Wednesday, August 14, 2024

Rats in Hobart

In 1956, Hobart was overrun with rats.

This letter, printed in the Gazette of May 17, 1956, took a humorous approach to the problem.

2024-08-14. 1956-05-17 Gazette, Letter Box
(Click on image to enlarge)

But the rats proved to be man-eaters:

2024-08-14. 1956-06-14 Gazette, Rat Attacks Man
Hobart Gazette, 14 June 1956.
(Click on image to enlarge)


Local citizens were already organizing to fight back, as the Lion's Club announced "D-Day On Rats":

2024-08-14. 1956-06-14 Gazette, D-Day For Rats
Hobart Gazette, 14 June 1956.
(Click on image to enlarge)


The June 21 issue of the Gazette not only gave the date and other details for rat D-Day, but also, in another article, offered an explanation for the infestation:

2024-08-14. 1956-06-21 Gazette, Drive on Rats, New Town Dump
Hobart Gazette, 14 June 1956.
(Click on image to enlarge)


As you may know, the city dump mentioned in the article was at the northern end of downtown, approximately where the soccer field is now.

"D-Day On Rats" didn't completely solve the problem, and the Rotarians vowed to fight on:

2024-08-14. 1956-07-12 Gazette, Rotarians To Continue Drive On Rats
Hobart Gazette, 12 July 1956.
(Click on image to enlarge)

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