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General => The Common Room => Topic started by: reidfd on Saturday 22 August 20 01:20 BST (UK)

Title: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: reidfd on Saturday 22 August 20 01:20 BST (UK)
The Rajah Gopaul sailed from Plymouth, England 24th May 1852 to carry emigrants to Australia.  My question is, did she call into an Irish Port (possibly Cork or Cobh) to pick up passengers or did the ship proceed directly to Moreton Bay, Queensland via Sydney?  My interest is whether a passenger from Ireland would have firstly transferred to Plymouth to board the ship?
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: Ruskie on Saturday 22 August 20 05:47 BST (UK)
In my limited experience there generally seems to be one port of departure, and I am not aware of any stops to take on new passengers. Places the ship docks on the journey are not named unless there are exceptional circumstances, then on arrival in Australia the ship will often let off passengers at various ports along the coast.

I see no reason that someone from Ireland or elsewhere would not travel to Plymouth to board their ship.

Sometimes there is additional information if a journey has been eventful eg health officers reports, or mentions in the papers which may give further details.
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: chris_49 on Saturday 22 August 20 08:26 BST (UK)
I've found ships that call at Queenstown, as it was then called, en route to North America but also Australia (Liverpool departing ships used Kingstown, now Dun Laoghaire). I don't expect there was a hard and fast rule, but I've found them calling at Gibraltar, Malta, Port Said, Aden then either Bombay or Colombo. Some of these stops would be necessary for refuelling, I think.
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: Ruskie on Saturday 22 August 20 09:39 BST (UK)
I've found ships that call at Queenstown, as it was then called, en route to North America but also Australia (Liverpool departing ships used Kingstown, now Dun Laoghaire). I don't expect there was a hard and fast rule, but I've found them calling at Gibraltar, Malta, Port Said, Aden then either Bombay or Colombo. Some of these stops would be necessary for refuelling, I think.

That would be interesting to know. Whereabouts did you find this information, and is it available for every ship’s journey out of England?

I imagine they must have had to make numerous stops along the way but to date I have not seen any records of this for ships from England to Australia. It would be good to be able to find out more about the journeys our ancestors undertook.
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: chris_49 on Saturday 22 August 20 09:51 BST (UK)
I've found ships that call at Queenstown, as it was then called, en route to North America but also Australia (Liverpool departing ships used Kingstown, now Dun Laoghaire). I don't expect there was a hard and fast rule, but I've found them calling at Gibraltar, Malta, Port Said, Aden then either Bombay or Colombo. Some of these stops would be necessary for refuelling, I think.

That would be interesting to know. Whereabouts did you find this information, and is it available for every ship’s journey out of England?

I imagine they must have had to make numerous stops along the way but to date I have not seen any records of this for ships from England to Australia. It would be good to be able to find out more about the journeys our ancestors undertook.

Sorry, I don't have any records to hand on this (the details are probably under Notes on my tree for the relevant relatives, but who I don't remember). So I'm just quoting from memory, and my relatives' journeys may not be typical, especially as regards calls at Queenstown.

But I remember being struck as to how this route was following outposts of Empire - perhaps steering a route between places that might have been unfriendly at the time - plus the partly British controlled Suez canal.

Some of these shipping records are on Ancestry, some on FindMyPast.
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: Ruskie on Saturday 22 August 20 10:10 BST (UK)
I think the ships took the “long way around” to Australia probably well after the Suez canal opened.  :)

I have noticed that over the years the duration of the trips reduced from three or four months, to substantially less - whether that was due to faster ships, or using the Suez, I have no idea.

I have not found any detailed reports of ports and routes taken for any of my immigrants, though I would like to do so. All travelled later than 1852. Some of them were Irish though they did not join their ships in Ireland. I will check the details later but believe they departed from England.

A google of the Rajah Gopaul or Rajahgopaul throws up several results which the OP has probably already found.
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: ShaunJ on Saturday 22 August 20 10:11 BST (UK)
The Rajah Gopaul made no intermediate stops on that voyage - see https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/3710711?searchTerm=rajah%20gopaul
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: Ruskie on Saturday 22 August 20 10:21 BST (UK)
Nice find Shaun.  :)
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: reidfd on Tuesday 25 August 20 02:50 BST (UK)
Thank you for your interest and replies.  I am of the opinion that my voyager was required to first travel from Cork, Ireland  to Plymouth, England to board the Rajah Gopaul, whose first port of call was Sydney, Colony of New South Wales.  To see the ship's log would provide the evidence.
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: AlisonAus on Thursday 17 April 25 16:48 BST (UK)
Nice find, Sean. So all those Irish people would have first gone from Ireland to Plymouth? Was that the usual thing? I don't suppose they kept any records of that first leg? My forebear was one of the adults who died the day after they landed in Moreton Bay, which left his wife with 7 children in a new country. I cannot even begin to imagine.
Title: Re: Rajah Gopaul (ship)
Post by: jorose on Saturday 19 April 25 08:08 BST (UK)
There would not be any records of trips within the UK.  But yes, it was very common for emigrants to have to cross (by sea, land, or both) to one of the big ports, rather than there being multiple stops on the way.

A bit of context for you about Plymouth as an emigrant port at this time:
https://devonassoc.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Brayshay-Government-Assisted-Emigration-TDA-1980.pdf

https://earlgreysfamineorphans.wordpress.com/tag/jaki-mccarrick/
 - A description of the conditions aboard the "steamers".