James and Benjamin Kirk: #2 Convict Assignment
James Kirk (abt. 1794-1877) and Benjamin Kirk (abt. 1777-1844) and their life as indentured farm servants in Australia
This post is part two of a two-part series about a stolen sheep and transportation to Australia.
If you would like to start at the beginning head to part one:
Arrival in Australia
John and Benjamin arrived at Port Jackson, Sydney, Australia on 17 February 1833 aboard the prison ship Camden. In keeping with the practice at the time, when James and Benjamin arrived in New South Wales, they were each assigned to a Settler as an indentured farm servant:
James was assigned to James Arnell of Woodlands and Benjamin to Jeremiah Warlters of Port Macquarie1. It’s unlikely they ever saw each other again after that.
The following map provides an overview of the places associated with each of them - orange for James and purple for Benjamin.
James Kirk - Life in Australia
James is described in the convict indents2 3 as follows:
33-379; No. 7; James Kirk
[Age] 40
[Can read or write] No
Protestant
Married
[Children - boys] 2
[Children girls] 3
[Native of] Buckinghamshire
[Indenture] Farm servant
[Sentenced for] sheep stealing
[Where tried] Buckinghamshire
[When tried] 28 February 1832
[Sentence - years] Life
[Sentence – months] None
[Height feet and inches] 5ft 6 ¾
[Complexion] Dark sallow & pockpitted
[Hair] Dark Brown
[Eyes] Brown; Cast outward in left eye, and nearly blind of it;
nephew of No. 8 [Benjamin Kirk].
While this lists James as being 40 years old in February 1833, it is more likely that he was about 38 years old4.
As already mentioned, on arrival in Australia, James was indentured to James Arnell of Woodlands as a farm servant. Woodlands is probably the name of James Arnell’s property? While I don’t know exactly where that was, it is likely to have been somewhere near Muswellbrook in the District of Merton as per the map above.
It was at Muswellbrook where, on 5 March 1841, James was granted a Ticket of Leave (No. 41/588). This was later cancelled for disorderly conduct and destroyed. It was restored as a new Ticket the following year5 6 7.
No. 41/588 5 March 1841
Prisoner No. 33/379
James Kirk
Ship …. Camden
Master [of ship] … Clayton
Year …. 1833
Place of Trial …. Buckinghamshire
Date of Trial …. 28 February 1832
Sentence …. Life - Allowed to remain in the District of Merton - On recommendation of Merton Bench
Dated Nov 1840
Cancelled for disorderly conduct, see Govs min dated 23 November 1841 in letter from Merton Reg 41/11831. Ticket destroyed.
Restored 42/2599
It seems that James managed to stay out of trouble for about 6 months after his Ticket of Leave was issued in March 1841. It was the following October that the disorderly conduct charge was brought. On 20 October 1841, after being charged, James was taken from Muswellbrook to the jail at Newcastle and, from there, he was imprisoned at the Hyde Park Barracks in Sydney where the following entry was made8 9 :
Standing Number - 1036
James Kirk
Arrival Ship - Camden
Arrival Year - 1833;
Year of Birth - 1790
Stature - 5ft 7 ½ inches
Make - Stout
Complexion - Dark
Colour of Hair - Brown
Colour of Eyes - Hazel10
General Remarks - Burned Scars, right and left arms.
The birthdate of 1790 is not only inconsistent with the age suggested on James’ earlier convict records, it is also incorrect11. It is more likely that he was born in 1794.
The Governor’s Minute of 23 November 1841 shows that James’ March 1841 ticket of leave was destroyed on 3 December 1841 [No. 41/11831]12 13.
At some stage, James must have been released from the Hyde Park Barracks because on, 21 October 1842, a new Ticket of Leave (No. 42/2599) was issued in Patrick Plains District14. By this time, then, it appears that James was living in Singleton where he remained until his death some 35 years later.
On 1 June 1848, James was recommended for15, and given16 17, a conditional pardon (No. 48/1046) by the Governor of New South Wales.
The wording of the pardon reiterates that James' sentence was transportation to the Colony for his natural life. It makes it clear that his pardon will become void if he should “go to, or be in, any part of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland” during the time of his sentence18.
As James’ sentence was transportation for life, that effectively meant that James could never return to his family in England. In any event, by 1848, James’ wife and youngest son had died and his daughters were in the care of the workhouse. To what extent he ever got news from home, if at all, and whether or not he knew of his family’s circumstances, I don’t know. As indicated in the Convict Indents mentioned above, James could neither read nor write when he arrived in Australia.
As far as I have been able to determine so far, it doesn't appear that James married and/or had children in Australia. I descend from his eldest child William (my 4th great grandfather) who was 12 years old when his father was transported.
James died in 1877 at Singleton in the Patrick Plains District of New South Wales19. He would have been about 83 years old when he died.
Benjamin Kirk - Life in Australia
Benjamin is described in the convict indents20 21 as follows:
33-380; No. 8; Benjamin Kirk
[Age] 52
[Can read or write] No
Protestant
Married
[Children - boys] 2
[Children - girls] 6
[Native of] Buckinghamshire
[Indenture] Farm servant
[Sentenced for] sheep stealing
[Where tried] Buckinghamshire
[When tried] 28 February 1832
[Sentence – years] Life
[Sentence – months] None
[Height feet and inches] 5ft 4 ¾
[Complexion Dark sallow & wrinkled
[hair] Dark Brown
[Eyes] Hazel
Front teeth irregular, top joint on fourth finger of right hand contracted
uncle to No.7 [James Kirk]
While this lists Benjamin as 52 in February 1833, it is likely that he had recently turned 5622.
As already mentioned, Benjamin was assigned to Jeremiah Warlters of Port Macquarie. He stayed in Port Macquarie throughout his indenture and beyond. He was granted a Ticket of Leave in the District of Port Macquarie (No. 41/7866) on 3 April 184123. Not long after that, during 1841-42, Benjamin received a Pardon24.
No. 701
Benjamin Kirk
[Ship] Camden (2) [second sailing]
[Year of arrival] 1833
[Tried Where] Buckinghamshire
[Tried When] 28 February 1832
[Sentence] Life
[Authority under which granted] Regulations of May 1835
Most pardons I have come across in the past have been granted under a Governor’s minute. Benjamin’s pardon was granted under the ‘Regulations of May 1835’. I have been unable to find out much about these Regulations but my presumption is that they were essentially administrative in nature and provided a delegation to an office holder of some sort to issue pardons under certain conditions without the matter needing to go to the Governor for a Governor's minute?
Benjamin continued to work for Jeremiah Warlters until his untimely death in 1844. He was working as a storeman when he was killed by a charging bullock and died at the hospital at Port Macquarie. Benjamin was buried on 4 August 184425 26 27. He would most probably have been about 67 but is listed as being 6228.
The timing could not have been worse. Benjamin’s youngest daughter, Martha planned to join her father. She travelled on an assisted passage from England aboard the St Vincent with her husband, Newman Hollis, and their five children. They left London on 1 April 1844 and arrived in Sydney on 31 July 184429. From there they would have travelled on to Port Macquarie. However, it is likely she arrived too late to reunite with Benjamin.
Convict Assignment - A Lottery?
I suspect that the convict assignment system was a bit of a lottery in terms of where a convict ended up and how they were treated. This, in turn, could well have influenced, and been reflected in, a convict’s behaviour and the extent to which they got into trouble after arrival in Australia. Each convict’s general character and ability to adapt to the circumstances they found themselves in also being a factor, of course.
It appears that, unlike James, Benjamin managed to stay out of trouble after he received his Ticket of Leave. He continued to work for Jeremiah Warlters. This suggests he probably had a reasonable relationship with him. James on the other hand seems to have been more restless. Was Benjamin’s placement a happier one than James’? Or was it just that Benjamin had a calmer temperament than James and was less prone to trouble?
As mentioned above in the Convict Indents, like James, Benjamin could neither read nor write when he arrived in Australia. Perhaps he had learned to in Australia given that, by the time he died he was working as a Storeman. Perhaps he knew of his daughter’s plan to travel to Australia and, therefore, had something to look forward to? What did James have to look forward to? Did he know of his family’s circumstances?
Postscript
When James Kirk was transported to Australia he left behind a wife and five small children. You can read about what happened to them here:
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This post draws on information from my family history archive on the weare.xyz platform.
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Notes:
Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; (The National Archives Microfilm Publication HO10, Pieces 1-4, 6-18, 28-30); The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Settler and Convict Lists, 1787-1834 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Accessed 8 April 2022.
Annotated Printed Convict Indents - New South Wales, Australia Convict Indents, 1788-1842 State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12189; Item: [X635]; Microfiche: 703 via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Convict Indents, 1788-1842 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Accessed 8 April 2022.
Convict Indents State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12188; Item: [4/4017]; Microfiche: 684 via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Convict Indents, 1788-1842 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Accessed 8 April 2022.
James had an older brother named James after whom he was named. His brother James died in 1793 so James must have been born after that. If he had been 40 in February 1833, he would have been born before the death of his brother James. It seems more likely that James was 38 in February 1833 and turned 39 during 1833 having been born about 1794.
Convicts Index 1791-1873 - Ship: Camden | Citation: [4/4149; Reel 939] Entry No: 41/588| Record Type: Ticket of Leave via New South Wales State Archives & Records [online database] Accessed 15 March 2020
State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12202; Item: [4/4149] via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Tickets of Leave, 1810-1869 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Accessed 8 April 2022
Convict Ships – Camden 1833 – James Kirk via Jen Willets Free Settler or Felon Newcastle and Hunter Valley Convict & Colonial History [Website]. Accessed 10 Apr 2022.
The Gaol Description and Entrance books for Newcastle Jail - State Archives NSW; Kingswood, New South Wales; Gaol Description and Entrance Books, 1818-1930; Item: 2/2016; Roll: 759 via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Gaol Description and Entrance Books, 1818-1930 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2012. Accessed 8 April 2022.
Convict Ships – Camden 1833 – James Kirk via Jen Willets Free Settler or Felon Newcastle and Hunter Valley Convict & Colonial History [Website]. Accessed 10 Apr 2022.
The ‘Make’ and ‘Colour of Hair’ and ‘Colour of Eyes’ are shown as ‘Do’ = Ditto in the record snippet whereas the information I have added in transcript is taken from the earlier entries to which the ‘Do’ refers.
See Note 4 above.
State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12202; Item: [4/4149] via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Tickets of Leave, 1810-1869 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Accessed 8 April 2022
Convict Ships – Camden 1833 – James Kirk via Jen Willets Free Settler or Felon Newcastle and Hunter Valley Convict & Colonial History [Website]. Accessed 10 Apr 2022
Convicts Index 1791-1873 - Ship: Camden | Citation: [4/4168; Reel 936] Entry No: 42/2599| Record Type: Ticket of Leave via New South Wales State Archives & Records [Online database]. Accessed 12 April 2022
Convicts Index 1791-1873 - Ship: Camden | Year 1833 | Citation: [4/4168; Reel 946| Entry No: 42/2599| Record Type: Ticket of Leave via New South Wales State Archives & Records [Online Database]. Accessed 12 April 2022
Convicts Index 1791-1873 - Ship: Camden | Year 1833 | Citation: [4?4458; Reel 787 Page 201-202] | Entry No: 48/1046 | Record Type: Conditional Pardon | Date: 1 Jun 1848 via New South Wales State Archives & Records [Online Database]. Accessed 12 April 2022
Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; (HO10, Piece 53); The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England via Ancestry.com. New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia, Convict Pardons and Tickets of Leave, 1834-1859 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Accessed 12 April 2022
Copy of Conditional Pardon shared via upload to Ancestry.com by Geoffrey Walduck on 22 October 2017. Accessed 10 April 2022
NSW Pioneer Index - Pioneer Series 1778-1888 Transcript via Ancestry.com. Australia, Death Index, 1787-1985 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Accessed 12 April 2022. I can’t be sure this record is for the right James Kirk but it seems likely given James’ history and his location in the Patrick Plains area in 1842
Annotated Printed Convict Indents - New South Wales, Australia Convict Indents, 1788-1842 State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12189; Item: [X635]; Microfiche: 703 via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Convict Indents, 1788-1842 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Accessed 8 April 2022
Convict Indents State Archives NSW; Series: NRS 12188; Item: [4/4017]; Microfiche: 684 via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Convict Indents, 1788-1842 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2011. Accessed 12 April 2022
Benjamin was baptised on 9 February 1777. It is likely, therefore, that he was born in late 1776 or January/February 1777. To have been 52 when he arrived in Sydney, as the record suggests, he would have had to have been born in about 1781. In light of his baptism date in 1777, a birthdate in 1781 is too early.
Ticket of Leave - 4/4150; Reel 940 Entry No: 41/786 via NSW State Archives & Records [online database] Accessed 8 April 2022 Pardons 1841-1842 - Home Office: Settlers and Convicts, New South Wales and Tasmania; (HO10, Piece 57)
The National Archives of the UK (TNA), Kew, Surrey, England via Ancestry.com. New South Wales and Tasmania, Australia, Convict Pardons and Tickets of Leave, 1834-1859 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Accessed 12 April 2022
Convict Death Register. Series 12213, SR Reel 690. State Records Authority of New South Wales, Kingswood, New South Wales, Australia via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Convict Death Register, 1826-1879 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Accessed 12 April 2022
NSW Pioneer Index - Pioneer Series 1778-1888 via Ancestry.com. Australia, Death Index, 1787-1985 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Accessed 12 April 2022
Convicts Index 1791-1873 - Ship: Camden | Citation: [4/4549; Reel 690 Page 124] | Record Type: Convict Death Register | Date: 04/08/1844 via New South Wales State Archives & Records Accessed 8 April 2022
Copy of Death Listing shared via upload to Ancestry.com by casdas1 on 28 July 2018. Accessed 10 April 2022. See also Note 22 above regarding likely birthdate.
State Records Authority of New South Wales; Kingswood New South Wales, Australia; Persons on bounty ships (Agent's Immigrant Lists); Series: 5316; Reel: 2135; Item: [4/4785] via Ancestry.com. New South Wales, Australia, Assisted Immigrant Passenger Lists, 1828-1896 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Accessed 8 April 2022.
I have no knowledge or experience of the Australian convict system so this is very interesting to see the details of it.