Bondi History | “Nosey Bob” the Hangman of Ben Buckler
Bondi History | “Nosey Bob” the Hangman of Ben Buckler
“Nosey Bob” was born Robert Howard in Norwich, England in 1832 and migrated to Australia in 1861. He worked as a cabman in Sydney and was very successful; owning his own hansom having built a profitable clientele among the wealthy residents of Darling Point. His good looks and height undoubtedly aided his popularity. Tragedy struck during the height of Robert’s popularity. He was kicked in the face by a young horse and his nose was irreparably smashed, creating the impression that he had no nose at all.
In keeping with the cruelty of those times, he was given the ironic nickname, Nosey Bob. Following his accident, Howard’s old clientèle began avoiding him and his business soon began to fall apart. With his career in pieces, he was forced to look elsewhere for work. However, because of his startling appearance, finding work was not easy. Unemployed, shunned by society and out of options, Robert decided to accept the unwanted post of State hangman.
As a hangman, Howard performed 66 executions at Darlinghurst Jail, 7 at Old Dubbo Jail and acted as “guest hangman” in other states and even in New Zealand. Despite his success as a hangman, Howard continued to struggle socially. He not only faced abuse and insult due to his disfigurement, he was now also loathed as a hangman. He retired from his hangman career of 30 years in 1904, died in 1906 and is buried in Waverley Cemetery.
The following poem appeared in Truth after Nosey Bob’s death:
“The Angel of Death spread his wings on the blast, And breathed on the face of the foe as he pass’d; Then the eyes of the sleeper closed up on his “nob,” And out went the Light of “Nosey Bob!”
Robert lived in a tiny timber cottage located at 103 Brighton Boulevard. It was one of the first cottages built at Bondi Beach, on (then lonely) Ben Buckler Point. Today there’s a small block of flats on that site … pictured above.
His hobby was shark hunting. He would set bait, and then use his horse to assist him in pulling the shark out of the water (Truth, 15 January 1899). He had a large collection of shark jaws to show for this.
He also liked a drink, but due to his disfigurement, he didn’t like to go out in public or visit pubs. So, he had another horse that he trained to walk by itself around the beach to Dunlop’s Cliff Hotel House on the site of the present Astra Hotel. When the horse arrived the publican would fill a sealed saddle bag with beer and send it back home to Nosey Bob.
So lived Nosey Bob, the Hangman of Ben Buckler.
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Archival photos courtesy Waverley Library Local History Image Collection
