fremantle doctor

dontcry Doctor, doctor,
give me the news
I've got a bad case
of Fremantle p.u.'s Jul 15, 2008

reesetee So the wind itself was called a doctor because it directed the odors away from Fremantle; do I have that right? Nov 21, 2007

bilby Nice kewpid, though doesn't completely explain the Doctor part for me. I've never lived in Perth so I'm a bit light on the urban legends of them thar parts. Nov 21, 2007

kewpid Wikipedia says:

Fremantle Doctor has it's origins in Fremantle's dark past. At Catherine Point, a short distance south of Fremantle, crematoriums were established during the colony's early days to dispose of the corpses of those who had fallen to the illnesses which preyed upon the population in the city's early days. It is reported that the Doctor was named in honour of the wind which blew the stench of burning human flesh inland, as this was otherwise noticeable in both Fremantle and her environs.

reesetee Any idea why it's called a "doctor," bilby? Nov 21, 2007

bilby A cooling wind which blows from the west - ie. the direction of the port of the Fremantle - in the Australian city of Perth during summer.
Nov 20, 2007