Australian Convict Sites

In April 2022, we finally ticked off all the 11 Individual Convict sites that make up the 1 UNESCO site across Australia with a number of individual trips over the last 2 years. It is funny how COVID made me prioritise our own UNESCO sites due to travel restrictions. Probably the least inspiring of the 11 is the remnants of the Convict Road northwest of Sydney, however made a lovely road trip in the region. Sydney area has a grouping of 4 sites, Fremantle 1, 5 across Tasmania and 1 in Norfolk Island. I found the sites in Tasmania more interesting, however the site at Norfolk Island was amazing. Each of the sites are easily visited with a variety of tours available. My favourites to visit were the Kingston and Arthur's Vale Historic area on Norfolk Island, Darlington Probation Station on Maria Island (TAS) and Port Arthur (TAS).         

Growing up in Australia, one of the main subjects of our history classes were convicts. Nearly all of the Australian state capitals were firstly settled by Europeans as convict penal settlements, the destination for criminals sent from England during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. It's hard to understand the reasoning behind this decision these days (at the time it was a six month plus voyage!) Regardless, it led to the colonisation of Australia by Britain, and many white inhabitants of the country (myself included) can trace their roots to convicts.

Due to the number of convict settlements scattered around the country, it's only fitting that the locations for this WHS are also scattered around the country. After visiting the majority of the 11 locations, these are my thoughts:

Hyde Park Barracks: One of the easiest sites to visit, this site is centrally located in Sydney and just a short walk from the separately listed Sydney Opera House WHS. This grand building was one of the earliest permanent buildings constructed in the colony and was where my great great great grandfather firstly stayed on his arrival. I've visited multiple times. The new immersive experience is a little glitchy, but currently free (usually ticketed). 

Cockatoo Island: If visiting Sydney, this island located in the harbour is also relatively easy to visit, just a short ferry ride from Circular Quay, next to the Opera House. Just be warned the ferries aren't that frequent and stop rather early - …

On a brief stopover of three days before NYE 2020, I visited the Convict Sites around Sydney. The day I arrived, I was off to a splendid start, as the Hyde Park Barracks were undergoing renovations (should be completed by now / Summer 2020), so I only got some outside glimpses. Then, two days later on NYE, we took the boat to Cockatoo Island which ... was closed the whole day in preparation for the NYE party. My last chance was the Old Governor's House in Parramatta.

When I arrived it was awfully quiet and signs on the lawn were announcing that the Parramatta NYE party later that day was cancelled. The place looked desolate and I was acutely worried to find yet another closed site. And indeed, the museum was about to close due to low attendance. Luckily, they hadn't yet, so I got a mostly private tour. Later a few more tourists dropped in.

The tour guide painted a clear picture of the site. It's a simple home, nothing that would go for an estate in Europe at the time. The interiors are simple and certainly not luxurious. Australia was a poor, remote colony. Being governor of Australia was either a stepping stone for a young ambitious official or a retirement option for officials past their prime. And of the settlers, as the site name tells you, most came involuntarily as convicts. 

Initially, the estate served agricultural purposes. There wasn't much food to go around, …

I visited this WHS in January 2018. Of the 11 inscribed sites, 5 are scattered around Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania). Port Arthur and the Cascades Female Factory are the ones which attract most crowds as they cater for cruise ship tours and are among the closest to Hobart too. The highlight sites in Tasmania were the Brickendon and Woolmers Estates. While in Sydney we bought the Sydney Museums Pass, took a ferry to Cockatoo Island and then allowed around 2 hours to visit the Hyde Park Barracks Museum (just a short walk from the Sydney Opera House).

Reading up prior to visiting this WHS will certainly help to better understand and appreciate its national importance and perhaps its OUV. During the 80 years between 1787 and 1868, some 166,000 men, women and children were transported to Australia as convicts. This mass shift of population or forced migration to Australia was part of a global phenomenon associated with the punishment of crime, in this instance controlled by the British government. This phenomenon, known as convictism, dates back to the early 17th century and occured in many parts of the world with Britain, France, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Russia and Argentina all transporting criminals to locations across the globe.

In Australia today there are more than 3000 convict sites remaining, all representing different aspects of convictism. However, the 11 inscribed sites are considered to be outstanding examples of convictism in Australia. They spread from Freemantle in the west to Norfolk Island in …

This year I visited the 11th of the locations included in this WHS, the Fremantle Prison. Fremantle is connected by rail to the city of Perth WA.

The property is only accessible on a conducted tour, which takes you to the cells, kitchens, chapel, and exercise yards.

I visited the site in February 2012. In particular, I visited Cockatoo Island, The Hyde Park Barracks, and the Old Government House. The Sydney area locations are pretty easy to visit, especially the barracks.

View my complete review of the Australian Convict Sites on my website.

The Australian Convict Sites are a testament to the significant role British prisoners made in shaping the country. Intrigued by Australian history, I visited two of these sites in June 2012: Hyde Park Barracks in Sydney, and Fremantle Prison, in Western Australia. Between 1819 and 1848 Hyde Park Barracks housed convicts who were deemed serviceable for government employment, and the excellent museum and dormitories tell their stories. The barracks also housed a courtroom to judge convict/employer disputes with prisoners working throughout the colony. In Western Australia, prisoners were used as free labor to build the colony -- and their prison. Although the guards had nicer quarters outside what is now called Fremantle Prison (see photo) the cell blocks were more austere. The museum at the entrance explained everyday prisoner life here well. At both sites a well-behaved convict worked for the day he or she received a Certificate of Freedom, allowing them to stay and settle in Australia or leave the colony; many did stay, leaving their imprint on early Australian life. I highly recommend a walk through history at at least one of the inscribed sites when in Australia.

Logistics: Hyde Park Barracks is in the heart of Sydney, not far from the St. James railway station on the City Circle line. Fremantle Prison is in downtown Fremantle, a short walk from the city train station.

It is at the convict sites in Van Diemens Land (Tasmania) that you hear the gory stories of murders, floggings and isolated incarceration of convicts at the hands of the British gaolers. Neither men, women nor children were exempt.

Port Arthur convict site covers a huge area, but the first day I visited a cruise ship was in port and thousands of passengers were thronging the site. The following day however I had the whole site almost to myself. An interesting part of this site was the Dog Line, a line of chained mastiffs that guarded the site at the narrow isthmus of Eaglehawk Neck.

The Coal mines were another site where convicts, especially children were forced to toil for hours in subterranean shafts and galleries.

Darlington on Maria Island was home to repeat offenders where attempts at rehabilitation were made.

The Woolmers and Brickendon Estates near Longford were both established as sheep stations on behalf of private owners using convict labour.

The integrity of the Womens' Prison at Cascades in Hobart is very limited, and I find it hard to understand why this property made its way onto the WHS list. Especially as what I consider more deserving cases like Sarah Island in Macquarie Harbour and the Richmond Gaol were omitted.

The New South Wales convict sites are at a variety of locations, but none as gruesome at those in Van Diemens Land (Tasmania) or Norfolk Island.

The Hyde Park Barracks are easiliy accessible, being opposite the St James station.

The Old Government House at Parramatta is accessible from Sydney's Circular Quay either by train of by ferry. A loop bus in Parramatta links the station, ferry wharf and the site in Parramatta Park. The buildings were constructed by convict labour under Governor Macquarie, and housed the first 10 Governors of the Colony.

Cockatoo Island lies in the Parramatta River, and is accessible by ferry from either Circular Quay or Parramatta. On the lower level of the site the convict buildings were later adapted for shipbuilding works, while on the upper level the convict accommodation remains unaltered.

The Great North Road site is located on the north bank of the Hawkesbury River at Wisemans Ferry. It is accessible by the infrequent bus #663 from Windsor station, however inexpensive rental cars are available nearby. The road was carved from the sandstone cliff by convict labour, including masonry culverts beneath the road surface.

A recent visit to the Kingston and Arthur's Vale area of Norfolk Island produced a number of memorable moments. On ship day, I watched the unloading of cargo by means of wooden lighters negotiating the surf between ship and shore, a method only a little changed from when HMS Sirius was wrecked in 1790 performing the same feat.

The air in Norfolk is the clearest in the world outside Antarctica. At night the moon and Milky Way provided enough light to go walking at night in the old graveyard on Quality Row. That was until the moon went dark during an eclipse. For a while it became very spooky being amongst the tombstones in the dark.

Finally made it to Cockatoo Island today. This site has a schizophrenic identity, charting both it's convict history and maritime history as well as playing a role as a major arts venue. The current, huge exhibition is dedicated to street art (including some BANKSY work) and was the highlight of the day. The trip was also helped by the warm temperature, lack of rain and refreshing breeze.

Notwithstanding to maritime heritage, I have a few issues with the Convict and Heritage "Quarters". An audio guide could have potentially gone some way to resolving these, but alas, there was no one to dispense of one when I arrived. Otherwise the interpretation is rather poor. A number of buildings cannot be accessed (albeit that some restoration is currently under way). And the main convict quarters are little more that concrete shells with some of the original sandstone walls remaining. Even a couple rudimentary bunks with manikins in shackles would have helped.

There is also little attempt to place the site within the course of convict history and no mention of the other inscribed areas and the relationship with them. [Interestingly all four locations within the Sydney region are run by different agencies and none of them makes much mention of the World Heritage inscription, let alone where they fit in to the big picture.]

I appreciate that this a new inscription and a complex one, but a lot of work needs to be done to bring up the standard of presentation. This …

The 11 Convict Sites are mostly concentrated around Sydney and Tasmania. While staying in Hobart, I visited the Port Arthur Historic Site. I did so on a day tour with a Grayline Bus, but in retrospect, I would rather have hired a car so I could have visited some of the other Tasman convict sites too that are in the same area.

One of the reviewers below calls Port Arthur “another Disneyland to entertain the mindless hordes”. I would not go that far, but it was a disappointing visit. The worst thing indeed is the crowds (a few hundred people were there on the same day as me), and the way they are herded through the site. There’s a “guided walk” included in your ticket, where you will not walk at all but only get to hear the basic story about Port Arthur standing in the wet grass with about 80 other people.

I had paid extra for a tour of the Isle of the Dead. It’s in the bay in front of the historic buildings. Every entrance ticket will get you on the “cruise” through the bay where you can see a glimpse of Point Puer (where the young convicts were held) and the Isle of the Dead. The lucky visitors with the extra ticket could get off on the island for about 20 minutes, also on a tour presented by 2 very Australian guides (casual, going through the motions).

What I did like at the …

When I went to Tasmania for the first time in April 1997, I visited Port Arthur. It was almost one year after the massacre that claimed the lives of 35 people on site. A memorial was already built to remember those who had lost their lives. Port Arthur's penitentiary and other buildings were basically ruins due to bushfires and years of wear and tear. It is still picturesque with green rolling hills, colourful leaves (during that time of year), and clear water. I took the boat cruise around the Island of the Dead but found it a bit boring and the boat was quite crowded. However, there were lots of opportunities for taking pictures, not only of the ruins but also theh Tasmans Arch and Blow Hole.