Category Archives: convicts

The Bellamys: Pioneers of West Pennant Hills.

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  The chance discovery of a small book ‘The Settlers of West Pennant Hills Valley 1799 Onwards’ in a second-hand store at Leura New South Wales a couple of years ago was timely, as I’d just begun to research my husband’s Bellamy ancestors. It mentioned the family and it prompted me to find out more about them. William Bellamy, found guilty at the Old Bailey of stealing shoes, received a sentence of 7 years. He was transported on board Active, … Continue reading

Convict Love Tokens – Inscriptions from the Heart.

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I wonder if you read the heading above and thought as I did many years ago; “what is a convict love token?” It was just over 5 years ago when I received a phone call from Paul and although I cannot recall our exact conversation, the reason he was phoning me was to ask if I might be able to find out the original owner, or rather inscriber, of a convict love token he had purchased at an auction.  At … Continue reading

Adding to my family stories: Jane Ezzy

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  Jane Ezzy On 10 September 1813, my 4th great grandmother, Jane Ezzy registered her purchase of John Boulton’s share of a house and premises at 49 George Street Sydney for £10 sterling.[1] She had become a registered property holder in the centre of busy colonial Sydney town. This entry adds more to my understanding of my first female ancestor to arrive in New South Wales. It reinforces my opinion that she was a strong and entrepreneurial woman, prepared, at … Continue reading

Irish Prison Hulks.

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My great great grandfather Owen Connor was an Irish convict who arrived in Australia on the St. Vincent on 05 January 1837. He had been sentenced in August 1836 at the Galway Summer Assizes to transportation for life for stealing a heifer. After sentencing he was detained on board a hulk awaiting transportation[1]. The St. Vincent departed from Cork Harbour on 13 September 1836 and on board were 120 prisoners from the Essex hulk, moored in Kingstown Harbour, and 73 … Continue reading

Breaking into Gaol Records.

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Whoever would have thought that the origins of a young servant girl arriving as a free passenger in 1823 would be revealed within the records of Sydney and Darlinghurst Gaol?  The quest for  Hannah Lee’s background commenced with John Daley, an Irish convict, who arrived in Port Jackson on the Brampton, 22 April 1823.  Originating in King’s County/Offaly, the 25-year-old was tried under the Insurrection Act for forcibly stealing arms from John Cooper’s farm, near the Grand Canal at Ballybritton, … Continue reading