Free Settler or Felon
Convict and Colonial History




Convict Ship Katherine Stewart Forbes - 1830


Embarked: 200 men
Voyage: 127 days
Deaths: 1
Surgeon's Journal: yes
Crew: 53 men
Previous vessel: James Pattison arrived 20 January 1830
Next vessel: Dunvegan Castle arrived 30 March 1830
Captain Thomas Canney
Surgeon Superintendent Patrick McTernan
Prisoners and passengers of the Katherine Stewart Forbes identified in the Hunter Valley


Thee Katherine Stewart Forbes was built in 1818 and weighed 473 tons. She transported convicts to Australia on this voyage in 1830 (NSW) and to Van Diemen's Land in 1832.

Having been fitted up for the voyage ahead, the ship arrived in Portsmouth on 30th September 1829 to embark prisoners.

The prisoners had been tried in the following counties in England - London, Essex, Lancaster, Worcester, Norfolk, Surrey, Middlesex, Southampton, York, Wiltshire, Warwick, Berks, Sussex, Suffolk, Hereford, Leicester, Chester, Oxford, Northampton. From county gaols they were taken to various hulks where they were incarcerated until transferred to the Katherine Stewart Forbes. James Bulger, William Mason and John Kerman had been tried at the Old Bailey on 11 June and sent to the York Hulk; others were sent to the Leviathan. They were all embarked on 2nd October 1829.

Departure

The Katherine Stewart Forbes departed Plymouth on 18th October 1829.

Military Guard

Major Fairtclough of 63rd Regiment commanded the Guard. The Guard consisted of Ensign Jones of the 63rd and paymaster Foster of the 63rd as well as 1 sergeant., 1 corporal, 18 privates and two women of 17th Regiment and a sergeant, corporal, drummer and three women and four children of the 63rd regiment. Select here to find convicts ships bringing detachments of the 63rd regiment.

Surgeon Patrick McTernan

This was Patrick McTernan's third voyage as surgeon superintendent of a convict ship. He kept a Medical Journal from 18 September 1829 to 2 March 1830........

The general system of cleanliness adopted and the minute and unceasing attention paid to ventilating and cleaning the prison as well as to the personal comforts of the prisoners have in this instance been followed by the most gratifying results again. For to these circumstances must be attributed what I at present consider an unusual fact that out of so many men congregated from different jails; of different idiosyncratic habits and confined within the narrow space of a ship's lower deck with wet and damp, only thirty-six should be put on the sick list in the space of five months and only five of those cases of a serious nature.

Convicts of the Katherine Stewart Forbes mentioned in Patrick McTernan's journal included
Richard Hales (Hailes),
Samuel Stains,
Charles Tennant,
John Martin,
William Curtis,
John Smith,
Samuel Lee (Lea),
Edward Botfield (Bosfield),
Robert Gaye (Gage),
William Roebuck (Rowbuck),
George Stotter,
William Nicholls,
Philip Dignum,
George Emberson,
John Ware,
William Hodges,
Charles Hardingham,
John Daltry and
John Vincent

Patrick McTernan was also employed as surgeon on the convict ships Mariner in 1827, Manlius to Van Diemen's Land in 1828 and the Dunvegan Castle in 1832.

Port Jackson

They arrived in Port Jackson on 18 February 1830 with 199 male prisoners, one, William Rowbuck having died of epilepsy on the passage out.

Convict Muster

The prisoners were mustered on board by Colonial Secretary Alexander McLeay. Convict indents record each prisoner's name, age, religion, education, marital status, family, native place, trade, offence, date and place of trial, former convictions, physical description and to whom the men were assigned on arrival. There is also occasional information regarding conditional pardons and deaths. The youngest prisoners on the voyage were sixteen years old.

On 23rd February 1830, the Sydney Gazette published an address written by the grateful prisoners to Patrick McTernon........

This gentleman, the Surgeon Superintendent of the Katherine Stewart Forbes, is now here on his third visit in that responsible capacity; and from the kind and skilful manner in which he has discharged the duties of his office, he has not only preserved the best order and discipline among the prisoners, but received their public and unanimous thanks. We have much pleasure in publishing the following address from the men brought out by the above named ship:

To Dr. McTernan, Honoured Sir, The undersigned being sensible of your great goodness, humbly solicit you to receive our united and grateful acknowledgments of our satisfaction with your whole conduct towards us. But if more to particularise our sentiments may be at all acceptable, we beg to inform you that we highly approve of the excellent discipline you maintain among us, as well as your reluctance to punish, it being apparent that your constant study is to render our situation as comfortable as well can be, not giving encouragement to the tale bearer, but greatly stimulating the sober minded to piety.

And by no means must we omit to mention the high esteem we have of the important and well directed sermons you delivered to us on the Sabbaths; trusting they will be as bread cast on the waters, to be found after many days. Several of the illiterate among us have been taught to read, and many to say their church catechisms. Your unremitting attention to these subjects is characteristic of a heart fraught with benevolence. We therefore beg of you to receive our united and sincere thanks for so much goodness towards us. That the blessing of the Almighty may rest upon you through time, and in the end thereof receive you to joy unspeakable, is the prayer of your devoted humble servants,
The Prisoners On Board The Katherine Stewart Forbes.

Assignment

Some of convicts were assigned to settlers in the Williams River district - Joseph Rookin, Grayson Hartley, John Mann, Lawrence Myles, William Dun, Alexander Warren and William Foster; and to Paterson to J.P. Webber and Samul Adair. In Maitland Luke Lamb was assigned to Lieut. Wood. Others were assigned to work for the Australian Agricultural Company. There was no place of assignment against Phillip Dignum who gave his occupation as clerk. He may have been sent to the 'Valley of the Swells', Wellington Valley.

Convicts of the Katherine Stewart Forbes identified in the Hunter Valley region:

Bailey, James
Ploughs, reaps. milks. Native place Essex. Assigned to Joseph Rookin on arrival


Barnes, James
Stableman from Essex. Assigned to Grayson Hartley


Bassett, Thomas
Engine driver from Worcester. Assigned to Grayson Hartley


Brown, John
Ploughman from Essex. Assigned to William Foster


Chamberlain, George
Shepherd, ploughs and reaps. Native place Warwick. Assigned to Alexander McLeod


Chapman, Charles
Well sinker from Suffolk. Assigned. Assigned to Frederick Augustus Hely


Chapman, Thomas
Soldier from Yorkshire. Assigned to John Mann


Clarkson, David
Fish hook maker from Worcestershire. Assigned to John Mann


Clewley, William
Stable man from Oxford. Assigned to J.P. Webber


Cobb, Charles
Gardener from Hants. Assigned to John Hawdon


Cooper, William
Ploughman from Hants. Assigned to Lawrence Myles


Coppard, William
Labourer and ploughman from Sussex. Assigned to Samuel Adair


Crew, Frederick Augustus
Cooper from Middlesex.


Crowley, James
Labourer from Cork. Assigned to William Foster


Davis, Edward
Ploughman, milks. Native place Hertfordshire. Assigned to A.A. Company


Edgely, James
Waggoner and hawker from Stirling. Assigned to Rev. Lang


Eldred, William
Whitesmith from Suffolk. Assigned to Dept. of Public Works


Emberson, George
Ploughman, milks, reaps. Native of Essex. Assigned to A.A. Company


Everitt, James
Milks, reaps. Native place Norfolk. Assigned to A.A. Company


Felkins, John
Groom from Nottinghamshire. Assigned to Archibald Bell


Fielder, John
Labourer and bricklayer from Hants. Assigned to A.A. Company


Frost, Edward
Bricklayer, ploughs, shears. Native place Suffolk. Assigned to A.A. Company


Galley, Charles
Butcher, shears, reaps, milks. Native place Derbyshire. Assigned to Alexander Warren


Gilbert, Henry
Alias Henry Stableton. Alias Edward Stephens. Cowboy, reaps. Native place Essex. Assigned to William Carter


Hammond, John
Shoemaker from Bury St. Edmonds. Assigned to James Reid


Hance, John
Labourer, reaps, milks. Native place Essex. Assigned to J.M. Davis


Hickman, James
Baker and brewer from Southampton. Assigned to Robert Johnstone at Annandale


Jackson, Thomas
Ploughman from Manchester. Assigned to Major Druitt at Penrith


James, Edward
Shears, reaps, milks. Native place Hertfordshire. Assigned to Frederick Augustus Hely


Jaycock, John Richard
Labourer from Oxford. Sent to Newcastle gaol 1831


Laceter, Joseph
Miner from Lancashire. Assigned to John Galt Smith


Lamb, Luke
Indoor servant from Dorsetshire. Assigned to Lieut. Wood


Lea, Samuel
Labourer and silk weaver from Northamptonshire. Assigned to Alexander McLeod


Lintott, Richard
Indoor servant from Sussex. Assigned to Rev. Richard Hill


Lord, Jonathan
Bargeman from Wakefield. Assigned to Carters Barracks.


Metson, John
Sawyer, reaps, milks. Native place Essex.


Morgan, William
Ploughman, milks. Native place Hertfordshire. Assigned to William Carter


Newell, Thomas
Chairmaker from Oxfordshire


North, Thomas
Labourer, groom, milks. Native place Wiltshire. Assigned to James Greig


Parker, Charles
Ploughman, dairyman from Cheshire. Assigned to Chief Justice Sir Francis Forbes


Parr, William
Labourer from Lancashire. Assigned to John Brown of Bolwarra


Parsons, William
Knife boy and stable boy from Sicily. Assigned to Standish Lawrence Harris


Pewter, Mark
Ploughs, reaps, milks. Native place Essex. Assigned to Alexander McLeod at Ratagan


Pilmbeam, James
Cow boy and stable boy from Essex. Assigned to Joseph Rookin


Prior, James
Ploughs, shears, reaps, milks. Native place Wiltshire. Assigned to Henry Holden


Reardon, John
Labourer, reaps. Native place Cork. Assigned to John Brown of Bolwarra


Richards, Charles
Carpenter and builder from Cornwall. Assigned to James King


Robinson, Charles
Tobacco spinner from Shropshire. Assigned to Peter McIntyre


Russell, John
Hardwood turner from Birmingham. Assigned to William Dangar


Sheldon, Thomas
Miner and quarryman from Warwickshire. Assigned to Mineral Surveyor


Slaughter, Joseph
Bricklayer, labourer and ostler from St. Albans. Assigned to Sarah Redfern at Airds on arrival


Smith, William
Shoemaker from London. Assigned to James Robertson


Staines, Samuel
Ploughs, shears, milks, reaps. Native place Essex. Assigned to Samuel Adair


Stockings, Robert
Cooper from Norfolk.


Stotter, George
Labourer, reaps. Native place Berkshire. Assigned to Caleb Wilson


Sutton, James
Cloth factory worker from Wiltshire. Assigned to William Carter


Taylor, Edward
Jockey from Hertfordshire. Assigned to Robert and Helenus Scott


Tompson, William
Groom and labourer from Norfolk. Assigned to Richard Lang


Trowles, Isaac
Labourer, reaps, milks. Native place Essex.


Walker, Samuel
Nailor, reaps. Native place Worcestershire. Assigned to Alexander Warren


Ware, George
Blacksmith from Essex. Assigned to Dept. Public Works on arrival. Brother of James and John Ware


Ware, James
Shoemaker from Essex. Assigned to George Wyndham


Ware, John
Shoemaker from Essex. Assigned to William Burnett


Watts, George Solomon
Cabinet maker's apprentice. Native place Norwich. Assigned to Henry Dumaresq


Woods, James
Ploughman, milks. Tried at Liverpool. Assigned to William Dun


Wort, Charles
Shepherd from Hants. Assigned to Duncan Forbes Mackay

Notes and Links

1). Prisoners and passengers of the Katherine Stewart Forbes identified in the Hunter Valley

2). Jonathan Jones was executed for highway robbery in Sydney in 1833.

3). Return of Convicts of the Katherine Stewart Forbes assigned between 1st January 1832 and 31st March 1832 (Sydney Gazette 14 June 1832; 21 June 1832; 28 June 1832).....

George Cooper - Wheelwright assigned to Alexander Turner at Argyle
James Crossley - Stone Cutter assigned to W.P. Faithful at Goulburn Plains
William Carr - Ploughs etc., assigned to Henry Butsworth at Sydney
James Holmes - Labourer assigned to John Betts at Parramatta
John Kiernan - Whitesmith and bell hanger. Assigned to A.L. Pattison at Sydney
William Lupton - Pit sawyer assigned to Cornelius O'Brien at Illawarra
Joseph Moore - Nailer. Assigned to Mary Raine at Parramatta
Thomas McDonald - Tailor. Assigned to P. Atchison in Sydney

4). Ships bringing detachments of the 63rd regiment -

Albion departed Sheerness 1 June 1828 - Lieut. M. Vickery

Eliza departed London 29 June 1828 - Major Sholto Douglas

Marquis of Hastings departed 30 June 1828 - Ensign Stulbmer

Royal George departed Spithead 26 August 1828 - Captain J. Briggs

Vittoria departed Devonport1 September 1828 - Lieut. Aubyn

Governor Ready departed Cork 21 September 1828 - Lieut. J. Gibbons Lane

Ferguson departed Dublin 16 November 1828 - Captain D'Arcy Wentworth

Mellish departed Falmouth 2 January 1829 - Captain Baylee

Lord Melville departed London 5 January 1829 - Lieut-Col. Burke

Waterloo departed London 14 March 1829 - Lieut. T. Grove

America departed Woolwich 8 April 1829 - Adjutant T. Montgomery

Norfolk departed Spithead 22 May 1829 - Ensign W.J. Darling

Guildford departed Dublin 12 July 1829 - Lieut McLean 89th

Larkins departed Cork 16 August 1829 - Captain Mahon

Claudine departed London 24 August 1829 - Captain Paterson

Sarah departed London 29 August 1829 - Lieut. Croly

Dunvegan Castle departed 30 September 1829 - Lieut. John Gray

Katherine Stewart Forbes departed Spithead 14 October 1829 - Major Fairtclough


5). Convict Ships bringing detachments of the 17th regiment........

Dunvegan Castle departed Sheerness 30 September 1829 - Lieut. John Grey

Katherine Stewart Forbes departed Spithead 14 October 1829 - Major Fairtclough 63rd regt.,

Mermaid departed Sheerness 5 December 1829 - Lieutenant Isaac Blackburn

Forth 1 departed Cork 1 January 1830 - Captain James Oliphant Clunie

Nithsdale departed Sheerness 1 January 1830 - Captain Robert G. Moffatt

Lady Feversham departed Portsmouth 8 April 1830 - Lieutenant Harvey 29th regt.,

Marquis of Huntley departed Sheerness 9 April 1830 Lieutenant Watson 20th regt.,

Adrian departed Portsmouth 27 April 1830 - Ensign Reynolds

Lord Melville departed the Downs 6 June 1830 - Lieutenant Robert Graham

Hercules departed Dublin 3 July 1830 - Major J.W. Bouverie

Royal Admiral departed Portsmouth 5 July 1830 - Captain John Church

Burrell departed Plymouth 27 July 1830 - Captain John Alexander Edwards

Andromeda departed Cork 28 August 1830 - Captain Charles Forbes

York departed Sheerness 4 September 1830 - Lieut-Col. Henry Despard

Edward departed Cork 17 October 1830 - Captain Deeds

Eliza II departed Cork 10 May 1832 - Lieutenant Hewson 4th regiment

References

[1] Ancestry.com. UK, Royal Navy Medical Journals, 1817-1857. 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.348-349, 386

[3] Ancestry.com - New South Wales Government. Bound manuscript indents, 1788 - 1842. NRS 12188, microfiche 614 - 619,626 - 657, 660 - 695. State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia.