Transported to Australia.

[michaelcharles]

I have an ancestor transported to Australia in 1846 with a sentence of 14 years. Is it likely that he could have returned to England after the completion of his entence, or even before?

[majm]

Hi,

I guess your chap was transported to Van Diemens Land.  If so, his convict records are usually found freely available online via the Tasmanian Archives.  Australia was only the name of the continent until 1901 when six British Colonies were federated into one self governing British Colony.  Each of those six jurisdictions still have their own parliaments, so are separate but equal and so each has separate BDMs, archives, etc for family history buffs etc. 

Back to your question.... Those Tasmanian images will note if any official pardon was issued, and if so, what conditions were attached to the pardon.  Those records also include info about any Ticket of Leave (sometimes thought of as similar effect as today's  parole)   and any secondary convictions after arriving in the colony.  The certificate of freedom completes the emancipation process and at that point, the former convict is a free person.  If he returned to Britain, he would have needed to pay his own fares.

There are excellent RChatters on the Australia Board who are far more familiar with convict searchings than me.  It is worthwhile asking for further help there.

JM

[michaelcharles]

Thanks for the reply, JM. Will look into your suggestions. From my research so far, I believe he absconded from where he was supposed to be after a marriage!

[Ruskie]

As you haven’t given names or other details any suggestions can only be general and may be avenues you have already explored. 

Most did not return probably due to having to pay their own way as JM said, but they also may have felt there were opportunities to make a new start in Australia.

Your man could still have absconded and stayed in Australia of course. Have you looked for him in other States in Australia? Any mentions of him in Trove?

Did his new wife disappear after their marriage too?

If you think he might have returned to the UK have you found him on any UK census after the last sighting in Australia?

[AllanUK]

I traced a 1st cousin 6 times removed who, in 1833, committed a crime of shop breaking with two others. The three of them were caught within days and imprisoned until their trial in February 1834. All three were found guilty and sentenced to transportation. In my distant cousin's case, transported for seven years. The three of them were taken back to the local prison until they were taken to a prison hulk on the River Thames. My distant cousin remained on the hulk until June 1835 when he started his journey to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania). The transport ship arrived in Hobart, Tasmania in early October 1835. After being processed in the Penitentiary, he was put to work as a river boatman, utilising his previous UK work experience. With the assistance of the various archives 'down under', I was able to piece his storey together until the day he received his freedom and then he disappeared form all records. My thoughts on his disappearance were (1) he changed his name and relocated or (2) he changed his name and as he had boat skills, attained work on a ship sailing from Tasmania.

If the original poster wishes to try and find out what happened to his ancestor, I have listed below the archives that I used with a special 'shout out' for Michael Hosking of the Maritime Museum of Tasmania. (note: I carried out my research only 5 years ago so the list below should still be valid)

The National Library of Australia
The Tasmanian Archives of Australia
The Maritime Museum of Tasmania
The Victoria State Library of Australia
www.findmypast.co.uk/search/britishnewspapers
www.nationalarchives.gov.uk
www.ancestry.co.uk/search/collections/60920/

The Ancestry link takes you to 'Tasmania, Australia, Convict Court and Selected Records, 1800-1899' -- I found several references here.

[michaelcharles]

Thank uoy Ruskie and AllanUK.