Travelling trunk with insert and straps used by James Pitkeathly and family while travelling from Malaya to Australia, 1930

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Type: Trunks
Place: Malaysia
Materials: Fibreboard, Ink, Leather, Metal - non specific, Paper, Textile - non specific, Wood
Collection: James Pitkeathly collection no. 1
Accession number: 2013.0022.0027

Description

A rectangular brown leather travelling trunk with a hinged lid, a removable storage tray insert, and two removable leather fastening straps. The exterior of the trunk has two wooden bars attached to the lid, a leather handle on one side, and two flaps of leather covering broken and missing metal clasps at the front. The exterior surfaces have a number of stickers applied which are worn and peeling, relating to a journey to 'CALEDONIA / VIA WEST MAITLAND...'. The interior of the trunk is lined with a blue, pink and cream checked fabric, it features fabric storage pockets under the lid, and has three leather straps near the base and four metal tray supports at the sides. A maker's label on the underside of the lid features an image of a ship, and the text 'PIK AH CO., LTD. / TRADE MARK / BEST MAKERS OF LEATHER GOODS.'. The removable storage tray insert has four internal partitioned areas, and is made of timber and composite board covered with fabric. A metal pull ring is attached to one short interior face. There are two types of fabric covering used, one has a pink and cream pattern, and the other has the same blue, pink and cream checked pattern used in the trunk lining. The fabric covering is worn, and is separating from the wooden base in some areas. The two removable brown leather straps have a join part way along, a metal buckle at one end, and six fastening holes at the other.

Trunk has various labels (now peeling) with Pitkeathly family's details including the ship's name and their origin and destination. It was used by James and his wife Betty (and their baby Joyce) in 1930 while travelling from Malaya to Australia.

About the collection

This collection consists of approximately 58 items relating to the life of James Pitkeathly (1895 - 1997), a Scottish migrant who worked as a mine manager and surveyor in the Hunter Valley, central Queensland and South East Asia. Pitkeathly also served in the Australian Infantry Force on the Western Front from 1916 - 1919. When James Pitkeathly migrated to Australia the 'White Australia Policy' had been in place for over a decade. Potential British migrants were encouraged to come to Australia and offered assisted passages to do so. Pitkeathly brought with him much sought after coal mining skills and throughout his career worked in the Hunter Valley, New South Wales and Bowen Basin, Queensland, two regions significant in the expansion of Australia's coal mining industry. During the 1920s Pitkeathly was employed by the Malayan Collieries Ltd and he worked in Borneo and British Malaya. This collection offers insight into the economic significance of the Australian coal industry and the development of major towns such as Newcastle as well as the experiences of a skilled Australian working and living in South East Asia. This collection also explores the life of Australian soldier embroiled in trench warfare on the Western Front during the First World War.

Read live from the Museum's Collection API (12/11/2026, 5:44:31 am). Record last updated by the Museum 2025-02-23. Licence: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/.