At the time of federation the major cities of Australia were gripped with a new pandemic, as bored, impoverished young men began terrorising the wider communities in a wave of crime that would become known as the era of the push gang. Their crimes were many and usually petty, though often violent, and the country stood still in the wake of their tyranny. The Gangs of Melbourne is the first methodical gathering of a wide range of push gangs ever published. Including biographies of key members, and crimes, The Gangs of Melbourne is an Australian wealth of social history.