Developing the Colony

I would estimate that more people know that Captain Cook, an English explorer, discovered the continent of Australia in 1770 than the number of people who know how the country was developed since those early days. For instance, did you know that Australia was originally an island of convicts, made up of those who were convicted of often petty-crimes from across the British Empire between the late 17-1800s?

Modern-day police protection did not exist in former-day England so they thought the answer was to execute hard-core criminals and banish others who had a propensity to disobey rules of society.

The Hyde Park Barracks was the landing place for male criminals and the central point of distribution throughout the region. This facility was also used to process female immigrants seeking work as domestic servants and those awaiting family reunion. One of the floors was also used as a female asylum from 1862 to 1886.

As detailed on a Hyde Park Barracks web site:

"The convicts who passed through the Barracks were transported for many different crimes, ranging from the most daring highway robbers and murderers to those born into extreme poverty, who committed petty crimes such as stealing food in order to stay alive. The vast majority of convicts were pickpockets, petty thieves, robbers and tricksters, but there were also political protesters and conspirators, machine breakers, notorious runaways, Greek pirates, rebellious Jamaican slaves, forgers, deserter soldiers, bank robbers, and murderers."

England needed a place to remove criminals from society because America, where they were sending criminals previously, was moving toward independence.

When Cook discovered Australia, their problem was solved. While England and Ireland made up 90% of the forced migrants, there were still 10% who came from other countries in the British Empire such as South Africa, Canada and Malaysia. In the end there were roughly 164,000 convicts who landed on the shores of Australia and it is said that 20% of modern-day Australians are descended from these transported convicts!

In essence, it was the labor of those serving time in Australia that built this colony. Convicts were either assigned to work for private employers or held at the Barracks if they had skills the colonial government needed. Many went out each day to work on government roads, docks, quarries or other building projects, while others came from around the colony to stand trial at what is known as the Barracks Bench.

Today's visitors to the Hyde Park Barracks are able to walk through the original building revealing rooms, staircases, fireplaces etc from early 1800s while original markings on walls continue to tell stories of what went on during the early years.

The museum did a great job not only displaying artifacts used in the Barracks (such as uniforms, meals and instruction manual) but also provided personal accounts of those who served here (like Lucy Hicks who processed arrivals) together with written accounts from inmates. It was sobering to look at the roster of inmates and the details of their crime. For instance, punishment for those who stole an animal was 'only' 7 years where it could be a life sentence for stealing cloth!

The Barracks was designed to hold up to 600 men but sometimes housed over 1300! Different floors held convicts of different stripes, with varying life stories and misdemeanors. Living conditions were obviously not the greatest with up to 70 men and boys sleeping in a single room. Supervision was tight with guards constantly watching (sometimes through peep holes) and regimenting convicts into the daily routine.

The top floor of the museum gave us a good idea of what it would have been like to be captive in this place when we encountered life-size silhouette images by a row of windows. I had to do a double-take to make sure these were not actual people standing by the windows to view life on the outside.

It is said that a good percentage of those who completed their time and released into society decided to stay in Australia because the country resembled that of their home country. Turns out that many of those released encouraged friends and family from their home country to join them even though passage to Australia was expensive.

People discovered, however, that the government would pay for passage when they were convicted of a crime and sentenced to this continent! As was the thought process, "Why not do a minor crime and get free passage to Australia?"

Eventually the numbers of those staying in the Barracks dwindled and, according to our guide, "the purpose of the barracks was fulfilled" by the time it closed in 1848.