Transport yourself back in time.
What was happening in this month in 1788?
January the 18th 1788 saw the first Australian Penal Colony established in Botany Bay under the keen eye of Captain Arthur Phillip. Over the following 60 years, it is suggested that just over 50 000 British people were transported as punishment for a crime which, as a general rule, was not violent or that severe.
Achievements have access to the records required to help trace your ancestors who may have been transported. We can examine Quarter Sessions Records which record details, as well as the National Archive Crime Register and Old Bailey Case records. We can search for your ancestors on the Register of Convicts on Convict ships, Free Settlers' Papers where the family were permitted to travel and join the criminal, Prisoners Petitions and Cases as well as State Prisoners' Petitions.
It was widely believed that criminals were somewhat predisposed to commit crimes and as such would not stop. The best solution for them it was felt was transportation: it was cheaper than execution or prison. The six-month trip claimed between 10% and 33% of the passengers and life for those who did survive once there was tough. The guards who volunteered to work there were unimaginably harsh, and frequently issued 100 lashes with a cat o'nine tails.
11 January 2006