A Pawn Ticket

The Statue of Liberty during a power failure in 1942.

1943-44, this is Camp Commandant AmonGoeth - made infamous in the movie Schindler's List - standing on his balcony overlooking Plaszowlabor camp in Poland.

In 1933. Hitler has ambitious plans to connect all major German cities with highways. This ceremony kicked off construction at Frankfurt-am-Maine - Darmstadt/Mannheim highway.

In 1937, Amelia Earhart receives what turned out to be her last haircut.

The clue that broke the murder case of William Salsbury was initially unrelated to the original crime.

Someone reported to the police the theft of clothing from a tenant at a downtown rooming house and when the police arrested a suspect, a pawn ticket was found in his pocket.

Since their homicide investigation was at a standstill, Detectives Shearer and Grant were handed the pawn ticket and asked to complete the case. At the pawnbrokers, they located the stolen clothing and looked it over.

The detectives noticed a small piece of material seemed to have been torn from the leg of one of the pairs of trousers. The two men hurried back to the office to retrieve the piece of cloth found near the murder scene and compare it to the hole in the trousers. It was a perfect match.

The detectives then interviewed the man in custody who initially denied knowledge of the ticket, claiming he found it on the street. However, when told of the possible link with the murder of Salsbury, he changed his story. 

The RMS Olympic, the Titanic's sister, in wartime camouflage in 1915.

Mugshot of the legendary Tokyo Rose in 1946

Yale 1966. George W. Bush plays rugby.

1923. Harry Houdini exposes "spirit trickery".

The man in custody told the police he hadn't stolen the clothing but received it from a man named "Frenchie" Paulson. He knew the items were stolen some weeks before and Frenchie wore some of the clothes for some time.

The detectives persisted and the prisoner admitted Paulson told him that he and another man shot Salsbury and he tore his pants while running away. The man then named the others who were present when Paulson told him this.

The word then went out for the 'others' to be picked up and brought in for questioning. They confirmed hearing Paulson brag about the murder and gave the name of the second suspect. This man went under the names of Allan Robinson, Joe Bedoveski or Joe Williamson. 

This is the Washington-Hoover airport, demolished in 1941. The Pentagon is here now.

There are German POWs in 1945. They are weeping and sitting in disgust as they watch footage shot at a German concentration camp.

The Golden Gate Bridge around 1935.

Arnold Schwarzenegger showing off for some ladies in the 1970s.

Alexander 'Frenchie' Paulson was arrested on June 5 and he quickly confessed when confronted with the evidence. Paulson stated Salsbury had been picked at random and was ordered, at gun point, to turn over his wallet. Salsbury resisted, attacking them with his umbrella. According to Paulson, Robinson had then shot the man before the two would-be thieves ran off empty handed.

The search for Allan Robinson intensified and he was found. Right where he should be, in Oakalla Prison where he was serving a four-month sentence for Vagrancy. Robinson was brought to Vancouver and charged along with Paulson, with the murder of William Salsbury.

Paulson and Robinson were found guilty on October 27, 1921, and Mr. Justice Gregory of the Assize Court sentenced the two men to be hanged in January of the following year.

There was a technicality though and a new trial was ordered. The death penalty was confirmed and the execution was set for July 28, 1922. According to the press, as they walked to the scaffold, Robinson was 'jaunty' and Paulson 'dour and sullen'. The sentences were carried out after Robinson made a brief speech where he advised the witnesses that 'crime didn't pay'.

In 1864, Union prisoners receive rations at Fort Sumter.

Construction of the Hoover Dam in 1934.

Dr. WerhnervonBraun and Walt Disney in 1954

This is a permanent stable cavity caused by the detonation of an underground nuclear test in 1961.

So the Salsbury murder case was solved and the culprits punished. Detectives Shearer and Grant were promoted to Sergeants in the Criminal Investigation Department for their work in solving the case. These men realized that they were lucky and fortunately, they had recognized their luck and acted on it.

Isn't that the way sometimes though? We saw it in the murder of the night watchman where an officer found discarded clothing miles away from the crime scene that led to the criminals. And look at the cases where someone is stopped for a traffic violation and the police end up arresting a serial killer!

Thanks goes to my mother and her friend Wes for the old photos and to Joe Swan and his book POLICEBEAT  for the information.

Are you on Facebook? Then get ready to partay! I am having a release party for my book On The Right Side, My Story of Survival and Success on March 5 from 4 to 6 pm PST. Here's the link and I hope to see you there.

I hope you find the beauty around you.

1969 photo of Vladimir Putin and his childhood friends. 

Future presidents Bill Clinton and George Bush with Governor George Wallace at a BBQ in 1983.

Survivors of the Titanic being taken aboard the Caparthia in 1912.

And this is my favourite. Anastasia shares a smoke with her father Tsar Nicholas II. This photo was taken in 1916, two years before their execution.

Karen Magill, Vancouver, CPR, History, William Salsbury,Georgia Street, Vancouver Rowing Club, pioneer, rain, umbrella, police