Adelaide City Morgue 1948/49
...The body of another man named Mr. George Webb, a well-respected and loved member of the Norwood Football Club, was taken to the Adelaide City Morgue on Monday 13th June 1949 where Paul Lawson was working on the completion of the bust of the Somerton Man...
Granted, the Adelaide City Morgue was not an imposing structure. It was dark, dingy, and had an aroma all of its own. But what the happenings within its walls during June of 1949, have had long-term implications.
In June 1948, this was where Paul Lawson, the taxidermist from Adelaide Museum had set up the workspace needed to create the plaster bust of the Somerton Man.
Below is a PDF document of Paul Lawson's Diary, with the relevant pages from the diary, marked up and highlighted. To my knowledge, this is the first time that so much of the diary has been published. Please wait a few moments for the PDF below to download.
In my discussions with Paul Lawson, we spoke about the process of the creation of the bust. Paul told me clearly that he had actually used the Police post-autopsy Photographs to model the face and that modeling took place after the mold had been cast and the core bust revealed. Logically it had to happen in that sequence. From the diary, we know that the mold was removed on Friday 10th June. The next entry we have in the diary was the 15th of June when the task was 'finishing off' the cast. Paul told me that the days in between were spent modeling the facial features and hair of the man.
And here's a small article on the right from a Riverland Newspaper announcing the passing of a firm Riverland Favourite:
In June 1948, this was where Paul Lawson, the taxidermist from Adelaide Museum had set up the workspace needed to create the plaster bust of the Somerton Man.
THE PAUL LAWSON DIARY
According to his Diary, Paul had worked assiduously on his task for most of the week ending June 10th. through to the 17th of June 1949.Below is a PDF document of Paul Lawson's Diary, with the relevant pages from the diary, marked up and highlighted. To my knowledge, this is the first time that so much of the diary has been published. Please wait a few moments for the PDF below to download.
TRANSCRIPT ADDED January 6th, 2023:
As per a request, here's the typed transcript of the Lawson Diary contents:JUNE 1st: Writing statement for Director on handling of Dromicia
Research open colour of fish
JUNE 2nd.
Viewing Somerton Mystery body at West terrace with Detectives
Planning above
JUNE 3rd
Preparing for Police job
Kosters pottery for rewt clay
JUNE 4th
Sat
JUNE 5th
Sun
JUNE 6th
Final preparations for Police job
JUNE 7th Tuesday
Working at Morgue with Police
On the molding of bust of
Somerton Mystery Man
(8 scribbled over)
JUNE 8th.
Police job
Interview with detectives (Brown + 1)
Ring from Constable Dinham re disposal
of orginal body
Casting of ears 7 piecing together of mold
6.30 - 9.30 pm
Ears (underlined) Mold from flesh - plaster
Plaster - Vinghold
Vinnmold - wax dental
Wax - Finished head
(10 scribbled out),
9
9
Piecing together mold
Filling mold with plaster
Breaking away plaster mold.
10
Breaking away plaster mold
(Det brown + 1)
(O'K ing job)
Page initialed HM HALE?
THERE'S NOW A BREAK FROM THE 10th June to 15th June
JUNE 15th
Detective Brown, Noblett, Detective Sgt Leane
Finishing off cast of Somerton Man
Dr. Cleland, inspected cast
Mr. NBT inspected cast
JUNE 16th
Moving room fittings & tools for
installation of new bench
Handing over of cast to PC Horsnell
and photographing same at Police HQ
JUNE 17th
1010 am to 11 am Coroners court
re Somerton body
Moving room furniture for carpenters
Making flexible mold of fossil
Canberra number 192 or 275 (Telephone numbers)
JUNE 18th
illegible..erasures Sat
JUNE 21st
Interviewing rep at Bickfords re PVA
Casting Canberra fossil
Receiving bust cast of Somerton body
from Det Sgt Leane
Wriring article for AGMA
JUNE 22nd
Packing fish in tin for Sydney
FH Fauldings for color indicator
Discussion with Director re dupliucate
casts of Somerton body
AGMA data
Trial cast of wood rings (ex Glenelg)
GAP HERE UNTIL JULY 25th
Painting fish and fitting fins to
same (Acrylic)
JULY 26th
Discussion with NBT re fish for case
Casting SE Drainage map
( Det Sgt Leane with mrs Thompson to view
bust cast of Somerton body)
Please ask if you would like a copy of this PDF and I can give you access.
Note the dates, they are very important as you will read further down this page:
I have marked up within pages those relevant lines and one has a question mark alongside it.
You will note that there are pages missing that would cover the period from Monday 13th June to Wednesday 15th June 1949. I do not know what happened to those pages but I think I may know why.
MONDAY 13th JUNE 1949
The modeling was done because the condition of the face of the man's body had deteriorated as is evidenced by the pre-bust photograph on the right:
THE ADELAIDE OVAL GATES 13th JUNE1949
Whilst Paul Lawson, assisted by his companions, busied himself with the now urgent task of modeling the face on the bust to match that on the Police post autopsy photographs, a sad scene had developed at the gates of the Adelaide Oval. An 83-year-old gentleman had collapsed and died there. He was waiting to attend the match between Norwood FC and West Adelaide.
This was no ordinary man, he was an ex-star player for the Norwood Australian Rules Football Club, affectionately and proudly known as the Redlegs. Not only was he an ex-player, but he also became the trainer and the coach of that amazing team. A man revered and respected by all. He went by the name of 'Geordie' but his real name wasn't that, it was George Webb.
At first glance, it seemed to me when looking at the photograph above, that there is a familial resemblance between Geordie and the young Carl Webb but after testing it using a Tier 1 face comparison tool, there is not a match.
Sadly, it was George Webb's body that arrived at the Adelaide City Morgue that Monday 13th JUNE 1949, the place where Paul Lawson and his Police assistants were hard at work racing to meet a deadline ahead of the Coroners Court hearing about the man found dead on Somerton Beach months previously on December 1st, 1948.
Link:
"George Webb collapsed and died when about to enter
Adelaide Oval to see Norwood play West Adelaide on
Monday, 13th June 1949. He was 83 years of age when
he died and lived at Salop St, Beulah Park."
And another small acknowledgment posted by relatives in Adelaide:
Was Geordie Webb in any way related to the Webb Family of Springvale? That research is currently underway.
Was George Webb in any way involved in the Somerton Man case? Most definitely not!
Was there cross-contamination of DNA containing hair from the body of Geordie Webb to the still-wet bust being worked on in the confines of the 'rank' Adelaide City Morgue? It would certainly be possible.
Why were the pages covering the first half of the week of 13th June, missing from Paul's Diary?
By way of background for researchers, I found the name 'GEORGE WEBB' in the Police Reports to the Coroner dated 1949 which I posted in the article previous to this one. Here's the link:
https://tamamshud.blogspot.com/2022/12/somerton-man-mystery-status-2-downloads.html
https://tamamshud.blogspot.com/2022/12/somerton-man-mystery-status-2-downloads.html
Now awaiting the result of the genealogy research.
For the record, I am in touch with Norwood FC and they are aware of this story.
Tags
adelaide
Carl Webb
Full Lawson Diary
George Webb
Missing Diary Pages. Somerton Man Mystery
West Terrace Morgue. Paul Lawson
What's amazed me is that we have a the body of a man called Webb actually arriving in the morgue whilst the plaster bust is being made and the DNA team didn't even mention it??
ReplyDeleteVery interesting Gordon. Re your ear work, if you examine the ORIGINAL photos of SM you will discover that SM's ear lobes were not actually attached, so too Carl Halban's.
ReplyDeleteIt is a bit concerning. You would think that the researcher would have made every effort to find anything that might have an effect on the DNA that was extracted. But, that's not the case and by default it casts doubt on the other methodologies employed.
ReplyDeleteThe finding of the fact of George Webb being in the Morgue at the same time as the bust was being created by Paul Lawson raises 2 questions.
ReplyDeleteOne is there any ancestry link between George Webb and the Victorian Webb family?
Two if Professor Abbott and his team failed to investigate the happenings at the morgue nor the list of deceased and live persons who were present in the morgue during that time, what else didn't they think to do? There is a list and its a lengthy one.
"The taxidermist had to imagine what the animal looked like when they were rebuilding it, which has led to a lot of mistakes," Dr Ashby said. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-05/poor-taxidermy-making-fattypuses-out-of-australian-animals/101827332
ReplyDeleteOver the weekend I received a message from Chris in Adelaide, he has found details of George Webb's wife and substantiated it. Will be posting on that shortly.
ReplyDeleteRE GEORGE WEBB. PART 1.
ReplyDeleteFor the Ancestry Teams:
Posted with thanks to CeeBee, this is the information provided by him which he in turn had received from a Melbourne contact. I passed this information on to Peter Davidson around the 10th January which I understand helped him to complete the Webb Family tree.
John Webb and Margaret (nee Crerar) – parents of George Webb – 9 children
John Webb b 16/6/1864 [not married in SA no death in SA] [Port Adelaide News 25/6/1926 -
of Western Australia] [couldn’t see an obvious match in WA]
Mark Webb b 14/8/1866 [no ‘Mark’ for marriage or death in SA]
o Trove 30/9/1884 – theatre performance by Master Mark Webb
o Trove 18/8/1885, 21/7/1900 x few articles – dramatic performance at Port Adelaide
inc Mr Mark Webb
o Port Adelaide News 25/6/1926 – of Footscray Victoria
o ?grave - Mark Webb d 22/9/42 aged 76 (interred Footscray) married to Josephine,
Kid: Stanley d 5/4/44 aged 53
?Mark Webb married Mary Josephine (nee Sharpe) 1889 Victoria
?ER 1919, 24, 31 – Mark carpenter and Josephine Mary Webb – 112 Ballarat
Rd Footscray – also in ER 1919 at this address, John Stanley Broster,
engineer
?John Stanley Broster Webb – ER 31 – 122 Droop St Footscray
engineer (with Narvely Elizabeth hd). ER 34 – same address – just
him
RE GEORGE WEBB PART 2.
ReplyDeleteGeorge Webb b 9/8/1868 d 15/6/49 married Marian Louisa (nee Wicker) 2/6/00 Port Adel
[no kids]
Frederick Luke Webb b 4/12/1870 Glanville [no marriage, death in SA] [Port Adelaide News
25/6/1926 – died in South Africa]
Elizabeth Ann (?Annie) Webb b 5/3/1873 d 23/7/1901 (Glanville, interred Cheltenham, not
married)
Edith Mary Webb b 20/3/1877 [Ancestry says marries John Weir but no marriage reg on
Genealogy – however we know someone’s daughter marries a Clouston, so prob correct] If
Edith Mary Weir d 15/1/55 Semaphore
o John (Jack) Weir b 17/8/1912 Semaphore [grave says 28/8/12] d 28/5/69 (interred
Centennial Park) marries Dulcie Pearl (nee Williams) engage adv 2/4/41 [per gen]
‘A son 12/3/44 Epworth Vic’
John Weir [per parent’s grave] [1. gen ?John Leslie Weir married to Diane
(nee Church) 20/12/68 St Margarets Woodville – John Leslie Weir of 34
Lowan Ave Glenalta clerk and Diane wife. Purch 29/3/71. Still owned 1995 –
Kids: Todd Adam b adv 15/3/73, Adam Patrick b adv 12/1/76, Jennifer Lucy b
10/11/81] [2. gen ?John Weir married Maxine (nee May) 10/2/72 St Peters
Ch Glenelg – John Bruce Weir bank officer of 24 Collingwood Ave Flinders
Park bank office and Maxine wife. Purch 23/3/72. Sold 27/8/76 – No birth
notices]]
Kym Weir [per parent’s grave] [Gen - no births, marriages] [?Kym Weir –
Managing Director at Rundle Capital Partners on LinkedIn, Partner PwC
1980-92] [1. Gen ?Kym & Helen (nee Dalwood) – kids Georgia Jane b
7/11/78, Sam Albert b adv 6/9/74] [2. Gen ?Kym Albert & Sandra Fay (nee
Merriman) – kids Sophie Eliza b 23/11/93, Jack Walter b 19/5/95] [Kym
Albert Weir of 6 Dulcie St Dulwich chartered accountant and Helen Jane wife
(purch 28/8/72. Sold 15/12/80)] [looks like it’s the same Kym, with two
different wives]
o Gwendoline [Gwendolene] Edith Weir b 9/10/1907 Semaphore d 24/8/72 (interred
Cheltenham) married Allen [Allan] Hervey Clouston 5/3/29 d 26/6/72
1941, 43, 46 Semaphore
Bruce Hervey Clouston [per anc 1929-1971, not on gen but at same address
as Allen in AL71] [found no marriage, death on gen] d 31/8/71 interred
Cheltenham (per Australian cemeteries index)
B 25/3/44 (to AH) a daughter at Port Lincoln hospital [? Executor of Gwen’s
estate per CT 2651/13 is Elizabeth Mary Mathison- ?Elizabeth Mary
Clouston marries a Mathison – lots of Sth East Mathison’s and her address
when executor of Gwen’s estate was Murray Bridge] [gen - not in marriages]
?Ian Alexander b 12/8/69 – parents Elizabeth & Roger
Anne Marie Clouston b 17/8/46 (to AH) at Calvary [trove, but not in gen]
married George Leonard McHugh 24/9/66
Justin Leslie McHugh b adv 15/5/74
Kathryn Louise McHugh b adv 20/9/74 [gen - one of these dates is
wrong] [?’Katie’ McHugh married Neil Harvey11/7/98 Strathalbyn]
o Jean Margaret Weir (b 8/12/1908 Semaphore d 4/1/89 interred Enfield) married
Percival Garnet Duncanson (d 30/8/89 aged 81) 3/3/34
Margaret Jean Duncanson b adv 24/8/46 [gen]
? [anc] Keith Garnet Duncanson b 31/3/34 Woodville d 29/1/00 Woodville
[Anc says their son but not on Gen nor findagrave nor trove nor aust
cemeteries index] marries Anne Elaine (nee Bourne) [10 Boord St
Semaphore – 12/10/56 Keith Garnet Duncanson of 9 Ellen St Semaphore
electrical fitter and Anne Elaine wife. Still owned 1989]
Phillip Craig Duncanson b adv 29/9/65
Judith Anne Duncanson b 22/11/59 [?’Judi’ married Wayne Hunt
8/1/83. Kid: Lachlan William Hunt b 11/2/96 Yorketown, sibling for
Patrick
George Webb’s Football History
http://www.redlegsmuseum.com.au/ON_FIELD/PLAYERS/WEBBGeorge.aspx
George Webb’s Grave
George is buried alongside his wife Marian Louise (or Louisa) Webb, at the West Terrace Cemetery in central Adelaide.
Their grave is located at Road 2, Path 31, Aspect W, Site number 14.
Driving west away from West Terrace, enter path 31 on your left. The grave is about 30m down the path on the right hand side as you walk south.
The headstone is difficult to read, particularly given the grave is shaded by a large tree
GEORGE WEBB PART 3.
ReplyDeleteFinal note from CeeBee dated January 9th 2023:
Carl Webb’s Family Tree
The family tree of Carl Webb shows him as being the son of Richard August Webb and Eliza Amelia
Morris Webb (nee Grace). Carl was the youngest of six siblings, including Richard Russell Webb,
Freda Grace Webb, Gladys May Webb, Doris Maud Webb, and Roy Webb.
Carl’s sister Freda was married to Thomas G Keane, to whom nametags have been linked for clothes attributed to the Somerton Man.
Richard emigrated from Hamburg, Germany. His father was Johan F Weber (NOT Webb), suggesting that Richard changed his name from Weber to the more English sounding name of Webb. The family tree can be seen in full here:
https://www.ancestry.com.au/family-tree/tree/184165889/family/familyview?cfpid=372402315112
A tree search for the names “George Webb” and “Marian Webb” brought no results.
Conclusion
Thus far, there does NOT appear to be a familial link between George Webb and Carl Webb.
Carl Webb may, or may NOT, be the Somerton Man.
The final movements and resting place of Carl Webb have not been confirmed, nor has the identity of the Somerton Man until such time as the SA Coroner/SA Police have completed their own enquiries.
GEORGE WEBB PART 4.
ReplyDeleteAn addendum. The original Melbourne based source of the George Webb work specifically pointed out that this work was as yet incomplete and needed further verification.
RE GEORGE WEBB. Whilst the research regarding George will continue. The discovery and subsequent follow up work and input courtesy of Cee Bee in Adelaide has already proven to be of great value.
ReplyDeleteIt highlights the issue of the research supposedly carried out by others which didn't bother to look at the matter of other occupants of the morgue at the time. Most especially given that we have another man named Webb on the list. Credibility is key as is attention to detail. We do not know at this stage whether there is more to come regarding this aspect but it will be pursued.