Old Sydney razor gangs come to life

By Megan Palin

The 1920s and 30s saw some of Australia’s most terrifying criminals wage war with razor and gun. Surry Hills and Kings Cross were the haunts of razor gangs who dominated the Sydney crime scene by controlling local sly grog, prostitution and crime rings. Darlinghurst was at the centre of the battles and a scene of violent gang warfare ‘ playing host to more than 300 slashings and earning the nickname ‘Razorhurst’.
To mark this year’s Heritage Festival, Kings Cross Library is hosting the Razorhurst exhibition, showcasing photographs, news items and writing from the so-called ‘Razor period’.
The exhibition features a collection of confiscated weapons from the era when East Sydney gangs regularly fought over prostitutes, territory, drugs and alcohol.
Author of the award-winning book Razor and guest speaker at the exhibition, Larry Writer, says it’s important for people to know that Sydney is not just the civilised and beautiful place people see when they walk out their front doors.
‘Like all great cities in the world, Sydney has a history that is exciting, vibrant and violent. For a time in the century just past, [East Sydney] was one of the most dangerous areas in Australia,’ Writer says.
Razors were the weapon of choice and reflected laws imposing severe penalties for carrying concealed firearms, as well as their capacity to inflict disfiguring scars.
‘What the criminals did instead of carrying firearms was to arm themselves with a razor ‘ a shaving cut-throat razor with a handle,’ Writer says. ‘If they were stopped by the police they would say ‘Oh no, it’s not a weapon, I’m just going home to have a shave’.
‘[Razors] became symbolic of criminals of the time,’ Writer says.
At the peak of the violence in 1928, The Truth Newspaper blacklisted the area, writing: ‘This is the hour of the glittering blade and crimes of violence ‘ particularly razor slicing ‘ are part of the daily increasing carnival of bloodletting. It is no longer possible for decent citizens to walk the streets of Sydney without fear of sudden and terrible attack.’
Two of the major razor gangs were headed by women ‘ madams Kate Leigh and Tilly Devine. It was their henchmen that extorted, bashed and killed with impunity.
‘These women were two of the most powerful criminals in Sydney at the time,’ Writer says.
The Razorhurst exhibition runs until April 30 during library hours at Kings Cross Library, 50 – 52 Darlinghurst Rd, Kings Cross. Entry is free.