the series of engravings along the escarpment adjacent to the jetty. The carvings were executed by people staying at the quarantine station, and cover an extensive period that stretched from the early nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century. Some were executed by stonemasons and sculptors and show a high degree of skill. More carvings are located at the rock formation known as Old Man's Hat.

History

The Quarantine Station was established primarily to regulate the risk of disease importation through the migration of free and convict Europeans, and the arrival of merchant shipping. There was always a close link between the requirement for quarantine and the ebb and flow of sea-borne immigration; and the growth of the Quarantine Station from the 1830s parallels the changes in immigration policy and practice. The other major influence was the imperative to limit disruption to the increasingly commercially-sensitive shipping industry.

As the dominant headland of the harbor, North Head was of importance in navigation from the time of the First Fleet. By 1809 navigational plans were showing an obelisk, located in what was to become the Quarantine Station precinct, presumed to have been used as a channel marker for vessels negotiating the Sow and Pigs Reef. A 10-metre-high (33 ft) obelisk still exists on this site, which may be the original marker, making it potentially one of the oldest European structures on Sydney Harbor.

Up until the 1830s, the majority of ships requiring quarantine were convict transports, and being under government contract, the somewhat informal proclamation of quarantine by the Governor of the day was easy to enforce. One reason for the introduction of formal statutory regulation for quarantine in NSW in 1832 was the increasing rate of free immigrant vessels entering port. In 1831 thirty four immigrant ships had arrived, and this increased to 63 in 1832. The captains of these free vessels were less ready to comply with such informal and ad hoc processes, thus a legislated requirement for all ships entering port to be screened for disease, and quarantined if necessary, was needed.

Another problem with the changing nature of the shipping entering Sydney was the increasing time constraints placed on the captains of commercial vessels, necessitating rapid turn-around in port-time wasted in port, and in quarantine, was income lost. The convict ships, under government contract, could be isolated for the period of quarantine with little added expense, but free commercial carriers sought demurrage from government for any delays it imposed. In part, the disruption to shipping caused by traditional quarantine practices led to the progressive move away from detention-based quarantine in Britain through the middle years of the 19th century.

Following passage of the Quarantine Act, 1832

When the 1832 Quarantine Act was passed in NSW, Viscount Goderich, British Secretary of State for War and Colonies, warned that quarantine was prejudicial to the trade of the kingdom and that the colony should be aware of the importance of "not aggravating by unnecessary restrictions the embarrassment inseparable from a strict quarantine on British Vessels".

The initial quarantine practice of housing the sick on board the vessel in which they arrived, was dispensed with after the experience with the long detention of the Lady Macnaghten in 1837, and the subsequent heavy demurrage claimed for that delay. After that time the sick were removed from their ship and housed ashore, while the ship was fumigated and scoured for return to the owner with the minimum delay. A consequence of this decision was the construction of permanent accommodation and stores buildings at the Quarantine Station at North Head.

The alarming experiences of quarantine in 1837 and 1838 prompted a review in the colony of the organisation and conditions aboard immigrant ships. The final report, arising as a NSW initiative, pricked the sensitivities of the British emigration officials, but nevertheless had positive outcomes. The review indicated that there was insufficient checking of the health of the emigrants before boarding; there was insufficient concern with diet during the voyage, especially for the needs of children; and that the formula of three children equaling one adult when allocating food and berth space aboard required reconsideration, as it led to excessive number of children in cramped spaces, with inadequate food. Finally it indicated that the surgeon-superintendent aboard ship required more authority to regulate and promote good health and good order among the emigrants.

The subsequent reorganization of the system resulted in interviews and medical checks on would-be emigrants before embarking them; vaccination for smallpox of all emigrants; the signing of undertakings to follow the directions of the surgeon-superintendent on voyage and better definition of his role and powers; improvements in diet and hospital accommodation aboard; and moves to prevent overcrowding.

The rate of mortality improved dramatically. In 1840 the death rate for children fell from one in ten to one in seventeen, and that for adults also fell. With the improved conditions the rate of quarantine declaration of immigrant ships also fell in 1840, from three ships out of 43 in 1839 to one out of 40 in 1840.

Immigration was reduced from 1842 due to the economic recession in the colony, as the decline in land sales had reduced the pool of funds earmarked to support the migration scheme. Immigration was at a standstill from 1842 until 1848, and only one ship was quarantined in this period. The resumption of immigration in 1847-48 led to a review of the adequacy of the Quarantine Station, but no real increase in accommodation resulted.

The arrival of the Beejapore in 1853, with over one thousand passengers, at a time when the Quarantine Station could accommodate 150 persons, triggered a new building phase. As a temporary measure, the hulk Harmony was purchased and moored in Spring Cove as a hospital ship. The Beejapore was an experiment in trying to reduce migration costs by using two-deck vessels, and the outcome was judged not to be a success. Fifty-five people died during the voyage, and a further sixty two died at the Quarantine Station, from the illnesses of measles, scarlet fever and typhus fever. The majority of the passengers and crew had to be housed in tents. The biggest impetus for change came not so much from a concern about poor housing, but rather a concern for the morals of the married women and the "200 single women let loose in the bush" that represented the undeveloped station at that time. The resulting changes to the station, besides the use of the hospital ship, included the construction of a barracks for the single women in the former Sick Ground, surrounded by a double fence with a sentry stationed between them, to prevent communication with the women. Two new buildings were built in the Healthy Ground, each to house sixty people, with verandahs for dining. The original burial ground was levelled and the grave stones removed to the new burial ground, thus further removing the burials from the view of the Healthy Ground. Eight quarters were also built for the Superintendent.

1860s to 1890s

The downturn in immigration during the economically stagnant period of the 1860s, triggered by the colonial government cancelling the regulations to provide assisted passage to migrants in 1860, limited the use of the Quarantine Station, and the willingness of the government to spend money on its upkeep. As a result of this downturn between 1860 and 1879 only 138 immigrant vessels arrived [compared with 410 between 1840 and 1859], and of these 33 required cleansing at the Quarantine Station, but few required their passengers to be landed and accommodated. In the same period 29 merchant or naval vessels were quarantined, but again mainly for the cleansing of the ship rather than the landing of diseased crews.

The run-down Quarantine Station had become unsuitable for passenger quarantine, and particularly for first and second class passenger accommodation, by the time the Hero was in need of quarantine for smallpox in 1872. The passengers were kept aboard the ship, because the station could not adequately house them. The inadequacy was further publicized during the quarantine of the Baroda in 1873, when first class passengers had to do their own washing. Well-connected passengers ensured that government attention was focused on the shortcomings of the Station accommodation. As result, a new group of First Class accommodation buildings were built in the Healthy Ground.

From 1881 to 1894, a smallpox hospital ship, Faraway, was anchored off the Quarantine Station, and before that at Sirius Cove. The ship hulk had been converted to a hospital ship by the beginning of 1877, and was already in use during January 1877. Largely as a result of poor outcomes during the 1881-1882 smallpox epidemics, in 1884, Faraway was upgraded, at Mort's Dock, to a more suitable floating hospital with two wards and 100 beds. The ship was thereafter officially known as the Floating Quarantine Hospital.

As steam navigation became more common, the costs of delays to shipping schedules by quarantine became more pressing. By the 1870s the detention of a steamer could cost from £20 to £300 per day, and shipping agents and owners could not see why Australia was not following Britain's lead in abandoning quarantine regulations. In response the Assistant Health Officer was based at Watson's Bay from 1882, to reduce delays in inspection. The Shipping Owner's Association also requested the provision of Asiatic accommodation at the Quarantine Station, a better supply of water there, the supply of a steam launch to take supplies to the quarantined ships, and printed instructions for Captains of quarantined vessels.11 The issue of abandoning quarantine was raised again in 1882, and in his report on the issue the new Health Officer, C.H. Mackellar, dismissed the suggestion and suggested a federation of quarantine efforts, to detect and cleanse infected ships as they reached the continent at places such as Thursday Island and Albany, not just as they reached Sydney. Mackellar also recommended the upgrade of the Station, with the introduction of a light tram, a new reservoir, improved cleansing facilities at the wharf, a better hospital, new accommodation, and picket fences to delineate zones in the quarantine. Most of these suggestions were acted on, and some of the buildings survive.

1900s to date

When the Commonwealth took over responsibility for the Quarantine Service after 1909, and particularly after the creation of the Department of Health in 1921, the nature of quarantine changed for merchant shipping. The Commonwealth drew together the Quarantine Stations in the various states, and tried to diversify the operations so that some ships were intercepted at out-lying ports before they reached Sydney. Albany, Melbourne and Thursday Island, in particular played a major role in this new pattern of nationwide quarantine.

The growth of the other states also meant that shipping was more evenly distributed in terms of destination than had been the case in the nineteenth century. In the period 1901 to 1940, Sydney and Melbourne had roughly similar numbers of assisted immigrants (134,864 and 115,988 respectively), and the other States had, in combination, more immigrants than either Sydney or Melbourne, totalling 174,526. By 1958 there were 39 "first ports of entry" into Australia. Thirty-two sea ports had staff capable of carrying out quarantine inspections, ten ports were "landing places" for air entry; major quarantine stations with accommodation were established at five ports, and there were three minor quarantine stations at other Ports.

The impact of improved medical science, immunization, and quarantine procedures in the twentieth century is perhaps shown most dramatically by the fact that though the post-WWII immigration was vastly more than had gone before, the number of ships or aeroplanes quarantined plummeted proportionately. Sydney received nearly 700,000 assisted immigrants between 1946 and 1980, or nearly double the number it had received between 1831 and 1940, yet only four ships was quarantined in that period and at least one of those was a tanker.

In all, between 1828 and 1984 at least 580 vessels were quarantined at the Quarantine Station. More than 13,000 people were quarantined at the station of who an estimated 572 died and were buried there.

Description

European/Asian cultural heritage

North Head is situated at the entrance to Sydney Harbour. It is a huge sandstone bluff rising 80 meters (260 ft) above sea level. At the time of European settlement North Head was linked to the mainland by only a narrow sand spit that separated the harbor from the sea. Early depictions of North Head show the dramatic upheaval of the land form that sloped from the high cliffs on the eastern seaboard back to the protected waters of the harbor to the west. Today North Head appears as a natural extension of the Manly peninsula due to the filling of medium rise building development on the low-lying land of the present-day site of Manly and the mature vegetation through that urban development. The Quarantine Station is situated on the western side of North Head, on the natural amphitheatre of land centered on Quarantine beach. The site was originally designated as all the land with a 500-meter (1,600 ft) radius of the beach. The area is fringed by a continuous tract of bushland on the north, south and eastern sides, and by the harbor on the western side.

The curtilage for this Conservation Management Plan is the western side of North Head, which has the Quarantine Station as its core. In order to allow description and analysis of this study curtilage, five precincts have been delineated within the study curtilage as follows:

The Quarantine Station Precinct;

The Park Hill Precinct;

The Spring Cove Precinct;

The Quarantine [South] Precinct; and

The Marine Precinct.

In addition, where Quarantine Station-related sites occur beyond the briefed study area (such as within the Department of Defence-owned property), these sites are detailed following the "precinctual" discussion. Each of these precincts and related Quarantine Station sites are examined below.

Within the physical overview of the buildings and site elements of the various precincts, the "description fields" have been used, as appropriate.

Historical archaeology sites

As a preamble to the precinct-specific overview, summary statements that relate to the historical inscriptions, the historical archaeology sites, and cultural landscape features for the study area have been informed by the 1985 and 1992 Conservation Plans 1 and 2, and by NPWS publications and other reports.

The historical inscriptions

Quarantine internees commenced a tradition of making inscriptions, including poems, initials, memorials and drawings, in the 1830s. This continued throughout the life of the Quarantine Station. Nineteenth and early twentieth century examples include engraved and painted inscriptions on soft sandstone faces, structures and slate storm-water drain covers. Eight hundred and fifty four examples have been recorded, though at least 1,000 other examples exist.

The inscriptions commemorate quarantine events, ships and people from the ships and deceased internees. They are located throughout the place with concentrations around the Wharf Precinct and The Old Man’s Hat. English and other European, Asian and Arabic languages were used. The most recent inscriptions are a series of written examples on internal walls of Building A20, deriving from its use as a detention centre for illegal immigrants. Most of these appear to have been written by people from the Pacific Islands, some in islander languages, many being laments on their authors' detention or abuses directed at their detainers.

Most of the inscriptions are on quarried or natural sandstone surfaces. A few occur on cement or plaster surfaces and several on built elements such as brick walls, drain covers and the Cannae Point flagstaff. Some have been re-worked in the past or are highlighted by paint. A large percentage of the inscriptions are in good condition, easily located and readily legible. Aspect, topography and environmental agents [sun, wind, and rain] affect the condition of inscriptions but the major factor is the quality of stone, i.e. the softer less silicified the sandstone the faster it deteriorates.

Seeping ground water, lichen, moss, wind and vegetation abrasion and visitor contact are additional agents of deterioration. The latter is now minimized through a policy of controlled access. The inscriptions in Building A20 have a life limited to that of the paintwork and plaster render on internal walls. A preliminary analysis of European rock inscriptions was completed in 1983, and an interim report on the conservation of rock inscriptions at the Quarantine Station was completed in March 1999, as part of a joint project between the NPWS, Sydney, North Sub-District and the NPWS Cultural Heritage Services Division.

The recommendations of the 1983 analysis were:

That the engravings at The Old Man’s Hat be recorded by a similar program (such as that at the Quarantine Station core precinct) in order to complete the record of the resource;

That, it funds become available, an indexing system of the inscriptions be devised for the complete resource; and

That further research is carried out to identify whether similar engravings have been located at other Quarantine facilities as a means of assessing the National Heritage value of this material.

The 1999 Interim Report provided specific conservation recommendations for the Wharf Area and The Old Man’s Hat inscriptions, and general conservation management recommendations for visitor management and monitoring. These recommendations are included as recommendations of this Plan.

The inscriptions are valuable and unusual graphic illustrations of historical incidents and social patterns of Quarantine Station history. They provide a very tangible and "human" link with the past for present generations and are a valuable historical and genealogical resource. Their research potential is enormous. The inscriptions record a variety of information which cannot be obtained from any other source, especially the feelings of non-English speaking migrants.

Historical archaeological sites

The 1998 North Head Quarantine Station Conservation Plan archaeological survey forms the current basis of assessment of areas within the active Quarantine Station area. That report diagrammatically indicated the historical archaeological sites and structures within or adjacent the North Head Quarantine Station core precinct.

The 1991 North Head archaeological site survey forms the basis of the assessment of areas outside the active Quarantine Station area. That report indicated the following historical archaeological sites and structures within or adjacent the North Head Quarantine Station study area:

The sandstone boundary wall leading from the North Head Road to Collins Beach;

The sandstone boundary wall south-east of the Quarantine Station (Site No. L10);

The Australian Institute of Police Management, incorporating parts of the venereal diseases hospital, the Second and Third Quarantine Cemeteries (Sites L1 and VA1); and

The Old Man’s Hat inscription area; and the Quarantine Head gun emplacement.

All of these sites and structures are related to the history of the Quarantine Station, and are significant physical evidence of the development and contraction of quarantine functions over time. However, the vast majority of buildings and archaeological sites are located within the zone of most intensive quarantine activity, which is more or less contiguous with the current NPWS managed area of the Quarantine Station. The NPWS has carried out a number of historical archaeological surveys of areas of the Quarantine Station itself, though there has as yet been no systematic survey of the entire study area. These surveys have identified a large number of former building sites and other features, and have indicated where as yet unlocated building sites might be located. The site numbers beginning with "P" relate to "Potential Sites". Forty-eight such sites had been identified by 1992. Because the Quarantine Station has experienced over 150 years of quarantine activity, there is a layering of evidence on and in the ground that reflects the slow growth of the Station, the major development and redevelopment programs, and the subsequent removals and constructions. This evidence exists as independent evidence, though it is also complementary to the documentary evidence, and in large part cannot be interpreted without reference to the latter. Because the land-use over this period has been solely devoted to quarantine, the evidence is, on the whole, only impacted by later quarantine activity, so the understanding of both the creation and the destruction of the former buildings and landscape elements contributes to the story of quarantine. Because in many cases current building a relocated on the same sites as earlier building, and as many of the surviving buildings have a long history of their own, all sub-floor deposits are considered to have archaeological potential. The changes over time reflected by the surviving buildings and features and the archaeological sites reflect various aspects of the history of quarantine, public health and society as a whole. The stories able to be illuminated by the physical evidence include, among many others: the Aboriginal occupation of North Head; the changing attitudes to quarantine and its administration; the developing medical and epidemiological knowledge; the development of Australia's immigration policies, and the experience of individuals and groups within that history; the changing attitudes to class and race; the iconography used by inmates to memorialize their experience, in the 1,000 plus inscriptions, memorials and gravestones, and Australia's experience of war, both in the diseases contracted by the military personnel buried in the Quarantine Station cemeteries, and in the direct defense of Sydney. An unusual aspect of the collection of historical archaeological evidence at the Quarantine Station is that it all contributes to the understanding of this one theme of quarantine as well as to associated broader themes, and a large amount of evidence appears to have survived. This vests the archaeological sites with a very high research potential for ongoing study of this important aspect of Australian history. In addition to the archaeological potential of buildings which have been demolished, the Quarantine Station buildings also offer the opportunity to research the archaeology of standing structures. As a tightly dated and well-documented group of buildings they have potential to provide information on changes in domestic living arrangements over the past 150 years.

Since 1992 a number of the potential sites have been confirmed by the location of above-ground evidence or the identification of evidence during works. A systematic survey and recording program is required both within and outside of the Planning Area to identify the complete historical archaeological resource. This comprehensive survey is required as much of the archaeological resource of the Quarantine Station is confined to the thin vegetated surface and the poorly consolidated sandy soils beneath. The fragility of the sites makes them prone to disturbance from excessive foot or vehicle traffic, erosion and animal burrowing. A preliminary Archaeological Management Plan has been prepared by the NPWS to accompany this Conservation Management Plan; and the policy recommendations of that Plan have been incorporated into this Conservation Management Plan.

The Quarantine Station cultural landscape

The landscape of the Quarantine Station core precinct can be properly described as a cultural landscape. It is a landscape heavily impacted by human activity, even the "natural" bushland areas are humanly modified; and the most obvious elements in the landscape are the various layers of human clearing and construction, amid large areas of bushland and interspersed with bush patches.

The main developed area consists of the Quarantine Station itself. This has three main groups of buildings: the wharf and foreshore buildings at Quarantine Beach, the hospital group, and the buildings on the upper grassy slopes, with grassy cleared areas around these groups, delineated by bushland remnants and regrowth. This creates a semi-rural, village-like atmosphere which is uncommon in the otherwise closely developed Sydney metropolitan area. The cultural landscape has heritage values in its own right, as a document demonstrating the planning and construction of the station over its entire life. The landscape also has a strong interpretative value.

The isolation of the Station, the long views out to other parts of the harbor, the contrast between manicured grassy areas and surrounding bush, which was alien to most of the inmates, and the strict classification of occupation areas within the Station, combine to trigger the historical imagination and allow the visitor to empathize with those quarantined here.

The landscape is also visually important not only to visitors to the Quarantine Station but also to viewers from other headlands, suburbs or on the harbor. Many distinctive or prominent landscape elements contribute to the multiple layering of human experience on the landscape.

A strong element in the cultural landscape is the conscious and enforced "classification" of the land, based on health issues, class and race. This includes the isolation of the hospital, seen but not approached from many parts of the Station; the wharf and "disinfection" area, which stood as a barrier between the inmates and the main line of escape, and the administration area, which "guarded" the land route out; the lateral separation of the first, second and third class passengers, with the administration area interposed between third class and the rest, imposing class distinctions in the landscape; and the lateral and elevational separation of the Asian accommodation, away from first and second class, and below third class, imposing a racial layer on top of the class one. The following discussion of the Quarantine Station cultural landscape refers specifically to the cultural landscape elements which provide the meaning and understanding of how these landscapes worked historically. These elements include the Quarantine Station cemeteries; monuments; fences and walls; boundary markers and walls; obelisks and cairns; and of course tracks, paths and roads.