Grumwald — lived and died in extreme poverty
Gotlieb Grumwald 1881? 1885?-1939
Gotlieb Grumwald was often in court on charges of nonpayment, so money was often an issue.
The newspaper heading Alleged Counterfeiting had the ring of a big-time crime racket, here in Hamilton. The reality was somewhat different: yes, it was counterfeiting, but not of bank notes, just sixpenny and threepenny pieces.
This was not a criminal trying to make a fortune but an unemployed man’s desperate attempt to provide food for his family during the Depression.
Hunger was cited as a motive, but nonetheless, Gotlieb Grumwald was arrested and brought before the Hamilton Police Court on October 15, 1933 charged with uttering (passing as payment) 18 sixpenny pieces and 36 threepenny pieces, and with being in possession of counterfeit coins – five sixpenny and 20 threepenny pieces.
Grumwald not only admitted the charge, he described his method.
He was a plumber with a repair shop in Grey St, Hamilton East, which is where he started making the coins.
He made a plaster of paris mould from a genuine coin and poured molten solder into the mould.
At the trial in the Magistrate’s Court, two shop assistants and a baker testified that the Grumwald children had paid for goods (butter, sugar and bread) with coins later found to be counterfeit.
Detective-Sergeant Thompson gave witness that Grumwald, his wife and their six children had been living in extreme poverty.
There was no decent furniture in the house and Grumwald had been sleeping on sacks beneath the house.
Thompson felt that Grumwald was “somewhat eccentric”, but did not impress him as being a shrewd and clever criminal. Grumwald’s solicitor described him as “subnormal”.
At the Supreme Court the judge sentenced Grumwald to two years reformative detention including six months hard labour.
The Police Gazette described him as being born in 1885, 5ft 8in tall, fresh complexion, brown hair going bald, with a medium nose. Grumwald was released on licence in June 1934.
Grumwald was skilled and inventive rather than “sub-normal”.
In 1912 he applied for a patent for an acetylene gas generator.
A lengthy advertisement, in the Evening Post on November 6 1913, describes the generator as being simple, easy to clean and “if your light goes out . . . you can charge this generator by simply dropping a lump of carbide into the water”.
There were testimonials from shop owners in Shannon (where he lived) and Martinborough.
His “Triumph” Acetylene gas soldering and heating plant was also given a patent; the advertisement promoted “that for perfect soldering “Galvino” soldering fluid makes soldering a pleasure”.
Perhaps it was Galvino that Grumwald used to make the coins.
Grumwald was married twice – first to Maria, who died in 1918 after giving birth to their second daughter, and to Christina Shramka in 1921, with whom it seems he had four daughters and a son. In 1923 three of his daughters were living in the Wanganui Receiving Home. Grumwald was ordered to pay maintenance to support them – ten shillings a week for the first child and five shillings per week for the other two.
He failed to pay, and in August 1924 he was sentenced to 14 days’ imprisonment with hard labour, “the sentence to be suspended so long as the orders are complied with and 5s per week paid off arrears”.
Again in 1925 he was charged with being £47 in arrears and again faced a prison term with the same proviso.
He was often in court on charges of non-payment, so money was often an issue. In 1928 Grumwald was in Shannon, advertising as “plumber, engineer and gasfitter”, in 1931 they were in Gisborne and in Hamilton in 1932, but unable to make a living.
Gotlieb Grumwald died in 1939 and was buried in Hamilton East Cemetery, in the corner of CC Block, the area set aside for paupers.
By then Christina was living in Wellington, her home town.
■ Thanks to Hamilton Libraries Heritage team for looking up rolls and directories.