Free Settler or Felon
Convict and Colonial History




Convict Ship Brothers - 1827


Embarked: 161 women
Voyage: 122
Deaths 3
Crew: 34 men
Surgeon's Journal - Yes
Previous vessel: Grenada arrived 23 January 1827
Next vessel: Albion arrived 14 February 1827
Captain Charles Motley
Surgeon James Forrester
Follow the Female Convict Ship Trail
Follow the Irish Convict Ship Trail
Prisoners of the Brothers identified in the Hunter Valley

The Brothers was built at Whitby in 1815. [2] Prisoners were transported to New South Wales on the Brothers in 1824 and 1827. She was the next convict ship to leave Ireland for New South Wales after the departure of the Phoenix in August 1826 and the next female convict ship to leave Ireland after the Lady Rowena in January 1826.

Departure of the Brothers from Cork

The Brothers departed Cork on 3rd October 1826 with 161 female prisoners. Four families of convicts already in the colony came as free passengers-

Bridget Larkins + four children; Bridget Larkins came with a letter from her husband which was hoped would lead to his location having been assigned to Major Druitt.

Hannah Taylor + two children. Hannah Taylor's husband Bartholomew Taylor was a carpenter who sailed from Cove of Cork on the Hooghley 5 January 1825. He was transported for life for robbing a house in which a murder took place.

Mary Gilligahan + one child; Mary Gilligahan's husband Peter was a farmer's man who was transported for 7 years for stealing potatoes. He had been free for two years and had a grant of land at Seven Hill.

Margaret Byrne (Margaret Byrne was a girl of sixteen, who had been kept a number of years in the depot at Cork in order to be sent out to her father. She stated her father's name to be Thomas. He had been sent out 12 years previously as a ribbon man and her mother came as a free settler on the Thames, Captain Fraser, arriving 11 April 1826).

James Forrester's Medical Journal

Surgeon James Forrester kept a Medical Journal from 13 August 1826 to 15 February 1827. He treated the following women during the voyage.......

22 October 1826 - Honoria Peppard - Syphilis

5th November 1826 Bridget Dickson - Headache

5th November 1826 Catherine Hughes - Complications after sea sickness

26th November 1826 - Mary Keefe - thin slight woman. Vomiting

26th November 1826 - Mary Ann Stewart - pain in the abdomen

26th November 1826 - Elizabeth Callophan - Stout plethoric woman. Haemoptysis

26th November 1826 - Catherine Hennessey or Donovan. Slight little girl aged 19. Attacked at 10pm with violent spasmodic pain in the abdomen. Had been very dejected since embarkation. Remained unwell the entire voyage

26th November 1826 - Ellen Collins - Weak, thin woman age 34. Debilitated.

5th December 1826 - Catherine Donnelly - A thin, delicate woman. Complaining of headache and backache. Became progressively more deaf. Her countenance shrunk and she became unusually pale with a vacant stare and glassy eyes. She died on the 21st December 1826

7th December 1826 - Mary Ryan - Asthma and oedema. Stout woman. Died 28th January 1827

10th December 1826 - Rosanna Stephens, age 26. Violent spasmodic pain in the abdomen

15th December 1826 - Catherine Byrne age 19. Hysteria, Stout little girl aged 19 seized with spasms

15th December 1826 - Honora Shea aged 30. Diarrhoea ending in hysteria

1st January 1827 - Elizabeth Wilson age 19. A well developed little girl. Suffering Phthisis. Died 14th January 1827

21st December 1827 - Mary Keefe - Debility

4th January 1827 - Mary Brady age 20. Pneumonia. Large, strong plethoric woman. [1]

Some of the illnesses treated by the surgeon included syphilis, febris, tabes, diarrhoea, enteritis, haemoptysis, hysteria, anasarca, colic and phthisis.

Arrival in Port Jackson

The Brothers arrived in Port Jackson on 4 February 1827, a voyage of 122 days. A muster was held on board by Colonial Secretary Alexander McLeay on 7th February 1827.


The indents include name, age, education, religion, marital status, family, native place, trade, offence, date and place of trial, sentence, prior convictions, physical description and where and to whom the women were assigned on arrival. There is also occasional information regarding relatives already in the colony, deaths and colonial crimes.
Alexander McLeay
Ninety five of the prisoners were single women, all of child bearing age although only nine were recorded as having children. Many of the women had left children behind in Ireland. Those who brought children on the voyage with them included:

Isabella Allison; Julian or Judith Burke; Mary Buttler; Honorah Carthy; Mary Jackson; Mary Lynch; Ellen Murphy; Ellen Ramsey; Honora Reardon; Martha Sadler; Ann Smith alias Ferguson; Jane Taafe; and Mary or Margery Treel.

One of the prisoners, Ann Byrne was supposed to have come on the Lady Rowena however had the remark 'not embarked' beside her name. She was tried in Dublin on 18th August 1825 and sentenced to 7 years transportation. Bridget Leonard was tried at the same time for the same offence. Bridget Leonard was transported on the Lady Rowena however Ann Byrne came on the Brothers. She was later required to prove her identity as the indent on the Brothers stated she was a prisoner for life instead of 7 years.


Prisoners Disembarked

After they were disembarked the prisoners were either assigned privately to settlers or sent to the Female Factory at Parramatta.

Parramatta Female Factory

Departure of the Brothers from Sydney

After disembarking the prisoners the Brothers was engaged to sail to Batavia - The Sydney Monitor recorded the attempted voyage:

Captain Motley of the Brothers on returning to port, after an ineffectual attempt to make the Western Passage through Torres Straits to Batavia, spoke of the weather he experienced as dreadful beyond description; such as during his course of Navigation he had never before experienced; for 50 hours his vessel laboured under a heavy gale, which Capt. M. believes to have strained and otherwise injured her, more than an ordinary passage from England to New South Wales and back again would have done. Notwithstanding all these difficulties he continued his endeavours to beat round the land with extraordinary determination, till at length Hope forsook him, and the safety of crew and vessel compelled him to shape his course back to Port Jackson. She resumed her voyage on Tuesday last.

The Brothers was one of five convict ships bringing female prisoners to New South Wales in 1827, however she was the only vessel bringing Irish convicts in that year. The other female convict ships arriving in 1827 were the Grenada, Princess Charlotte, Louisa, and Harmony. Over five hundred female prisoners arrived in the colony in 1827.

James Forrester was also employed as surgeon superintendent on the convict ships Southworth in 1832 and lost his life on the ill-fated voyage of the Amphitrite in 1833.

Prisoners of the Brothers identified in the Hunter region :


Bryan, Mary
Mary Bryan alias Murphy age 40. Country servant from Tipperary. Married with 4 children. Tried at Kilkenny 28 March 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing corduroy. Assigned to William Lang in Sydney on arrival. In 1828 assigned to Andrew Lang at Dunmore and employed as a house servant


Campbell, Mary
Age 22. House servant from Belfast. Tried Belfast August 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. Note - dull of hearing. In 1828 still at the Factory. Sent to Newcastle gaol 14 March 1831. Forwarded to private service of Emanuel Hungerford on 20 March. On 12 June sent to the gaol again by the Maitland Bench under sentence of 3 months to 3rd Class Factory at Parramatta


Carroll, Ann
Age 34. Housemaid from Dublin. Tried at Dublin 21 December 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing capes. Sent to the Female Factory on arrival . In 1827 sent to the Factory from Sydney gaol for drunkenness and insolence. In 1828 sent to the Factory for drunkenness and irregularity. In 1828 assigned to John Tucker jun., at Patterson's Plains. Absconded from service and found to be at large in Sydney without a pass. Sent to Newcastle. Married carpenter John Brennan (ship Minerva 1819) in September 1830. Resided at Patterson's Plains in August 1834 when she gave birth to a son William


Delaney, Ann
Ann or Mary Delaney age 24. House servant from Dublin. Tried at Dublin 3 April 1826. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Assigned to John Payne in George St. Sydney on arrival . In March 1831 sentenced to 10 days solitary confinement for disorderly conduct. Discharged to the service of James Pawsey at Newcastle. Sent to the Female Factory at Parramatta in April 1831 by order of the Newcastle bench. In January absconded from service of Joseph Clayton in Sydney for the third time. In 1833 granted a Certificate of Freedom. Married Michael Kinsella (ship Earl St. Vincent) at Castlereagh in 1833


Donovan, Mary
Nurse girl from Cork age 20 in 1827.. Tried Cork 26 March 1826. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for house robbery. Sent to the Female Factory on arrival. Married Samuel Eather of Wollombi (ship Morley 1818) in February 1828. Issue 1). Sarah b. c. 1828. 2) Robert b. c. 1832. 3) Samuel b. c 1834. 4) Hannah b. 1837. 5) Charlotte. Married John Quantrill (ship Lady Harewood 1832) at Wittingham in 1844


Doyle, Catherine
Ticket of leave holder age 50 residing at Port Stephens in 1836


Evers, Cecilia Jane
Jane Taafe nee Evers, age 22. Occupation Washes. Native place Dublin. Husband William Taafe or Stewart (ship Countess of Harcourt 1827). Two children one on board, one in Ireland. Tried in Dublin 26 October 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Assigned to Mrs. Simmons in Sydney on arrival. In 1828 assigned to the Female Factory. In September 1849. Fined 40/- or 48 hours in the cells for being drunk on Sunday and offering trousers she had for sale in the street. In November 1849 husband William gave notice cautioning against harbouring his wife Jane who had left him with three small children and gone up the country. William was convicted of bigamy in 1852 and sentenced to be worked on the roads for 4 years. Cecilia died in 1859


Fairbrother, Mary
Age 40. Reads and writes. House servant from London. Married with 2 children. Tried in Wicklow 14 July 1825 and sentenced to 14 years transportation for passing forged notes. Assigned to Rev. Threlkeld at Newcastle on arrival. On 3 March 1828 she was admitted to Sydney gaol because she was useless in service. She was sent to the Female Factory on 6th March and was still there when the Census was taken in November 1828


Frazer, Ann
Ann Frazer age 19. Needlewoman from Belfast. Tried at Antrim 22 March 1826. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for highway robbery. Assigned to William Thingate at Darling Harbour on arrival . In July 1832 assigned servant to Edward G. Cory at Paterson River. In November sent to Newcastle gaol having been returned to government service. Sent to private service in Maitland on release from gaol. Sent to the Factory via Sydney gaol for 12 months in 1838


Hughes, Catherine
Alias Dempsey. Age 23. Nursemaid from Dublin. Tried Dublin 13 November 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing a dress. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. Married John Dempsey (ship Castle Forbes 1824) in August 1827. Employed as a servant by Francis Allman at Wallis Plains in November 1828. Granted a Ticket of Leave for Wallis Plains in August 1829 and a Certificate of Freedom in December 1832


Jackson, Mary
Age 38. Country servant from Limerick. Single. One boy child on board. Tried at Limerick 9 March 1826. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing goods. Sent to the Female Factory at Parramatta on arrival


Kearns, Bridget
Age 25. Married. Occupation country servant. Husband a schoolmaster at Wicklow. Tried in Naas March 1825 and sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Sent to the Female Factory on arrival. Resided at the Factory in November 1828. In June and October 1830 admitted to Sydney Gaol en route to the Factory having been given up by her master. Sent to the Factory in March 1831 Sentenced to 3mths in 3rd Class Factory. Forwarded from Newcastle to Sydney 25 March 1831. Granted a Certificate of Freedom in April 1832.


Kelly, Ann
Age 55. Reads and writes. House servant and needlewoman from Carlow. Tried in Dublin November 1825 and sentenced to 7 years transportation for pledging. Assigned to George Milner Slade, probably at Port Stephens, on arrival. Died at the General hospital Sydney 1832


Kelly, Mary
Alias Watkins. Age 21. Dairywoman from Co. Wicklow. Tried 28 November 1825 and sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing coats. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. At the Factory in November 1828. Married Charles Watkins (ship Speke 1821) at Newcastle in 1829. Granted at Certificate of Freedom in 1833


McCormack, Rose
Rose McCormack age 23. Cotton mill worker from Belfast. Tried at Antrim March 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. Married John McGloughlin (ship Morley 1817) in May 1827 . Probably at the estate of James Bowman at Patrick Plains in 1828. Granted a Ticket of Leave for good conduct in service in December 1829.


McCormick, Mary
Mary McCormick age 22. Farm servant from Londonderry. Tried Londonderry 23 March 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. Married John Wilson at Newcastle in August 1827


McLoughlin, Ann or Ellen
Ann or Ellen McLoughlin, age 39. Dairywoman from Longford. Tried at Longford 4 March 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Sent to the Female Factory on arrival. House servant age 38 at Green Hills, Hunter River in 1828


Meekin, Elizabeth
Eliza Meekin age 23. Married with one child. Silk winder from Dublin. Tried at Dublin 13 February 1826. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. In July 1831 sent to Newcastle gaol by Patrick Plains bench. To be sent to 3rd Class Female Factory


O'Brien, Honora
Age 23. Single. Tried in Co. Kerry 3 August 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing a cloak. Assigned to Edward C. Close at Morpeth on arrival . In 1828 age 37 employed as a house servant by Edward Close. Married William Jackson in December 1828


O'Brian, Honora
Dairy maid age 36 from Limerick. Widow with 2 children. Tried 9 March 1826 . Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing money. Sent to the Female Factory on arrival


O'Brien, Alice
Age 24. Nurse girl from Tipperary. Tried at Limerick March 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for house robbery. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. Sentenced to 3yrs in a penal settlement for mutinous conduct and riot in the female factory, Parramatta. Admitted to Newcastle Female Factory 5 March. Sent to private service of John Cobb 25 August


Deehan, Esther
Alias Quigley. House servant age 29 from Donegal. Tried in Londonderry 23 March 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for stealing cloth. Assigned to the Female Factory on arrival. Married Frederick Park (ship Mary 1819) in August 1827. Frederick and Esther were assigned to James T. Lamb at Belin, Hunter River as nurse and dairyman in 1828


Reynolds, Margaret
Age 18. House servant from Dublin. Tried in Dublin in March 1826 and sentenced to 7 years transportation for robbery. Assigned to James Reid at Rosebrook on arrival. Married Robert Robinson (ship Ocean 1823) in May 1830


Savage, Bridget
Age 21. Washes and sews. Native place Dublin. Tried at Dublin 15 December 1825. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for shop lifting. Assigned to George Innes Esq., on arrival . In 1828 assigned to John Ellison at Parramatta. Married James Cooper (ship Somersetshire 1814) at Newcastle in September 1830


Shanahan, Mary
Alias Northey. Mary Shannahan age 20. Laundress from Cork. Tried at Cork 29 July 1826. Sentenced to 7 years transportation for receiving stolen goods. Assigned to Bridget James on arrival. In November 1832 assigned to William Harper at Oswald and employed as a laundress. In December 1832 absconded from Lieut. Wood at Maitland - 5ft 3in, dark hazel eyes, black hair, ruddy complexion, permanent mark on left cheek. BDT blue and AMMR red, on right arm. In December 1833 married James Northey (ship Surry 1814) of Invermein


Vearey, Anne
Age 25. Washerwoman. Native of Hull. Protestant. Convicted in Dublin on 26 October 1825. Sentenced to transportation for life. Assigned to William Lawson at Prospect on arrival. In October 1838 at Newcastle assigned to John Rowell, publican. Charged with disorderly conduct after being found drunk and asking a native black to fetch her rum from another public house. Sentenced to 7 days in the cells. In January 1841 sent to Newcastle gaol from Singleton. Sentenced to 2 months in 3rd class Female Factory for absconding. In August 1841 married James Bulpitt (ship Royal George 1828) at Patrick Plains.

Notes and Links

1). Mary Barry's husband William Barry arrived on the Phoenix in 1826. Mary Barry died in 1833

2). Recorder's Court - Wednesday - Martha Saddler was next put to the bar, charged with stealing a gold watch with suitable appendages, from Wm. Kernan, Esq., Mr. Kernan deposed his having met a female in Capel Street, who after accosting him, took his watch, which, when produced, he identified; he admitted that he was in an inebriated state, to which he attributed his present inability to identify the heroine at the bar as the person with whom he had an interview; he also stated, that he did not feel a hand near his pocket; but that in five minutes after his conversation wit the woman whom he met, he missed his watch. James Power one of the Police Cavalry, stated that on the morning of the 7th inst., when passing through Francis street a group of suspicious persons, in deep and private conversation, arrested his attention; after which he at a distance, followed them up to Thomas Street, where a man named Hetherington, in company with the prisoner, entered a corner shop, and tendered for sale a gold watch, which witness, with some difficulty, wrested from him and conveyed both him the prisoner at the bar and the watch to Arran Quay Police Office, from whence they were committed to Newgate after the watch was claimed by the last witness. The jury, without a moment's hesitation found the prisoner guilty who was then sentenced to transportation for seven years. Hetherington convicted of receiving the said watch, was then sentence to twelve months imprisonment. - Freeman's Journal 30th March 1826

3). Sarah Cramsie and Thomas Boyle, for stealing 10 10s, the property of John McQuillan, the prosecutor stated that he was in Belfast on 16th October, when he met with Cramsie in passing through an entry - she said she had not broken her fast; and wished him to give her something - he had known her ten years before, and she was come of decent parents - he gave her a tenpenny - two boys were with her - one of them 9not on his trial) seized him by the neckcloth and almost choaked him - the prisoner Boyle held him by the arm, while Cramsie took his notes out of his pocket - both Guilty; transported 7 years. - Belfast Newsletter 29 March 1825

4). Seventeen convict ships arrived in New South Wales in 1827 - Grenada, Brothers, (F) Albion, Midas, Mariner, Countess of Harcourt, Guildford, Marquis of Hastings, Princess Charlotte, Manlius, Cambridge, Harmony, Prince Regent, Champion, Eliza, John and the Louisa

5). Ten tons of Copper coin for the use of the Colony arrived on the Brothers.

6). National Archives - Reference: ADM 101/13/7 Description: Medical and surgical journal of the Brothers convict ship for 13 August 1826 to 15 February 1827 by James [Toncster?], Surgeon and Superintendent, during which time the said ship was employed in transporting female convicts to New South Wales.

7). Transportation of Female Convicts

References

[1] Ancestry.com. UK, Royal Navy Medical Journals, 1817-1857. Medical Journal of James Forrester on the voyage of the Brothers in 1827. The National Archives. Kew, Richmond, Surrey.

[2] Bateson, Charles Library of Australian History (1983). The convict ships, 1787-1868 (Australian ed). Library of Australian History, Sydney : pp.346-347, 385