Robert Herman Wallath (1874–1960) was a New Zealand highwayman, carpenter and farmer.

Biography

Born

at sea The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...

in 1874 he was the son of a respected family of German immigrants to

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. Th ...

. Wallath's crime spree went on for 15 months until he was overpowered when holding up a hotel. There was general astonishment when it was discovered who the perpetrator was. Wallath was sent to

Mount Eden Prison Mount Eden Prisons consists of two separate facilities in the Auckland, New Zealand suburb of Mount Eden — the Mount Eden Prison and the Mount Eden Corrections Facility. History The original Mount Eden prison was a military stockade built ...

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about I ...

for eight years, but because of support from New Plymouth people, he was released after four and a half years in 1898. He returned to New Plymouth and married Ada Clara West in June 1901, with whom he had four children (one of whom was adopted), and they had an exemplary lifestyle and were respected members of the community. In 1959, Wallath wrote a book about his teenage struggle with good and evil, ''A highwayman with a mission'' under the pseudonym Georgie. He died on 24 July 1960, and was survived by his wife by two years.

Legacy

Wallath Road in New Plymouth commemorates the Wallath family. In 1893 a book ''The New Plymouth highwayman: his history, plucky capture, and examination in the police court'' was published. A song about him was written and performed by Chris Priestley and The Unsung Heroes. In 2024, there was an episode of the

Radio New Zealand Radio New Zealand ( mi, Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa), commonly known as Radio NZ or simply RNZ, is a New Zealand public-service radio broadcaster and Crown entity that was established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news and cu ...

podcast ''Black Sheep'' about Wallath.

References

1874 births 1960 deaths 19th-century New Zealand farmers New Zealand woodworkers New Zealand criminals Place of birth missing Place of death missing Highwaymen People born at sea 20th-century New Zealand farmers People from New Plymouth {{NewZealand-bio-stub