Do Not Read This Title

This is why I was particularly keen to visit Port Arthur now. Yes, it's a tree and a beach. Well, OK not the tree.

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If I put this here, I can link to it from the Sorell post :)

The township [of Sorell] then boasted of many houses, two hotels, a handsome church, the parsonage of the excellent Mr. Garrard, a "good gaol" and a schoolhouse. It was into such a populous and established neighbourhood that Brady, with Dunne, Bird, Murphy, and four others, dared to venture. Arriving at Mr. Bethune's house on the Friday evening, they took that gentleman, his overseer and servants, prisoners, and then made themselves comfortable for the night.

The next day was very wet, and the Bushrangers did not feel disposed to change their comfortable quarters. In the evening Mr. Walter Bethune and Captain Bunster rode up. Personating a servant, Brady came out and called for the groom to take Mr. Bethune's horse. When the gentlemen got inside they found themselves in the hands of the Philistines. But Brady at once allayed their fears, ordered dinner for them, and behaved with courtesy and respect. In the course of conversation at table, a remark was made about Brady offering to yield to Government. He indignantly denied that he had thought of such a thing. It was afterwards astertained that some other party represented himself to be Brady, when rifling a house at Bagdad, and there gave information of the intention of the gang to surrender. The brigand chief said that no occasion at present existed for such a course; for, when hard pressed by pursuit, they could easily retire to a farm they had among the mountains, where they had an abundance of sheep, horses, cattle, flour, and other necessaries. In that secure and pleasant retreat they could take a spell until the excitement had passed.

When it was about ten o'clock on the Saturday night, Brady announced to his friends his resolution to attack Sorell Gaol, and liberate some acquaintances. The two Bethunes were tied, as well as the other inmates, and the whole, eighteen in number, were marched in solemn and silent procession towards the town. Most opportunely for the eight Bushrangers, they arrived at a moment when least expected, and when, in fact, a party of soldiers within were cleaning out their guns. The military, under the command of Lieutenant Gunn, had been out all day looking for the very men who had thus civilly placed themselves in gaol--to make them prisoners. The arms were secured, and the warriors and civilians securely locked up in a cell from which the prisoners had just been released.

Mr. Long, the gaoler, was in his house adjoining the lock-up; and directly he saw how things stood, he made his escape over the wall, and ran off for Lieutenant Gunn, who was then staying with Dr. Garrett. Catching up their double-barrelled guns, they made for the town. The magistrate hurried too much, and fell into the hands of the Bushrangers, who broke his gun, and placed him with the others in the cell. Two of the robbers stood in the path of Mr. Gunn. He raised his fowling piece, but at that instant a shot shattered his arm above his elbow. When the rascals left the scene of their triumph, they placed against the door of the gaol a log ornamented with a coat and hat, to resemble a sentinel. The enterprizing and brave Gunn was brought to town, and suffered amputation of his arm. The Government rewarded his zeal with a pension of £70 a year, and the honourable post of Superintendent of the Hobart Town Prisoners' Barracks.

From James Bonwicks's The bushrangers: illustrating the early days of Van Diemen's Land , the original edition of which is actually available on Google Books

I want to go on a trip, but can't really, so it'll have to be a virtual trip. The good thing about them, is everyone else can come too!

When we were kids, before the new Bass Highway was built, the trip out to Deloraine would take fifty minutes, or longer if the traffic was held up be a slow car or farm vehicle. Then the traffic would build up into a long snake winding back further than we could see when we twisted around to look out the back window.

Along the fifty kilometre stretch between Launceston and Deloraine there are five towns, Hadspen, Carrick, Hagley, Westbury and Exton. Each town originated a coach stop on the road west, or so we were told. I don't know if that's true, but this is the old coaching inn at Hadspen.


The Red Feather inn, built in the 1840s. At the time I took this photo, November 2006, it looks like it has fallen out of use, but according to the website it was refurbished and reopened late in 2008.

( Hadspen )

We're doing the gaol thing again, sort of. An associated chapel anyway. That is, it was built as a chapel but for most of its life, only part of it was a chapel.

( More photos, but you knew that. )

You might remember this photo of Ross from earlier in the year. It was taken in February.



Now, here it is again, in August. Quite different.



Yes, there's no hay or sheep!

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Before I do the final bit on Ross, a slight detour that I thought I could avoid doing but it seems simpler to pull this into one post.

Until recently, most focus on Australia's convict past dealt with the men. The women and children rarely get mentioned. Into the 1980s even, it just wasn't talked about. In the late 1990s, I was list-mum for the relevant Rootsweb genealogy mailing list, and the idea of women and children being transported was still little known. In the last decade, this has changed. The associated sites are better known, in some cases they've been developed for visitors and more research has been done and written about female convicts.

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