My Great, Great Grandfather Samuel BRADLEY was a convict and transported from Lancashire. He was tried at the Lancashire Spring Assizes on the 10th March 1824.

Des / "The Ace" Bloyd June 2004

Samuel was tried at the Lancaster Assizes on March 10th 1824, situated in the stronghold of Lancaster Castle. The castle itself dating back to the Romans time. The Romans founded a formidable fortress here to the West of the great Roman road through Barrow, behind Hadrian's Wall. In the fifth century the Romans were recalled to Rome and abandoned the early castle. I visited the castle in April 1988 and actually followed in Samuel's footsteps, up the spiral staircase, from the dungeons into the dock, situated in the centre of the courtroom.

The first thing one observes, in the courtroom, is the large painting of George III who approved the sending of convicts to Australia. The Crown Court is still regularly used. One can well imagine the feeling of doom which Samuel felt, when the dreaded sentence of death was pronounced. To be hung by the neck until dead.

We learn more of Samuel from his transportation indent Transported for burglary-Samuel Bradley convict 804/1824.
Goal Report-Convicted of felony before: Hulk report-orderly.
Stated this offence-Burglary:
prior three months sentence given at the New Bailey sessions, MANCHESTER. Status-single: Occupation, Dyer. Tried March 10 1824 at Lancaster: Sentence: Life. Two sisters and a brother alive, in Pendleton, in 1826. Father: Thomas Bradley, Dyer. Worked last for Mr. Morton, farmer near Pendleton. This offence Burglary: Prosecutor, Crop: Once three months Manchester: Prosecutor, Busby. Weak eyes. Large scar just above wrist joint, inside left arm. Scar on forehead high up above left eye.

Also on the voyage to Van Diemens land Samuel's indent is marked: Sick in hospital, so he must have been fortunate to survive the long journey out, in the stinking prison hole where the convicts were chained in like sardines. He arrived in Van Diemens Land on the convict transport "Lady East" The vessel being of 590 tones, built at Calcutta, in 1818. The master was Andrew Talbert. Ships surgeon William McDowell. The "Lady East" set sail from England, via St.Jago on 16 December 1824. A total of 210 convicts embarked for the soul destroying trip. Two died on the voyage. So in all 208 arrived to serve their sentences in V.D.L. A report was filed against the ship's Surgeon-Superintendent, William McDowell.

The convicts experienced brutal treatment and complained of gross ill-treatment and excessive punishment at McDowell's hands. While the "Lady East" was berthed at Falmouth 15 convicts were punished for having filed through their irons with an intention to escape. Five were given 36 lashes, one 30, seven 24, one 18 and another 12. Samuel wasn't involved in the attempt for freedom. The "Lady East" arrived at Hobart-Town on 9th April 1825.

Notes on the transportation System obtained, at Hobart, in May 1986, at the Tasmanian archives, Murrey Street, Hobart.

The practice of banishing undesirables had a long history in England, but it was not organized as a definite system until the transportation act of 1717 (4 George 1 c. 11).

The prisoners transported under this system were sent to America until the revolution of 1775 ended this traffic. The British Government was then forced to look for alternative routesand ways of handling the thousands of felons awaiting disposal in the hulks in Britain. Successive governments regarded the building of penitentiaries as prohibitively expensive whereas transportation seemed to offer many advantages: it was cheap and was regarded as a deterrent to potential criminals; it removed those criminals it failed to deter and at the same time assisted their reformation by providing them with opportunities in a new environment away from their criminal connections; and it also provided a labor force to assist the economic development of new settlements.

Botany Bay was the site chosen for the first penal settlement in Australia in 1788 and in 1803 convicts were among the colonizers in Van Diemen's Land, first at Risdon and the following year at Sullivan's Cove and Port Dalrymple. Transportation to Tasmania continued until 1853 by which time more than 74,000 convicts had been sent to the colony, of whom between 12,000 and 13,000 were women.

If a convict was well behaved, he was usually assigned to a private settler as a farm laborer. Female convicts were usually employed as house servants. A convict's family could be brought out to join him at government expense if he was thought worthy of this indulgence, and the family was given a small grant of land. However, minor misdemeanors were frequently punished by flogging, time on the treadmill, or for slightly worse offences, assigned to a road gang. For serious or frequent offenders, the most severe punishment, short of execution, was to be transported to a penal settlement. The most important of these was at first McQuarie Harbour and later Port Arthur and Norfolk Island.

The archives office of Tasmania holds many of the basic legal records of the convict department. These records contain invaluable information on the main aspects of a convict's life-on his conviction and arrival, assignment, petions for mitigation of sentence, receipt of ticket of leave or pardon, arrival of family or marriage, release and death.

I spent three days at the archives searching the records for information on Samuel and two of my other convict ancestors: Margaret Clark and James Butcher.

The first mention of Samuel was his first marriage to Sarah Prosser on 18th May 1830. The marriage certificate No. 315 states Samuel was still serving time as a convict, a bachelor and arrived in V.D.L. aboard the "Lady East". Sarah was a spinster. They were married by the senior chaplain William Bedford. Neither Samuel nor Sarah could write. Both having to place their mark, where they had to sign.

The marriage was solemnized in the parish of Hobart-Town in the county of Buckingham. I was disappointed in finding the record of the marriage first up and I was convinced I had researched the wrong Samuel Bradley. The decision was made to search the death register, and there was the answer: Sarah had died on 20th June 1830 at Clarence Plains. The death certificate states Sarah was 29 years of age, arrived in the Colony as a free woman, and was a farmer's wife. The Rev. R. Kropwood performed the burial service.

So Samuel must have been a model prisoner and was rewarded with a small grant of land by Lieut. Governor Arthur and was tilling the land.

On 7th April 1831 Samuel received his ticket of leave.

At St.David's Church, Hobart-Town Samuel married Marion Mortimer who was the daughter of George Mortimer and Mary Curnock who lived in Brentford Middlesex. The marriage was celebrated on 29th April 1833.

Their first child Charles George was born on November 15th 1834. Samuel's occupation on the birth certificate was given as a Carter. So he was in business as a carrier. Quite evident he was a responsible and hard working man.

Disaster then struck and Samuel found himself before the police magistrate charged with, on the 18th July 1836, being a ticket of leave convict "Being in a public house after hours". He was admonished. Marion was due to have her 2nd child. No doubt mercy was shown and his clean slate would have been taken into consideration.

Their second child Thomas William was born on 16th August 1836. One can imagine the shattered peace of mind Samuel experienced, when a further charge was laid against him. He had to appear before the police magistrate again on the serious charge of , while being a ticket of leave convict, receiving 1 ton of coal the property of the king well knowing them to have been stolen. Receiving one ton of coal would have been a serious matter.

Again luck was on the side of Samuel and he was acquitted. A guilty verdict could have been warranted the cancellation of his ticket of leave, the lash, chain gang or prison. Lieut. Governor Arthur the ruling authority of V.D.L. was credited for being extremely hard but also fair.

On 13th June 1837 conditional pardon No 1315 was approved for 1824/804 Samuel Bradley. He served over 13 years as a convict. Rosanna was born on the 16th August 1838. Anne Jane was born on 26th July 1840, on both of the births certificates, Samuel's occupation was recorded as: Carter. My Great Grandmother Tamar was born at the Union Hotel, Campbell St. Hobart on 10 September 1842, he was the licenced Victualler of the Union Hotel, on the corner of Liverpool and Campbell St. Hobart.

Ref. 1148/1842. Tamar Bradley's Birth Certificate.

Nothing other than the above is known of the Bradley's life in the young penal colony of V.D.L. Credit must go to Samuel for surviving the harsh life of a convict. He did the right thing and was rewarded for his diligence and became the owner of a hotel.

The exact date that the Bradley's packed up and left V.D.L. is not known. However, according to Tamar's death certificate she spent the first four years of her life in Hobart-Town. Charles George's states that he was in V.D.L. ten years, Thomas William 12 years and Rosanna also 10 years.

I've heard the family arrived Victoria approximately 1846 at Portland. There was a big family break-up between Samuel and Marion and they went their separate ways. Marion went to live with James Thomas Moore at Drumborg and had five more children. They were married on 25-8-1873 after the death of Samuel on 10-5-1869, at Bullarook.

Marion and James were married at Heywood and Marion died at Heywood on 14-11-1889.

An interesting observation was made in regards to Anne Jane Bradley on the death certificates Samuel and Marion. At the time of Samuel's death in 1869 Anne was alive and aged 26. When Marion died in 1889, Anne was listed as being deceased. Most certainly a mystery what became of Annie. Absolutely nothing to my knowledge is known.

There's different stories being put around concerning the family, especially notable that of Marion marrying James Moore after Samuel's death.

This statement cost me plenty chasing up Samuel's place of death in 1850. Tamar was named after her ancestors. The families of Charles George Bradley, Thomas William Bradley, Rosanna Ainsworth and Tamar Turley are well known and documented. They were pioneers of the Western District, Victoria.

In the early days there were a lot of dry gullies to cross, sickness and hardship brought about by flood and drought and they survived in the maiden bushland. Now, the dust of the falling trees has settled the land cleared and tilled, the towns built, one cannot but admire the spirit and industry of the early pioneers who contributed so much in the making of our nation.

Written by Desmond Bloyd, Great, Great, Grandson of Samuel Bradley, 6-5-1989.