Australian History: Brilliant stories from Australia's past.
Australian histories related to convict transportation and early colonial settlement
William Bligh, the very same Captain probably best known for the mutiny on the Bounty, was to be recruited in his later life, as the Governor of the Colony of New South Wales. But it seems his days of attracting mutinous behaviour were not over. Bligh would find himself again...
In Part 2 we will follow William Swallow and his fellow mutineer convicts on the commandeered ship, the Cyprus. Swallow and his men were delighted to be heading into the Pacific, away from the dreaded Macquarie Harbour, and his sailing skills were put to the test as they made their...
In part one of Convict Mutineers, we learn about a felon who just could not bear the idea of a life in exile, willing to take all necessary risks to try to return to England. And his efforts were extraordinary. I think you will enjoy hearing about this Houdini like...
In 1796, the Calcutta merchants Campbell & Clark, sent a boat load of attractive goods, including much needed home and personal wares, and much desired rum, to sell to the isolated people in the new penal colony at Port Jackson (now current day Sydney). The Sydney Cove foundered and the...
We’re continuing our look at the convict era, in particular, the experiences of women convicts who passed through the Cascades Female Factory, in Hobart, Tasmania. After serving their sentences, many became successful members of their communities, and they are representative of the convict women who can be regarded as the...
We’re going to look at the female convicts who passed through the Cascades Female Factory, in Hobart, Tasmania, and reflect on the different experience the women convicts may have had, to those of the male convicts. There are both harrowing and hilarious stories to be told about the institution and...