Category Archives: immigrant ship names

Arrivals in Moreton Bay 1849-1850: a population boost with a difference

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1849-1850 was a distinctive stage in the free settlement of Moreton Bay which had begun in 1842. For the first time significant numbers of people arrived in Brisbane, most not government assisted immigrants. Different groups created vigorous conflict which determined the colony’s future. They also necessitate checking various records to track their arrival. When the government-assisted Artemisia, the first ship to bring immigrants direct to Moreton Bay came in December 1848, it brought news of the Fortitude’s imminent arrival, which … Continue reading

Ada Baker – From gentility to domestic service in the colony.

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Adelaide (Ada) Baker, the second eldest of six siblings was born on 22 February 1856 in London to parents Daniel Thompson Baker and Ann Dorling, who lived in a comfortable residence at 390 Oxford Street in Soho, London: about where Oxford Circus is located. The Bakers employed housemaids, one of whom accompanied Ada to school before bringing her home in the afternoon for music lessons with a private tutor. The children lived in sophisticated gentility, they were not asked to … Continue reading

Escaping Famine: Hugh McGovern (1822-1905) and Ann Stevens (1819-1873)

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Life in Ireland was difficult in 1840-41, it was a time leading up to the great famine that peaked in 1845. No doubt wanting to believe the favourable tales and promises made by recruiting agents that a better life was to be found in Australia, Hugh and Ann McGovern made the decision to leave behind the hardships of life in Ireland. Being married, Protestant and able to read and write, they would have been eagerly recruited by ‘bounty’ agents tasked … Continue reading

Arrival of the Artemisia: an “important event in the annals of Moreton Bay – an epoch to be often reverted to”

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The Moreton Bay Courier 16 December 1848 p2 enthusiastically welcomed the Artemisia, the ‘first immigrant vessel direct from England’ to Brisbane. Instead of placing the notice in the shipping intelligence column, the paper provided extensive news about it in ‘a place of honour’. Why was this vessel’s arrival so significant? What was the preparation and passage like? What were the passengers coming to? The importance of the Artemisia At the time of the 1846 census the population of the County … Continue reading

Arriving under protection.

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Four single women arrived in New South Wales on the barque, Theresa on 25 August 1842 as bounty immigrants. They had travelled under the protection of my 2x great-grandfather, Christopher Cooper, his wife Magdaline and their children. Two of the four were related to Christopher and Magdaline. My family group came from the northern Irish counties of Fermanagh and Tyrone, two counties which were strongly represented among the passengers on board Theresa with her Irish, English and Scottish immigrants. The … Continue reading