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Was my 3Xgt granddad transported? Convict look up, please

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  • Was my 3Xgt granddad transported? Convict look up, please

    Can anyone help, please?
    3xgt grandad was Stephen Colman bp Trunch, Norfolk 19 Oct 1782. Next known event his marriage 2 Sep 1816 in neighbouring village of Southrepps before he settled in Trunch, raised a family & died in 1859.


    I’ve just found this:-
    31 Dec 1808 – Norfolk Chronicle (Committed to Norwich Castle)
    Stephen Colman – charged with stealing a fat turkey & 3 geese (owner of Trunch) & other sundry items (owner of Swafield, nearbyvillage to Trunch)

    Ancestry Criminal records (I only have a sub for Ancestry basics)
    Trial Jan 1809 (Stphn Colman)

    20 May 1809 Norfolk Chronicle -
    Stephen Colman - In a group of convicts removed from county gaol to Woolwich for 7 yrs transportation

    Ancestry - hulks records;
    Prudentia – received 16 May 1809 (convicted Norwich 11 Jan1809) Stephen Colman c1783
    Retribution – received 12 Aug 1809 (convicted Norwich 11 Jan1809) Stephen Colman c1783

    Is there any further record of this Stephen Colman? Was he transported? - if so, did he come back? If not, when was he discharged?

    As far as I know, MY Stephen was the only one around in those Norfok villages at that time, but if it was him, he married in Norfolk 7 yrs later, in Sep 1816.

    Would be grateful for any help - I can access Ancestry Worldwide at the nearby town library later in the week, but suggestions for WHAT documents to access would be wonderful.
    Many thanks
    Jay












    Last edited by Janet in Yorkshire; 15-10-12, 12:57. Reason: formatting problems
    Janet in Yorkshire



    Genealogists never die - they just swap places in the family tree

  • #2
    He was pardoned on 3 February 1815 according to the Retribution Prison Hulk Register.

    Still looking.
    My avatar is my Great Grandmother Emma Gumbert

    Sue at Langley Vale

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    • #3
      So it looks very likely it COULD be my Stephen :D - and I assumed they'd never even have been as far as Norwich!

      Jay
      Janet in Yorkshire



      Genealogists never die - they just swap places in the family tree

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      • #4
        Email sent to you.
        My avatar is my Great Grandmother Emma Gumbert

        Sue at Langley Vale

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        • #5
          Thank you Sue.

          Jay
          Janet in Yorkshire



          Genealogists never die - they just swap places in the family tree

          Comment


          • #6
            I now know from the hulk records that Stephen's sentence was 7 yrs transportation "beyond the seas" (as opposed to NSW which was recorded for some of the other prisoners) and that he was pardoned in Feb 1815.

            At present, I can't find his name or details in any of the online records for convicts transported to Australia.
            Are the records complete for that time span (1809 - 1815) ? Was VDL in use as well as NSW, and any ideas which other areas were being used during those dates?

            Jay
            Janet in Yorkshire



            Genealogists never die - they just swap places in the family tree

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            • #7
              I wondered what that said - 'beyond the seas'. Now you've said that it makes sense to me.

              Is it possible he wasn't transported at all, but spent the time aboard prison hulks? I don't know enough about transportation I'm afraid but as he was pardoned only 6 years after his conviction it would be possible. Were transportees returned home after their sentence was completed? I'm almost certain I read somewhere that they had to arrange and pay for their return to Britain themselves.
              My avatar is my Great Grandmother Emma Gumbert

              Sue at Langley Vale

              Comment


              • #8
                That's what I've been pondering all day,Sue, that he remained on the hulk. And it does seem the most likely answer.

                Looking down the image, only a small number of the men were transported to NSW, (with a transportation date ) and following the word "life".
                The fate of the majority was transportation "beyond the seas" and for 7 yrs. But if most of the convicts stayed put on the hulk for several years, surely they would need to keep adding fresh hulks?? On the double page which includes Stephen, only a very few are reported to have died or escaped, or to have gone to NSW.
                Most, like Stephen, have a date of pardon - but this isn't given for the NSW candidates. Well, word wouldn't filter back to the keeper of the hulk records, would it?
                I've also thought about the immense difficulty of returning from Australia or anywhere else. And the fact that the government paid private firms to transport the prisoners - not sending all of them and keeping the majority to work for free on the banks of the river Thames would make good economic sense.
                But why include the word "transportation" in the sentence and record, rather than just say "7 years servitude" ????

                My gut feeling is that he didn't actually go "beyond the seas" - (this is a phrase I remember from junior school history lessons a VERY long time ago.:D
                Janet in Yorkshire



                Genealogists never die - they just swap places in the family tree

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                • #9
                  convicts for transportation were kept in the ships on the river. if they were pardoned, i would assume they had spent all their time on the ship, and were not transported at all.

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                  • #10
                    Thanks for that kyle, that was the conclusion I'd come to.
                    Especially as he got back to his home village in Norfolk and married there.
                    From what I've read about conditions on the hulks, he was lucky to have survived almost six years on there.

                    Jay
                    Janet in Yorkshire



                    Genealogists never die - they just swap places in the family tree

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      oh definently janet. nothing short of an iron constitution was needed, the ships were rife with disease, and they were all crammed in their filth till they overflowed. maybe he wasn't on the same ship for 6 years, but it still was horrible.

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