Wednesday, December 07, 2022

Captain Edward Goldsmith: imports to Tasmania, exports to everywhere, 1840s-1860s

CAPTAIN EDWARD GOLDSMITH (1804-1869) merchant mariner
IMPORTS of exotic flora and bloodlines 1850s
EXPORTS of indigenous plants, birds and animals 1860s
FRANK HAES stereogram of the thylacine London Zoo 1865



Glover, John. Hobart Town, Taken from the Garden Where I Lived, 1832 / by John Glover (1832).
Glover, John, 1767-1849
Painting oil on canvas - 76 x 152 cm, State Library of NSW
Link: https://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/collection-items/hobart-town-taken-garden-where-i-lived

The Pretty Views of Hobart 1850
From the deck of HMS Havannah approaching the port of Hobart, Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) on 26th December, 1850, deputy adjutant Godfrey Mundy made these observations:
The extraordinary luxuriance of the common red geranium at this
season makes every spot look gay; at the distance of miles the sight is
attracted and dazzled by the wide patches of scarlet dotted over the
landscape. The hedges of sweet-brier, both in the town-gardens and
country-enclosures, covered with its delicate rose, absolutely monopolize
the air as a vehicle for its peculiar perfume: — the closely-clipped mint
borders supplying the place of box, sometimes, however, overpower the
sweet-brier, and every other scent of the gardens.

Every kind of English flower and fruit appears to benefit by
transportation to Van Diemen's Land. Well-remembered shrubs and
plants, to which the heat of Australia is fatal, thrive in the utmost
luxuriance under this more southern climate. For five years I had lost
sight of a rough but respected old friend — the holly, or at most I had
contemplated with chastened affection one wretched little specimen in
the Sydney Botanic Garden — labelled for the enlightenment of the
Cornstalks. But in a Hobart Town garden I suddenly found myself in the
presence of a full-grown holly, twenty feet high and spangled with red
berries, into whose embrace I incontinently rushed, to the astonishment
of a large party of the Brave and the Fair, as well as to that of my most
prominent feature!

The fuchsia, the old original Fuchsia gracilis, attains here an
extraordinary growth. Edging the beds of a fine garden near where I
lived, there were hundreds of yards of fuchsia in bloom; and in the
middle of the town I saw one day a young just-married military couple
smiling, in all the plenitude of honey-lunacy, through a cottage-window
wholly surrounded by this pretty plant, which not only covered the entire
front of the modest residence, but reached above its eaves. And this
incident forces on my mind a grievous consideration, however out of
place here, namely, the virulent matrimonial epidemic raging lately
among the junior branches of the army in this colony. “Deus pascit
corvos
,” the motto of a family of my acquaintance, conveys a soothing
assurance to those determined on a rash but pleasant step. But who will
feed half-a-dozen ravenous brats is a question that only occurs when too
late! At this moment the regimental mess at Hobart Town is a desert
peopled by one or two resolute old bachelors and younger ones clever at
slipping out of nooses, or possessing that desultory devotion to the sex
which is necessary to keep the soldier single and efficient. Punch's
laconic advice “to parties about to marry,” which I have previously
adverted to, ought to be inserted in the standing orders and mess rules of
every regiment in H.M.'s service.

Here, too, to get back to my botany, I renewed my acquaintance with
the walnut and the filbert, just now ripe, the Spanish and horse-chestnuts,
the lime-treewith its bee-beloved blossom, and the dear old hawthorn of
my native land. As for cherryand apple-trees, and the various
domesticated berry-bushes of the English garden, my regard for them
was expressed in a less sentimental manner. I defy schoolboy or
“midship-mite” to have outdone me in devotion to their products,
however much these more youthful votaries may have beaten me in the
digestion of them.
Source: Extract from: MUNDY, Godfrey Charles (1804-1860)
Our Antipodes or, Residence and Rambles in the Australasian Colonies, with a Glimpse of the Goldfields
(London, Richard Bentley 1852)
* Read the entire extract about Tasmania by Mundy in this post here.



Fuchsia gracilis
Source: https://www.gardenia.net/plant/Fuchsia-magellanica-var-gracilis-Hardy-Fuchsia



Geranium striatum: Bot. Mag. 2, 1788.
Source: Biocyclopedia.com
Pelargonium (Geraniaceae) 1:98. Tasmania has three native species of Pelargonium and three species that are naturalised garden escapes. The latter include species that are commonly called geraniums. However, the Tasmanian Pelargonium species have thicker leaves and more asymmetrical flowers than the true Geranium species.
Source: Key to Tasmanian Dicots
Link: https://www.utas.edu.au/dicotkey/dicotkey/GERAN/gPelargonium.htm

Imports and Exports
By 1850 and less than half a century since British occupation, Hobart (Van Diemen's Land/Tasmania/lutruwita) was a town abundant in exotic flora, in no small measure due to the importation of every kind of fruit, flower and vegetable by merchant mariner Captain Edward Goldsmith (1804-1869) of Chalk, Kent and Rotherhithe, Surrey, UK. His niece Elizabeth Rachel Day, born Rotherhithe 1847 to his wife's brother and sometime navigator, James Day and Elizabeth (Pocock) Day, married photographer Thomas J. Nevin at Hobart in 1871.

The press reported on 19 December 1850 that: -
"Captain Goldsmith ... has more than any other skipper, added to our Floral and Horticultural treasures"
The botanical "treasures" originated from the Americas, Europe and South Africa, in addition to carefully chosen specimens from the Royal Botanical Gardens in Kew (UK) and Sydney (NSW). Several were from Captain Goldsmith's own plantations and nurseries in Kent (UK). Many varieties were imported at his own expense, others were consignments such as Mammoth strawberries for nurseryman Mr. Lipscombe, hops for Mr. Sharland, and a variety of exotic species selected for the Tasmanian Royal Society's Botanical Gardens which were expected to thrive in Tasmania's temperate climate. On return voyages Captain Goldsmith exported Tasmanian varieties of potato to assist Ireland in the grip of famine, and Norfolk Island pines to inhabit the otherwise bare hills of the Falklands Islands.

From NSW he also imported animal stock such as merinos to improve Mr. Bethune's bloodlines, and from the bloodstock of the Duke of Richmond he imported three fillies to improve the racing stock of the Lord brothers. There were also quantities of blue gum (eucalyptus globulus), skins of native animals, and indigenous plants conveyed back to Europe, destined for the great exhibition halls of London and Paris (1851-1855). Captain Edward Goldsmith retired to his estate in 1856 at Gadshill House, Telegraph Hill, Higham, Kent, UK. The large marsupial thylacine known then as the "Tasmanian wolf" and in modern times as the "Tasmanian tiger" may have been among the exports of indigenous animals he carried on one of his return voyages to London up to 1855 but the only export of a live thylacine to survive long enough to be photographed in 1865 by Frank Haes arrived at the London Zoo almost a decade later, in 1863, under the auspices of Tasmanian botantist Ronald Gunn (Haes' "stereogram" - and see below).



Photographer: Frank Haes,stereogram 1863 of a Tasmanian thylacine, London Zoo
Source: https://doi.org/10.7882/AZ.2016.022

TIMELINE

February 1840: trees from Hobart for the Falklands
The suggestion that the Falklands become a penal colony similar to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania) was put forward to the Colonial Office by Captain William Langdon R.N. as early as 1830. For merchant traders such as Captain Edward Goldsmith, the Falkland islands were of primary importance as a naval depot and resort for merchantmen needing supplies. With probate matters on his father's estates at Rotherhithe, Surrey and Chalk, Kent left in the hands of his brother John Goldsmith and sister Deborah Goldsmith, Captain Goldsmith arrived back in Hobart, VDL, once more in command of the Wave, on 26th September 1839, where he attended a dinner held at Government House by his close friend, Sir John Franklin (23 October 1839). He departed Hobart on 11th January 1840 bound for London with wool and passengers, intending to anchor at Berkeley Sound East Falkland en route, as stated in his letter. The Wave arrived at Port Louis in late February 1840, the first vessel to do so in the new Crown Colony. According to this optimistic report from Lieut. John Tyssen dated 29th February 1840 (a valid leap year), which Captain Goldsmith duly conveyed on his behalf to the Admiralty, London, one hundred different tree seeds were sourced from a Hobart gardener by Captain Goldsmith as a gift to the settlement where the only other trees " upon the Island" were one American pine and a few Silver fir.



Captain Goldsmith's gift of tree seeds to the Falklands
Source: Sessional Papers printed for the House of Lords ... 1841

TRANSCRIPT extract
Enclosure in No.6.
Settlement House, port Louis, 29th February 1840
Sir,

By the Wave Merchant Barque, Mr. Goldsmith Master, I take the opportunity of communicating direct to inform you, for the Information of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, of my Proceedings since I took charge of the Falkland Islands.... Mr. Goldsmith, the master of the Wave, has just given me 100 different Sorts of Tree Seeds, which I intend to sow at a favourable Season; they are from a very good Gardener at Hobart Town.... The Wave is the first Vessel that has touched here since I arrived, but I have every Reason to believe more Vessels will frequent this Harbour.
Nothing of any Importance has occurred since I took Charge,
I have, & (Signed) JOHN TYSSEN, Lieut. R.N.
Captain Goldsmith's gift of tree seeds to the Falklands
Source: Sessional Papers printed for the House of Lords ... 1841

January 1847: export of the black Derwent potato
Even as the potato famine in Ireland was taking hold, Captain Goldsmith offered to export varieties of seed potatoes which had proved successful in experiments, in the hope that a change of seed and further experimentation in the "kingdom" amongst his friends might assist. Again, his offer to pay for the transport and experiments in England from his private account was noted. Some Tasmanian varieties exported were the "black Derwent" and the "fine ash-leaved kidney".



Captain Goldsmith's export of Tasmanian potatoes

TRANSCRIPT
SEED POTATOS FOR ENGLAND.-We noticed recently the importance that would be derived by the Home-country,could the potato disease be eradicated by a change of seed. At the same time, we did not express any sanguine opinion, founded on experiments that had been already tried, of the success of any extensive exportations from this colony. Experiments, however, are about to be tried-not, it is true, on a large scale, by merchants in the way of business, but by the philanthropic efforts of private individuals. We have heard within the last few days, of several samples of very fine and ripe seed potatos-including especially the black Derwent and the fine ash-leaved kidney-being already on their way to England in the vessels that have recently left our shores, freighted with colonial produce. Captain Goldsmith, of the Rattler, took with him, not as merchandise, but on his own private account, as presents for experiment by his agricultural friends in England, samples of several varieties. Many samples are now being packed for transmission in the Derwent and other vessels, whose departure may shortly be expected. These also are comparatively small; but as they will be dispersed as presents to friends in different parts of the kingdom, the experiment of success in eradicating the disease, by change of seed from this colony, will have, perhaps, a fairer and more satisfactory trial than if exportation had taken place on a larger scale on merchants' account.
Captain Goldsmith's export of Tasmanian potatoes
Source: The Courier p. 2. LOCAL. (1847, January 30)
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2972781

December 1848: arrival of new and perished varieties
The Mammoth and Elizabeth strawberries had perished on this voyage for having been placed in mould at the bottom of the case, an oversight which consignee Frederick Lipscombe turned into a tasteless political round of blame directed at Captain Goldsmith which he pursued in the press.



From The Hobart Courier, 14 December 1848:

TRANSCRIPT

IMPORTED PLANTS.- ... The flora of this country has also received a great addition by the importation of some plants for Mr. F. Lipscombe in the Rattler, Captain Goldsmith. The following are in good condition :-Lilium rubrum, schimenes picta, campanula novilis, gloxinia rubra, Rollisonii, speciosa alba, and Pressleyans ; anemone japónica, lilium puctata, torenia concolor, lobelia erinus compacta, myasola (a "forget-me not"), and another new specimen of the same; cuphan mineara, weigella roses, phlox speciosa, cuphea pletycentra, lantana Drummondii and Sellowii, phloz rubra, achimines Hendersonii ; with the following camellias - Queen Victoria,- elegans, tricolor, triumphans, speciosa, Palmer's perfection, and Reevesii. These were ail contained, with others, in one case ; they were well established in pots before packing, which has tended to their preservation. Another case contains lemon thyme, sage, and the Mammoth and Elisabeth strawberries. The same course in this instance had not been pursued; the plants were put into mould at the bottom of the case, and in almost every instance have perished. A quantity of carnations unfortunately experienced the same fate. Importers will therefore do well to impress upon their agents in England the necessity of establishing them in pots before packing. In the exportation of Van Diemen's Land shrubs to the United Kingdom, India, and Mauritius, Mr. Lipscombe always adopts this method, and it is of rare occurrence for any specimen to be lost.
Source: LOCAL. (1848, December 13). The Courier (Hobart, Tas. : 1840 - 1859), p.2.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2967335

January 1849: testimonial to Captain Edward Goldsmith



Testimonial to Captain Goldsmith
Source: Colonial Times 19 January 1849 p. 2.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article8764279

TRANSCRIPT
TESTIMONIAL TO CAPTAIN GOLDSMITH.-A handsome twelve-ounce silver goblet was presented to Captain Goldsmith on Wednesday, last, as a testimonial in acknowledgment of the services he has rendered to floral and horticultural science in Van Diemen's Land, by importing rare and valuable plants from England. The expenses incurred were defrayed by private subscription. The testimonial was presented by W. Carter, Esq., in the name of the subscribers, who observed that he had hoped the task would have been committed to abler hands. Mr. Macdowell, who was engaged in Court, he said, had been first deputed to present the testimonial, as being a private friend of Captain Goldsmith. A token twenty times the value would no doubt have been obtained had the subscribers publicly announced their intention.
-Upon receiving the cup, Capt. Goldsmith remarked that he would retain the token until death ; and, with reference to some observations made by Mr. Carter, intimated it was not improbable he should next year, by settling in Van Diemen's Land with Mrs. Goldsmith, become a fellow-colonist
-The goblet, which was manufactured by Mr. C. Jones, of Liverpool-street, bears the following inscription:-"Presented to Captain Goldsmith, of the ship Rattler, as a slight testimonial for having introduced many rare and valuable plants into Van Diemen's Land. January, 1849." The body has a surrounding circlet of vine leaves in relief. The inscription occupies the place of quarterings in a shield supported the emu and kangaroo in bas relief, surmounting a riband scroll with the Tasmanian motto-" Sic fortis Hobartia crevit." The foot has a richly chased border of fruit and flowers. In the manufacture of this cup, for the first time in this colony, the inside has undergone the process of gilding. As heretofore silver vessels of British manufacture have taken the lead in the market through being so gilt, it is satisfactory to find that the process is practically understood in the colony, and that articles of superior workmanship can be obtained with out importation.
Source: Colonial Times 19 January 1849 p. 2.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article8764279



Print: Jardin botanique D’Hobart Town (Ile Van Diemen) / dessine par L. Le Breton Lithe par P. Blanchard.
Publisher: Paris : Gide, [184-?]
Source: W.L. Crowther Library, Tasmania. Ref: ADRI: AUTAS001125294538

February 1849: export of live native specimens on the "Rattler"
Exports to taste, these animals were not merely destined to be wondered at in the zoos of Britain, they were sometimes served up on the plates of their importers' dinner guests.



TRANSCRIPT
THE "RATTLER" - Captain Goldsmith has kindly taken the commissions of several residents in the colony, and is expected in his next trip to bring some very rare shrubs and plants, of a description not yet seen here. He takes home with him several live specimens of our kangaroo, emu, black swan, native cat and is is generally wished he may have a successful trip.
Source: Colonial Times (Hobart, Tas. : 1828 - 1857) Tue 20 Feb 1849 Page 2 Domestic Intelligence.
Link: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/8764448



John Gould visited Tasmania with his wife, celebrated ornithological illustrator Elizabeth Gould in 1838. He wrote that he liked the taste of the "delicate" flesh of baby emus, but the adult emu tasted like "coarse beef".



The Tasmanian rosella or Platycercus caledonicus, or the yellow-bellied parakeet, from volume five of Illustrations: John Gould’s The Birds of Australia 1848/ State Library of New South Wales.

Gould wrote of the Tasmanian rosella or Platycercus caledonicus:
Most of my readers are doubtless aware that Parrots are frequently eaten by man, but few of them are, perhaps, prepared to hear that many species of the family constitute at certain seasons a staple portion of the food of the settlers ....Soon after the establishment of the colonies of Van Diemen’s Land, pies made of the bird here represented were commonly eaten at every table, and even at the present time are not of unfrequent occurrence. It was not long after my arrival in the country before I tested the goodness of the flesh of this bird as a viand, and I found it so excellent that I partook of it whenever an opportunity for my doing so presented itself. It is delicate, tender, and well-flavoured.
Source: Calla Wahlquist "Pecking order: how John Gould dined out on the birds of Australia"
The Guardian Australian edition Sat 30 Dec 2017 14.16 AEDT

December 1850: flora and fillies arrive on the "Rattler"
Captain Goldsmith arrived with "seven cases of his old favourites." The reporter of this newspaper article assumed his reader would have prior knowledge as to the exact composition of those favourites, such was the affection and esteem in which Captain Goldsmith was held in matters horticultural.



Arrival of the Rattler at Hobart, December 1850
Source:The Irish Exile and Freedom's Advocate (Hobart Town, Tas. Sat 21 Dec 1850 Page 7 LOCAL.
Link: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/233330897

TRANSCRIPT
THE Rattler, - has conveyed to these shores, once more Mr. and Mrs. Cox, the worthy parents of Mr. Charles Cox of the Salutation Inn, Liverpool Street, to remain, we hope, permanent residents in the Colony. Captain Goldsmith is famed for useful importations, and has, more than any other skipper, added to our Floral and Horticultural treasures: on the present occasion Capt. Goldsmith has brought out seven cases of his old favourites and also, three fillies from the stock of the Duke of Richmond of Goodwood celebrity, which we understand, have arrived in most excellent condition; one was purchased for Mr. James Lord, and the other two for Mr. John Lord.

December 1851: election to the Royal Society



TRANSCRIPT
17th December, 1851.— John Lillie, D.D., a Vice-President of
the Society, in the chair.
After a ballot, the following gentlemen were declared duly elected
into the Society :— Captain Goldsmith, of Hobart Town, and
Andrew Mowbray, M.D., of Circular Head.
Source; Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Van Diemen's Land
Vol.II, Part I. January 1852 Tasmania
Source: Smithsonian Institution Museum Library
https://archive.org/stream/papersproceeding2185253roya/papersproceeding2185253roya_djvu.txt

1855: export of blue gum plank
Captain Edward Goldsmith's entry of a blue gum plank (eucalyptus globulus) was shipped to France for the opening of the Paris Exposition on 15 May 1855, closing on 15 November 1855. Over five million people visited the exhibition which displayed products from 34 countries across 6 hectares (39 acres).

Exposition universelle de 1855 à Paris
Opened: 15 May 1855
Closed: 15 November 1855
Attendance:5,162,330
Site: 16 hectares(39 acres)
Participating Countries: 34



Exhibitors: Appendix p.295
Goldsmith, Captain .... Blue gum plank
Source: Captain H. Butler Stoney of the 99th Regiment, author of A residence in Tasmania: with a descriptive tour through the island, from Macquarie Harbour to Circular Head (London, Smith, Elder & co., Sept. 1856).

The plank was 70 feet long, 11 feet wide and 3 inches thick, according to the report in the Hobart Courier, 6 September 1855. Although the Exposition catalogue listed his plank, the report suggested it never left Hobart, that is, if the plank was originally cut by the Commandant of Port Arthur, James Boyd, and Captain Goldsmith was his proxy as both shipping agent and exhibitor.

TRANSCRIPT
Blue Gum of Tasmania,- Eucalyptus globulus, plank 70 + 11 +3 inches. Captain Goldsmith.
This is perhaps the most valuable and important of the timber trees of Tasmania. Its principal habitat is in the south side of the island ; but it is also met with in the valley of the Apsley and at the Douglas River, on the East Coast, and it re-appears upon Flinder's Island, in Bass's Straits: its stronghold, however, is D'Entrecasteaux's Channel and along the south side of the island, whence it has been exported in various shapes within the last three years to the value of about £800.000.
The Blue Gum attains, when-at maturity, an average elevation and size greater probably than any other tree in the world ; a plank forwarded to the London Exhibition of 1851, which from the difficulty experienced in procuring a ship to carry it, arrived in England too late forexposition, measured 145 feet in length, and was 20 inches broad by 6 inches in thickness. A plank of the same width and thickness was cut 60 feet in length by Mr. James Boyd, Civil Commandant at Port Arthur, Van Diemen's Land, in order to be forwarded to the Paris Exhibition of 1855, but it has been found impracticable to get it shipped by any vessel at this port, (Hobart Town), and it does not therefore appear in this catalogue.
This tree attains at its full growth a height of 250 to 350 feet, and a circumference varying from 30 to upwards of 100 feet, at four feet from the ground. In regular forest ground it rarely gives off its principal limb under 100 feet, and there is not unfrequently a stem clear of any branch for 200 foot and upwards. The most important purpose for which this timber is adapted, and to which it is extensively applied, is that of ship-building. The Messrs. Degraves and Messrs. Watson of this place have built and fitted out vessels with it of which several are now trading regularly to and from England. Its specific gravity is greater than that of Teak, British Oak, or even Saull; and experiments instituted to ascertain its breaking weight &;c., have established the fact, that in strength and elasticity it is superior to all other timbers. For planking and stringers, and for keels of ships, the blue gum possesses a suitability beyond all other timbers, since it affords length and dimensions which it would be impossible to obtain from any other tree.
The purposes to which the wood of the blue gum is applied are as numerous as the varieties of work which devolve on the shipwright, millwright, house carpenter, implement-maker, and engineer, for in all these departments of mechanical labour and skill it is found to be a material all but indispensable, notwithstanding the great diversity of woods available in the Colony. For instance, it is in constant use for tree-nails in ship-building, - as gunwales for boats,- for house-building. for fitting up steam engines and the heaviest machinery,- in the construction of wheels, wheelbarrows, carts. &c, and for piles on which to raise wharves ; bridges of great span are built of it, -that at Bridgewater, about II miles from Hobart Town, of which a model was sent to the London Exhibition. and which is raised upon piles measuring 65 to 90 feet each in length, stands 9 feet above the highest high watermark, and measures 96 feet from end to end, by a breadth affording a roadway of 24 feet, is constructed entirely of this timber. This tree, like most of the Eucalypti, yields a red, highly astringent gum, which has been extensively used,and found to answer, as a "kino," and the leaves by distillation yield an essential oil, having the properties of "Cajeput oil.
Source: TASMANIAN CONTRIBUTIONS TO PARIS 1855. (1855, September 6). The Courier  p. 2.
https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2489968

1863: export of a thylacine to London Zoo
A young male thylacine (coll. Tasmanian wolf in the 19th century) was sent in 1863 (as part of a family group) to London Zoo in Regent’s Park by the Launceston botanist and politician, Ronald Campbell Gunn (1808-1881). This specimen became the reluctant subject of Frank Haes' calotype photograph.

Another Tasmanian indigenous export which may have acompanied the thylacine in 1863 as part of a family group sent to London Zoo was a medium-sized macropod marsupial known as the red-necked wallaby or Bennett's wallaby (Notamacropus rufogriseus) which Frank Haes also photographed:




Title: The Wallaby, Hybrid. (Between H. Ruficolus, & H. Bennettii.)
Artist/Maker: Frank Haes (English, 1833 - 1916)
Date: about 1865
Medium: Albumen silver print
Culture: English
Object Number: 84.XC.873.5355
Department: Photographs
Classification: Photograph Object Type: Stereograph
Provenance - 1984, Samuel Wagstaff, Jr.American, 1921 - 1987 sold to the J. Paul Getty Museum, 1984.
Link:https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/object/10719N

The extracts and photographs (below) are cited from an article published in the Australian Zoologist 2016 (Vol. 38, 2).

"Frank Haes' thylacine"
Stephen R. Sleightholme; Cameron R. Campbell; Andrew C. Kitchener
Australian Zoologist (2016) 38 (2): 203–211
https://doi.org/10.7882/AZ.2016.022

ABSTRACT
Until recently, the earliest surviving photograph of a thylacine (albeit that of a dead trophy specimen) was from 1869. An earlier photograph, taken in 1864 by Frank Haes of a living thylacine at London Zoo, was known to have existed, but was feared lost or destroyed. This paper describes its recent rediscovery, and the identity of the thylacine it portrays. The Haes photograph is the only known image of a living thylacine from the 19th century and comprises a stereo view and lantern slide, both of which are presented together here for the first time.



Page 207: "Frank Haes' thylacine" Australian Zoologist (2016) 38 (2)



Op. cit. p.207
Source: https://meridian.allenpress.com/australian-zoologist/article/38/2/203/135313/Frank-Haes-thylacine




Op.cit: p.208
Source: https://meridian.allenpress.com/australian-zoologist/article/38/2/203/135313/Frank-Haes-thylacine


EXTRACTS pp 204-208
In the summer of 1864, Haes was commissioned by the Zoological Society of London to take a series of photographs of animals in London Zoo, which included the first photographs of a living elephant (Edwards, 1996b, p.63), the now extinct quagga (Equus quagga quagga) (Edwards, 1996b, p.132), and the thylacine.

In a paper Frank Haes presented to a meeting of the members of the Photographic Society at Kings College on the 3rd January 1865, he stated:
"Casting about for some novelty at the commencement of last spring, we thought that a series of photographs of animals from life would be very useful and instructive; and having obtained the necessary permission, we removed everything requisite for working to the Gardens. It might be entertaining to the Members to hear the troubles and difficulties I encountered this summer in producing the present series of stereograms and larger photographs of the animals in the Zoological Gardens".
The thylacine (Thylacinus cynocephalus) is the largest marsupial carnivore to have existed into modern times. The last known captive specimen was a male that died at the Beaumaris Zoo on the Queen’s Domain in Hobart on the night of the 7th September 1936 (Sleightholme, 2011). Few thylacines in the International Thylacine Specimen Database (ITSD) can be traced directly from their point of capture in Tasmania into a museum collection (Sleightholme & Ayliffe, 2013). One such specimen, a young male, was sent in 1863 (as part of a family group) to London Zoo in Regent’s Park by the Launceston botanist and politician, Ronald Campbell Gunn (1808-1881). It is this specimen that eventually became the reluctant subject of Frank Haes’ photograph.

The Photographer
The photographer Frank Haes (3/1/1833 - 7/1/1916), was born in Camberwell (London) of Jewish parents. He was an honorary life fellow of the Royal Photographic Society and an early commercial pioneer of photography. Haes visited Australia in 1857 and took photographs of buildings in Sydney, including the Royal Exchange. He delivered a lecture at the Sydney Mechanics School of Arts on the 21st July 1857, where his photographs of Sydney were received with great enthusiasm. On returning to London later that year he presented a paper on photography in Australia to the newly formed Blackheath Photographic Society. Haes revisited Australia in August 1858 and married Adele Vallentine (of Hobart) in Sydney on the 24th November 1858. He exhibited 300 photographs of the Middle East and Crimea at the Philosophical Society of NSW in 1859 and photographed the Sydney Botanical Gardens in 1861. Haes returned to London in 1862, and went into business with Thomas Miller McLean (publisher/printer) and Arthur James Melhuish (photographer). Together they ran a photographic studio at 26 Haymarket until their partnership was dissolved in 1865. From 1865 to 1872 Haes relocated his studio to St. George’s Place in Knightsbridge, London. In the summer of 1864, Haes was commissioned by the Zoological Society of London to take a series of photographs of animals in London Zoo, which included the first photographs of a living elephant (Edwards, 1996b, p.63), the now extinct quagga (Equus quagga quagga) (Edwards, 1996b, p.132), and the thylacine.

Following the delivery of Haes’ paper, Mr James Glaisher, the vice president of the Society, stated:
"It would be difficult to over-estimate the value of these photographs as means of instruction for those who had no opportunity of seeing the living specimens. He was especially struck with the fine and life-like effect of the attitude of the animals, so different to what had been common in pictures. How graceful and easy in pose they were. To artists they must possess an especial value,and to naturalists for examination and comparison. The sharpness was very remarkable, and the position, proportions, &c. of the animals were admirably rendered,and reflected great credit not only on Mr Haes’s ability, but on his patience in dealing with such intractable animals. He understood that Her Majesty had seen them, and expressed her high approval of them."
An article by the zoologist and natural historian Frank T. Buckland (1826-1880), published in the Geelong Advertiser of the 15th March 1867 (p.3), stated with reference to Haes
"Many of our countrymen, especially those who are not resident in the metropolis, have no opportunity of seeing these living gems of creation. The wonderful art of photography has however, rendered it possible for us to have upon our tables accurate life-like pictures of the animals at the Zoological Gardens. Mr Frank Haes has lately completed a series of as many as one hundred and twenty-two animals. To do this with accuracy (as the animals seem to have objection to what is called: “sitting for their portraits”) has taken Mr Haes no less than three years, and he has had the greatest difficulty in carrying out his design. The photographs are now at last completed...."
All text and photographs sourced and cited from: -
"Frank Haes' thylacine"
Stephen R. Sleightholme; Cameron R. Campbell; Andrew C. Kitchener
Australian Zoologist (2016) 38 (2): 203–211.
https://doi.org/10.7882/AZ.2016.022

Royal Botanical Gardens 2014



Ginger, Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart, Tasmania
Photos © copyright KLW NFC 2014



Sunflowers, Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart, Tasmania
Photos © copyright KLW NFC 2014





Palms, Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart, Tasmania
Photos © copyright KLW NFC 2014



Quinces, Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart, Tasmania
Photos © copyright KLW NFC 2014



Varieties of exotica and botanist Ronald Gunn
Royal Botanical Gardens, Hobart, Tasmania
Photos © copyright KLW NFC 2014

EXTERNAL LINKS

Getty Museum
Frank Haes (1833 - 1916)
20 stereographs taken by Haes of animals at the London Zoo
https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/person/104VZ2
https://www.getty.edu/art/collection/artists/9105/frank-haes-english-1833-1916/

Australian Dictionary of Biography
Ronald Campbell Gunn was a first-rate botanist whose contribution was commemorated in Sir Joseph Hooker's introduction to his Flora Tasmaniae:
'There are few Tasmanian plants that Mr. Gunn has not seen alive, noted their habits in a living state, and collected large suites of specimens with singular tact and judgment. These have all been transmitted to England … accompanied with notes that display a remarkable power of observation, and a facility for seizing important characters in their physiognomy'.
https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/gunn-ronald-campbell-2134

TMAG
Tasmanian Herbarium project to provide a modern Flora for Tasmania.
https://flora.tmag.tas.gov.au/

YouTube
Julie Gough
kaparunina (for the dead are many), 2021
Record of Native Tiger skins presented for payment to the Minister of Land Tasmania 1888-1912
Julie Gough transcribed from a ledger the names and locations of those who sought payment for 2055 kaparunina (thylacines) murdered in Tasmania between 1888-1909 as part of her art-research project into the genocidal impulse of colonists in Lutruwita (Tasmania).
https://youtu.be/OGWY_IvOMzI

National Museum of Australia
The National Museum of Australia holds a wide range of thylacine material, encompassing a diversity of anatomical preparations, historical artefacts, images and artworks.
Conservator Jennifer Brian on caring for a rare thylacine specimen
https://youtu.be/eS48Nm0sG8s

Isaac Dove
‘SEEING STRIPES’ 2022
Presenter Isaac Dove goes on a journey around Tasmania investigating the tale of Wilfred Batty, the man who shot what is said to be the last wild Thylacine
https://youtu.be/lycOs0zxyvI

Newspapers 1874
THE MERCURY. (1874, March 12). The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954), p. 2.
https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article8928693
AN INTERESTING PASSENGER. - The Tasmanian tiger, caught in the New Norfolk district by Mr. William Clarke, of Dry Creek, and which has, since its arrival in town, been accommodated with quarters at the Museum, was a passenger by the steamship Southern Cross that sailed for Melbourne yesterday. It is forwarded to the Zoological and Acclimatisation Society of Victoria, who intend placing it in the Zoological Gardens, Melbourne.
NEWS OF THE DAY. (1874, March 18). The Age (Melbourne, Vic. : 1854 - 1954), p. 2.
https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article199381255
A fine specimen of the Tasmanian marsupial wolf, or native tiger, has just been received from Mr. Morton Allport, of Hobart Town, and added to the zoological collection

RELATED POSTS main weblog

Monday, December 05, 2022

In a party mood: prisoner Michael LYNCH (as Horrigan, Harrigan or Sullivan), Christmas Eve, December 24th 1881

Indecent assault charges under the Act of 1863
Court martial with transportation and DD branding

Sixty-five (65) year old cook, Michael Horrigan (or Lynch, Harrigan and Sullivan), transported as Michael Lynch per Waverley (1) in 1841, was feeling festive on Christmas Eve, 24th December 1881. He celebrated by breaking into the residence of Alexander Denholm junior at Forcett, south-east of Hobart near Sorell, helping himself to a gold watch and some very fancy clothes. In a party mood, and probably dressed to the nines in Denholm's tweeds, he then sought out and made amorous sexual advances to Robert Freeman.



Prisoner Michael LYNCH alias HORRIGAN, HARRIGAN and SULLIVAN
Photographer: Thomas J. Nevin (1842-1923)
Date and Place: Hobart Supreme Court March 1882
Black and white copy of sepia print printed in cdv mount
Verso indicates alias, crime, date of transportation, photo or archival no. 466 etc
QVM:1985:P:89, QVMAG Collection, Launceston, Tasmania

This prisoner's proper or real name was Michael LYNCH alias Horrigan and Sullivan, according to the police gazette notice on his arraignment at the Supreme Court Hobart, 7 March 1882. The archivist who wrote his name on the verso on this black and white copy used the later spelling of the alias "Harrigan" which was recorded by the police gazette notices of 1884 and 1885.



Verso inscription:
"Michael Horrigan or Sullivan -
F. S. [Free by servitude]
Waverly (Irish) 13.8.41.
12 Months
466"
Ref: QVM:1985:P:89
Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery, Launceston, Tasmania.
Earlier accession numbering (at top of verso) shows the date 1958.

This police photograph was numbered "466" when inscribed verso, either by police for inclusion in the Hobart Gaol Photo Book and criminal rap sheet in 1882 on the prisoner's incarceration, or by later archivists at the Queen Victoria Museum and Art Gallery on accession from the Beattie Collection for exhibition at various dates and venues between 1934 and 1983. This black and white copy was made at the QVMAG in 1985 from the sepia original for reasons best known only to the QVMAG.

The complainants, December 1881
Michael Lynch raided Alexander Denholm jnr's dressing room on Christmas Eve 1881 to steal his fine clothes, gold watch and fob chain. Denholm appears to have been an easy target. He published warnings to trespassers in the press warning them he had laid poison at his property, Woodside, Forcett.



Andrew Denholm, warning to trespassers
Notice in Mercury, 2 Sept 1882

Alexander Denholm had interests in the importation of agricultural machinery. He was also the licensee of the White Hart Hotel at Bothwell by 1884.



Andrew Denholm
Agricultural equipment brought into Sorell
Notice in Mercury 20 January 1880.

Who was Robert Freeman, the other complainant with a case against Michael Horrigan/Lynch? He brought charges of indecent assault resulting in a 12 month sentence against Horrigan. Robert Freeman's name was recorded in the Supreme Court Rough Calendar at Horrigan/Lynch's trial on 7 March 1882 but nothing was published in the press which named him as the victim of Horrigan's assault on December 24, 1881. He may have been a local Sorell lad, 21 years old, son of a labourer, who died in 1883 of a chronic abscess. If so, he would have been 19 years old at the time of Horrigan's intent to commit a homosexual act. Such acts were deemed illegal and incarceration or even death were  the only outcomes for the offender.



Deaths in the district of Sorell 1883
20 May, 1883 - Robert Freeman, 21 yrs old, son of labourer, chronic abscess
Archives Office of Tasmania Names Index RGD35-1-52P189

The Act to consolidate and amend the Legislative Enactments relating to Offences against the Person. [31 July, 1863] was presumably the Act under which Michael Horrigan/Lynch was charged. It  stipulated severe punishments ranging from death, imprisonment for life, and imprisonment for ten years, dependent on proof of complete penetration of the [male] person. It appears, therefore, that insufficient proof was mustered against Michael Horrigan/Lynch at trial in the Supreme Court, Hobart, on 7 March 1882 to warrant a severe sentence for indecent assault. He got off with a light sentence of 12 months' incarceration at the Hobart Gaol on the grounds of "intent".

An Act To Consolidate And Amend The Legislative Enactments Relating To Offences Against The Person (27 Vic, No 5) 31 July, 1863

Unnatural Offences .

Sodomy.
59 Whosoever shall be convicted of the abominable crime of Buggery, committed either with mankind or with any animal, shall suffer Death as a Felon.

Attempt to commit an infamous crime.
60 Whosoever shall attempt to commit the said abominable crime, or shall be guilty of any assault with intent to commit the same, shall be guilty of Felony, and being convicted thereof shall be liable to be imprisoned for Life.

Indecent assault upon a male person.
61 Whosoever shall be convicted of any indecent assault upon any male person shall be liable to be imprisoned for Ten years.

27° VICTORIlE. No 5. 43
Carnal knowledge defined.
62 Whenever, upon the trial of any offence punishable under Carnal knowledge of this Act, it may be necessary to prove carnal knowledge, it shall not be defined necessary to prove the actual emission of seed in order to constitute a carnal knowledge, but the carnal knowledge shall be deemed complete upon proof of penetration only.

READ the FULL ACT here {pdf}
An Act To Consolidate And Amend The Legislative Enactments Relating To Offences Against The Person (27 Vic, No 5) Austlii Database.

The revised NSW Crimes Act No. 40 of 1900, items 79-81, still maintained severe penalties for indecent assault on a male. Under this Act the offense committed by Michael Horrigan would have incurred a sentence of five years:
Indecent assault on male
81. Whosoever commits an indecent assault upon a male person of whatever age, with or without consent of such person, shall be liable to penal servitude for five years.


Act No. 40, 1900.
An Act to consolidate the Statutes relating to Criminal Law. [31st October, 1900.]
Link: https://legislation.nsw.gov.au/view/pdf/asmade/act-1900-40

ASSAULT as ENTERTAINMENT on Christmas Eve
Horrigan's assault on Robert Freeman might have escaped the notice of the press but the Hull-Calder contretemps certainly did not. It was reported with relish on Christmas Eve, Saturday, the 24th December 1881, by the Hobart Mercury and Launceston Examiner. They rose to the occasion with a thrilling account of the assault between two gentlemen of the highest standing in Hobart society: Hugh Munro Hull and James Eerskine Calder.

EXTRACT
TASMANIA. (FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS.) HOBART, Dec. 23. At the Police Court, before Mr Tarleton, P.M., and Mr W. P. Green, J.P., Mr H. M. Hull charged Mr J. E. Calder with having unlawfully assaulted and beaten him on the 12th inst. Mr Calder pleaded not guilty, Mr Bromby appearing for him. Mr Hull deposed that on the day named, at about ten o'clock in the morning, he was proceeding to his office, when he was met by the defendant, who walked up hurriedly, and said, " Are you the writer of the letter in the Launceston Examiner signed 'Older Chum ?' " I retorted by asking him if he was the writer of the letter in the same paper reflecting upon me. Instead of replying to me he said, "I'll teach you; there, take that," and dealt me a violent blow on the side of the head with his open right hand ; I felt stunned for a moment by the violence of the blow; when I recovered I did not return the blow, as I thought it unseemly for an old magistrate of five-and-twenty years' standing to be seen fighting in the public street with a man twice his size; I told him I should summon him for assault, when he came towards me as if to repeat the blow, at the same time calling out something which I was too deafened by the blow I had received to hear distinctly; etc etc
Read the rest of this story here:
CITY POLICE COURT. (1881, December 24). The Mercury (Hobart, Tas. : 1860 - 1954), p. 3.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article9003832
TASMANIA. (1881, December 24). Launceston Examiner (Tas. : 1842 - 1899), p. 2.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article38229710

Ten years ago ....
Almost to the day, 10 years previously - Wednesday 31st January 1872 - was a memorable day for Thomas J. Nevin when he photographed these two men among a group of visiting colonists and dignitaries during an excursion to Adventure Bay on board the steamer City of Hobart. His commission to cover the day's events was initiated by townsman John Woodcock Graves (the younger).



One of several captures by T. Nevin of the VIP group relaxing on shore at Adventure Bay, 31st January 1872. The man laughing, sitting between the Hon. Alfred Kennerley (lower left) and Sir John O'Shanassy, is Hugh Munro Hull, Parliamentary librarian. He seems to have appreciated comments coming from Nevin at the point of capture, while Sir John O'Shanassy (with stick), reads on, oblivious. The figure running into the scene at centre is John Woodcock Graves (the younger), organiser of the excursion.

T. Nevin's blindstamp impress is on the mount at centre. This stereo is badly water-damaged.
It is held at the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery, Ref: Q1994.56.24.
Photo taken at TMAG 10th November 2014
Photo copyright © KLW NFC 2014 ARR



Visitors' photographs on hand ready for sale
The Colonists' Trip to Adventure Bay
Thomas Nevin's advertisement, Mercury 2nd February 1872



This image was printed by Nevin from his negative both as a stereograph in a buff oval mount and as the carte-de-visite, the latter labelled verso with his most common commercial studio stamp. The figure of the Hon. James Erskine Calder is visible leaning into the frame on lower right. The proud owner of these photographs, Nevin's teenage admirer and eldest daughter of John Woodcock Graves the younger - Jean Porthouse Graves - is indicated by an ink mark, and so is the man in the white summer hat who is leaning on top of a man-made stone structure, perhaps Lukin Boyes, son of artist and administrator G.T.W. Boyes. Surname and initial appearing to be "L Boyes" is written on verso.



Verso inscriptions include these identifiable figures at the "Picnic":
Father = John Woodcock Graves jnr,
Sir John O'Shanassy = former Premier of Victoria,
Self = Jean Porthouse Graves, daughter of John W. Graves,
L. Boyes = Lukin Boyes (?), son of G.T. W. Boyes

From an album compiled by the families of John Woodcock Graves jnr and R. Byron Miller
Private Collection © KLW NFC Imprint 2015


Horrigan/Lynch: Supreme Court Record 1882

ROUGH CALENDAR (Supreme Court Hobart, 1882)



Michael Horrigan aka Harrigan and Sullivan, transported as Michael Lynch
Sentenced on 7th March 1882 to 12 months for indecent assault (homosexual act)
Supreme Court Rough Calendar Ref: GD70-1-1
Archives Office Tasmania

TRANSCRIPT
ROUGH CALENDAR [Supreme Court Hobart ]

Name and Age
Harrigan, Michael alias Sullivan alias Lynch
Committed
7.1.82
Received
10.1.82
Age 68 - 65

Number and Ship
Waverley (1) (ticked)

Original Sentence
(double ticked)

Condition & Date
F.S [free in servitude]

Plea
N.G. [not guilty]

Before whom Tried
C. J. [Chief Justice]
7/3/82

What Committed for
For that the said Michael Horrigan as Sullivan as Lynch did at Belmont in the Municipality of Sorell in this colony of Tasmania on the 24 Day of December 1881, unlawfully assault one Robert Freeman with intent feloniously, wickedly, and against the order of nature to carnally know the Robert Freeman, and perpetrate the abominable crime of Buggery.

For that the said Michael Horrigan as Sullivan as Lynch did at Forcett in Tasmania 1881 feloniously break and enter the dwelling house of Alexander Denholm Jnr there situate and then and there did feloniously steal take and carry away 1 Dark Blue Albert Coat, 1 Black Paget coat, 1 pair Tweed Trousers, 2 Tweed Vests, 1 Gold Watch and 1 Gold Albert Guard of the goods and chattels of Albert Denholm Junior of Forcett aforesaid

What Indicted for
Same

Result of Trial
Found Guilty of Indecent Assault

Sentence and Date
12 Months Imprisonment 7/3/82

Police Gazette Records

1879
On the 6 September 1879, Michael Lynch was arrested as Michael Sullivan and sentenced at the Police Office Glenorchy to six months for larceny. See this conduct record listed under the name Michael LYNCH. https://stors.tas.gov.au/CON33-1-12$init=CON33-1-12P181

1881
Details of the robbery at Andrew Denholm's property with description of suspect:



TRANSCRIPT
SORELL MUNICIPALITY
HOUSEBREAKING
BETWEEN 1 and 7 pm on the 24th instant the dwelling of Alexander Debnholm at Forcett was feloniously broken and entered, and the following propeerty stolen therefrom : - 1 blue fashionable coat; 1 black Paget coat, both nearly new; 1 pair light tweed trousers; 2 ditto vests; the property of Alexander Denholm, jun. 1 gold watch, No. 55738, W. H. Hill  & Sons makers; 1 gold twist Albert guard, with plain gold bar, value £20; the property of and identifiable by Robert Buchanan. A man of the following description is suspected: - 55 years of age, 5 feet 10 or 11 inches high, dark complexion, dark to grey hair inclined to curl, dark to grey whiskers, shaved on chin, medium build, supposed Irish, stated he was a cook; dressed in clean white mole trousers, straw hat, black pilot or saque coat; carried an untanned opossum-skin rug, a white bundle, and a red bundle. Supposed to have gone towards Clarence or Richmond.
Source: VOL. XX. FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 1881. No. 1171.
Tasmania Reports of Crime for Police Information Only, J. Barnard Govd't printer.



TRANSCRIPT
Vide Crime Report,1881, page 205
Denholm's robbery - Michael Horrigan, alias Sullivan, alias Lynch, has been arrested by Supt Anderson, of the Sorell Municicpal Police, and charged with the offence. None of the property has been recovered.
Source: VOL. XXI. FRIDAY, JANUARY 6, 1882. No. 1172.
Tasmania Reports of Crime for Police Information Only, J. Barnard Govd't printer.

1882
In March 1882 Michael Horrigan, proper name Lynch as Sullivan was 65 years old when arraigned for indecent assault and sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment at the Hobart Gaol.



Horrigan, Michael, proper name Lynch, as Sullivan , 65 years old, ship Waverley 1, F. S. Indecent assault 12 months. He was discharged on 5 February 1883.
See this record: https://stors.tas.gov.au/CON33-1-12$init=CON33-1-12P181

1884


No. of Authority 117
Michael Harrigan [sic] per Waverly spent a month from 16 June 1884 to 10 July 1884 as a pauper at the Invalid Depot in Hobart.

Source: Tasmania Reports of Crime for Police, J. Barnard Govd't printer

1885


Source: Tasmania Reports of Crime for Police, J. Barnard Govd't printer

Employed as a cook in Hobart, Michael Harrigan [sic] , native of  Ireland, 71 years old, 5 ft 10 inches tall, was convicted of larceny at New Norfolk (north of Hobart) on 4th February 1885. Because of his various aliases, his prior convictions probably eluded the police gazetteer and were not recorded. He died at the New Town Charitable Institute, Hobart, on 3 May 1894 and was buried as Michael Horrigan, cook, 83 years old. The Archives Office of Tasmania holds his death record at : - https://stors.tas.gov.au/RGD35-1-14p136j2k

Transportation Records



Details on this record show Michael Lynch was single, could read, his religion was Roman Catholic, and had one brother James living in London, and two sisters Johanna and May. Desertion and branding DD. The Archives Office of Tasmania holds this record at : - https://stors.tas.gov.au/CON14-1-9$init=CON14-1-9P33



Records show that Michael Lynch, born ca. 1816 at Cork, Ireland, had served 4 years with the 22nd Regiment when he deserted for nine days. He was court martialled at Dublin on 10 September 1840 and transported for fourteen years on the Waverley 1, departing Kingston, Ireland on 25 April 1841, arriving via Bahia after 140 days at sea, at Hobart on 12 September 1841 with 176 male convicts on board. He was sent to the Longford Probate Station, Tasmania, to serve 18 months with pastoralist Edward Archer. See this appropriation record: https://stors.tas.gov.au/NI/1413162



Physical description details on this record (many are illegible) include - :
Laborer, 5'9", 23 years old, fresh complexion. oval head, black hair, no whiskers, medium height forehead, black eyebrows, brown eyes, long nose, medium mouth, medium chin, native place Cork. Remarks: Pockpelles [?] has been a soldier branded DD on left side Crown flag harp and crown bugle 22 Reg't FR 7 stars half moon JHS? on ? right arm and hand 2 rings on fingers right hand cross Nil? Sun PW N? on left arm and hand. See this record:  https://stors.tas.gov.au/CON18-1-29P35

Branded "DD" for desertion
Michael Lynch was branded DD, court martialled as a deserter from the 22nd Regiment. When another prisoner, James Brady was discharged in late January 1874 with the residue of his sentence remitted, the police gazette ( p. 16 January 1874) noted that that he was Free to the Colony (FC) and that he was tattooed with the letter "D" on his left breast: he was a military deserter, one of several prisoners bearing the deserter tattoo who were photographed by Thomas J. Nevin, including prisoner Denis Doherty, made famous by Anthony Trollope's visit to the Port Arthur prison in 1872.



Mark of a Deserter (Army Medical Services Museum), in Chapter 3 of Hilton, P J 2010 ,
"Branded D on the left side" : a study of former soldiers and marines transported to Van Diemen's Land: 1804-1854
PhD thesis, University of Tasmania:
Link: https://eprints.utas.edu.au/17678/2/Hilton_Thesis.pdf



Barnard, Simon Convict tattoos : marked men and women of Australia.
Melbourne, Vic. The Text Publishing Company, 2016.
Website: https://www.simonbarnard.com.au/product/convict-tattoos/

RELATED POSTS main weblog

Monday, November 21, 2022

Prisoner Cornelius HESTER, photograph by T. J. Nevin 1874

PRISONERS Cornelius Hester, Alfred Harrington and James Connolly 1870
Missing MUGSHOTS Tasmanian prisoners 1870s
B. Travers SOLLY and A. H. BOYD: the memo January 1874

As a result of their respective trials and imprisonment held in October 1870, photographs taken by T. J. Nevin for police and prison administration of two prisoners, Cornelius Hester and James Connolly, have survived and are held in public collections. A photograph of the third prisoner sentenced on the same date, Alfred Harrington, if one ever existed, is not extant, for possible reasons - see below for  further discussion.

Prisoner Cornelius Hester



Prisoner HESTER, Cornelius
Photographed on discharge at Hobart (not Port Arthur) October 1874
Photographer: Thomas J. Nevin, government contractor, Hobart, Tasmania
TMAG Ref: Q15581



Prisoner HESTER, Cornelius (verso)
Photographed on discharge at Hobart (not Port Arthur) October 1874
Photographer: Thomas J. Nevin, government contractor, Hobart, Tasmania
TMAG Ref: Q15581

TIMELINE: prisoner Cornelius HESTER

1852: Transported to Hobart
Prisoner Cornelius Hester was 35 yrs old when he arrived at Hobart on 16 December 1852 on board the Equestrian (3). Later annotations on this record for 10 year sentence in 1876, discharged 1883:
Supreme Court Launceston 6th January 1876 Housebreaking. 10 yrs imprisonment. Discharged to freedom 5.4.83



Hester, Cornelius
Record Type: Convicts
Employer: Clark, G.C.: 1856 [at Ellinthorpe]
Departure date: 1 Sep 1852
Departure port: Plymouth
Ship: Equestrian (3)
Voyage number: 357
Index number: 32340
Record ID: NAME_INDEXES:1401272

Summary of trials after arrival in Tasmania:

Trial Id 582695
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE HOUSEBREAKING 1876-01-06 S. C. LAUNCESTON 10 YRS.
Trial Id 598135
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE LARCENY 1888-01-03 DELORAINE 1 MTH
Trial Id 601137
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE HOUSEBREAKING 1876-01-06 S. C. LAUNCESTON 10 YRS.
Trial Id 605875
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE LARCENY 1888-01-07 DELORAINE 1 MONTH
Trial Id 618722
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE ABSCONDING 1865-11-01 HOBART 5 YEARS
Trial Id 620427
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE LARCENY IN A DWELLING 1870-10-20 S. C. LAUNCESTON 5 YEARS
Trial Id 99704
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE LARCENY 1857-04-15 GUILTY 2 YEARS
Trial Id 112331
CORNELIUS HESTER MALE LARCENY IN A DWELLING HOUSE 1870-09-29 GUILTY 5 YEARS

Source: The Prosecution Project Search Results (griffith.edu.au)

1857: Larceny
Hester, Cornelius was sentenced to two years' imprisonment
Record Type: Court
Status: Free by servitude
Trial date: 15 Apr 1857
Offense: Larceny
Verdict: Guilty
Prosecutions Project ID: 99704
Record ID: NAME_INDEXES:1503755
Archive Office Tasmania. Link: https://stors.tas.gov.au/AB693-1-1$init=AB693-1-1_036

1865: absconding from the Domain



Source: WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 20. (1865, September 21). Launceston Examiner (Tas. : 1842 - 1899), p. 3 (MORNING.).
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article38662493

TRANSCRIPT
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 20.
(Before W. Gunn, Esq., P.M., and J. J. Hudson, Esq., J.P.
Absconding.--Cornelius Hester was charged by Detective Lanham with absconding. On 16th inst. he was brought up, charged with having on the 14th of February last absconded from the gang at work on the Domain at Hobart Town, whilst undergoing a sentence of nine months' imprisonment for larceny, and was remanded to Hobart Town for examination, Prisoner was accordingly en route for Hobart Town when he was apprehended by Detective Lanham for having absconded from Carrick Watchhouse on the 3rd June last whilst undergoing a sentence of twelve months' imprisonment for larceny. Since prisoner's absconding from Hobart Town he has suffered two sentences in the House of Correction, Launceston. The Bench sentenced prisoner to three years' hard labor in chains.
Launceston Examiner (Tas. : 1842 - 1899), Thursday 21 September 1865, page 3

1870: Larceny at Longford
Cornelius Hester pleaded guilty to stealing goods from Mrs Brumby's hotel, Longford, on 18th September. He was remanded for sentence.
Source: TELEGRAPHIC DESPATCHES. (1870, October 21). The Tasmanian Times (Hobart Town, Tas. : 1867 - 1870), p. 2.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article232960954
Cornelius Hester pleaded guilty to the charge of stealing, at Longford, on the 19th September, blankets, rings, lockets, &c., the property of Thomas Goodman. He was remanded for sentence.
Source: CRIMINAL JURISDICTION. (1870, October 22). The Cornwall Chronicle (Launceston, Tas. : 1835 - 1880), p. 6.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article67114781



Cornelius Hester was convicted of larceny in a dwelling house at the Supreme Court, Launceston on 20th October 1870, sentenced to five years. He was transferred to the Hobart Gaol in December 1870.

1874: Discharged



Prisoner Cornelius Hester was photographed by Thomas J. Nevin in the week prior to discharge at the Hobart Gaol, 28th October 1874.

1876: Housebreaking
Sentenced to 10 years - see trial dates above.

1888: Pauper or invalid

Hester, Cornelius
Record Type: Health & Welfare
Description: Pauper or invalid
Property: Launceston Invalid Depot
New Town Charitable Institute
Admission dates: 25 Jul 1888 to 14 Nov 1888, 02 Mar 1889 to 27 Dec 1889, 19 Jul 1890 to 28 Nov 1890, 30 Apr 1891 to 06 May 1891, 06 May 1891 to 06 Oct 1891
Ship to colony: Equestrian 3
Paupers & Invalids no.: pi0808200
Record ID: NAME_INDEXES:1607182
Archives Office Tasmania https://stors.tas.gov.au/NI/1607182

1893: Death
Hester Cornelius died of senility at the Invalid Depot, Launceston on 11 October1893.

Hester, Cornelius
Record Type: Deaths
Gender: Male
Age: 73
Date of death: 11 Oct 1893
Registered: Launceston
Registration year: 1893
Record ID: NAME_INDEXES:1241403
Resource: RGD35/1/62 no 326
Archives Office Tasmania
Link: https://stors.tas.gov.au/RGD35-1-62$init=RGD35-1-62_30

Prisoner Alfred Harrington
When Cornelius Hester was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for larceny at the Supreme Court, Hobart, on 20th October 1870, three more prisoners were convicted on the same day: William Burns for common assault on a woman ( 12 months' imprisonment); Alfred Harrington for manslaughter (10 years' imprisonment); and James Connolly for wilful murder (sentence of death).



Prisoners Hester, Harrington, Connolly, Gibbs and Smith; sentenced 20 Oct. 1870)
SENTENCES. (1870, October 25). Cornwall Advertiser (Launceston, Tas. : 1870 - 1877), p. 2.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article232998467

1870: manslaughter



Sentences for prisoner Alfred Harrington 29 Oct 1870
SUPREME COURT. (1870, October 29). The Cornwall Chronicle (Launceston, Tas. : 1835 - 1880), p. 4.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article67115938

TRANSCRIPT
SENTENCES.
Cornelius Hester, who pleaded guilty on Thursday to stealing goods in a dwelling house at Longford, called on Dr Lewis to speak for him.
Dr. Lewis said that Hester had been suffering from disease of the heart when at Port Arthur.
His Honor reviewed the past career of the prisoner and sentenced him to five years' imprisonment.

William Burns convicted of a common assault on Elizabeth Maguire, was sentenced to twelve months' imprisonment.

Alfred Harrington, convicted of the manslaughter of David Johnson, at Mangana, said he was a poor unfortunate man, and he hoped his Honor would be lenient with him for the sake of his wife and children.

His Honor — Alfred Harrington, yours is a very painful case. You, a young man in the prime of life, might have had to answer with your life for the offence of which you stand charged. You deprived an unfortunate man of life, and I have no doubt that every day of your future life to the last day of it you will regret the act. You come before me with high testimonials in your favour; the witnesses ' spoke very favorably of your character and kindness of disposition. I have received further testimony in your favour from the Warden of Clarence, the chaplain of Clarence, and other gentlemen. I have no doubt you dealt the fatal blows under great provocation, but finding that you had disabled the unfortunate man by one blow, was there any necessity for you to repeat that blow, not once but twice? This was far beyond what was necessary for the protection of your own life, and it is here you have gone wrong. It is this act which you must ever regret. The discretion vested in the judge with regard to the punishment of manslaughter is a very wide one ; the term of imprisonment for the offence may be made very short, or extended for the whole term of life. In your case I must take into account the seriousness of the crime, and mark it so as to induce you (and others who may be similarly situated) to be cautious not to use a weapon further than is necessary for the protection of your own life. The sentence of the Court is that you be imprisoned for eight years.

James Connolly or McArdell, convicted of the wilful murder of John Burton, at Westbury. in June last, was a venerable looking old man, with a profile very like the portrait of the Duke of Wellington towards the close of his life, said, " I hope your Lordship will look over it as I didn't know what I was going to do. I hope you will be as I favourable as possible, as I have been so unfortunate. The crime I never intended to do at all; and it was all along of my landlord who was the instigation of me doing it.'

His Honor. — James Conolly you have been convicted of the wilful murder of John Burton —

Prisoner. — Well, I'm informed so your Honor, but I did not know I was doing it.

His Honor.— It is now too late for you to address me. You are convicted of the murder of a man who did not offend you but was merely splitting a tree in obedience to his master's orders. If you had any cause of complaint it was with his master, not him, yet you deliberately went up to him and with a blow of an axe deprived him of life. For such a crime as this, deliberate murder, the law assigns but one punishment. You are a very old man, and it is my duty to advise you to make the best use of the short time that may remain to you of life. Seek for reparation for your enormous crime while it is yet time at the fountain of mercy. You will be attended by the minister of your denomination, and I implore you to attend to his guidance. His Honor then pronounced sentence of death in the usual form, and the poor dazed old man touched his forelock respectfully, and descended the steps leading from the dock.

The Court rose at 5 p.m.
Source: SUPREME COURT. (1870, October 29). The Cornwall Chronicle (Launceston, Tas. : 1835 - 1880), p. 4.
Link: https://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article67115938

Summary of trials: Alfred Harrington
Trial Id 112303
ALFRED HARRINGTON MALE MURDER 1870-08-05 GUILTY OF MANSLAUGHTER 8 YEARS
Trial Id 620431
ALFRED HARRINGTON MALE MANSLAUGHTER 1870-10-20 S. C. LAUNCESTON 8 YEARS
Source: Search Results (griffith.edu.au)

Read more about prisoner Alfred Harrington in this post:
A missing or unidentified mugshot : prisoner Alfred HARRINGTON

Prisoner James Connolly
Government contractor Thomas J. Nevin photographed this prisoner James Connolly (or Conly) at the Hobart Gaol on the prisoner's transfer from Port Arthur on 29th November 1876 (Conduct PA Register Con 94-1-2 1873-76 State Library Tasmania).

Death sentences
Trial Id 30553
JAMES CONNOLLY MALE MURDER 1883-04-05 LAUNCESTON DOBSON GUILTY DEATH COMMUTED TO IMP. FOR LIFE
Trial Id 112288
JAMES CONNOLLY MALE MURDER 1870-06-14 GUILTY DEATH. COMMUTED TO PS FOR LIFE
Source: Search Results (griffith.edu.au)



Prisoner James Connolly was photographed in November 1876 by Thomas Nevin at the Hobart Gaol (QVMAG Collection: Ref. No.Q1985_p_0086).



Photocopy of the QVMAG cdv held at the Archives Office Tasmania, Hobart, of prisoner James Connolly, photographed in November 1876 by Thomas Nevin at the Hobart Gaol (P30/1/3231).

Read more about prisoner James Connolly in this post:
Hobart Gaol camera and mugshot books 1891-1901

C. S. Travers Solly & missing mugshot of Alfred Harrington
Photographs taken by T. J. Nevin for police and prison administration of two prisoners, Cornelius Hester and James Connolly have survived and are held in public collections. A photograph of Alfred Harrington, if one ever existed, is not extant. It might never have existed since Harrington served out his sentence at Port Arthur. He was not transferred to the Hobart Gaol with the first group of 60 prisoners from Port Arthur who were photographed by Nevin on being received at Hobart between 1872 and early 1873; nor was he included in the second group of 109 prisoners whose names were tabled in Parliament on 23 July 1873 to be relocated to the Hobart Gaol as a matter of some urgency with calls from both members of Parliament and the public at large to close down the Port Arthur prison.

The Colonial Secretary B. Travers Solly requested a photograph of prisoner Alfred Harrington and two other absconders in January 1874 from the Port Arthur prison commandant, A. H. Boyd, as none were extant. A. H. Boyd, however, had already vacated the post under allegations of corruption, although he was paid until March 1874 when Dr. Coverdale assumed the position. The Colonial Secretary's simple request in a memo to A. H. Boyd dated January 4, 1874, for prisoners' photographs has been touted (by Reeder 1992, Long 1995, Clark 2010) as evidence that it was none other than A. H. Boyd himself who was personally undertaking the process of photographing each and every prisoner, even though he was absent from the post by January 1874, and no photograph in any genre, least of all portraits, has ever surfaced from his own family let alone on official records: none has ever been validated in any way creditable as an authentic work by A. H. Boyd. His accreditation has simply grown out of a desire at the Port Arthur Historic Site to impress tourists. It is a fabrication which has since grown into a full-blown personal fantasy paraded as research (Clark, 2015). Professional photographer Thomas J. Nevin was and still is the only fully-accredited government contractor on record who photographed Tasmanian prisoners ("Port Arthur convicts" is the phrase in touristic spin) at Port Arthur from 1872 through to the mid 1880s.

The letter of 7 January 1874 
The letter (below) was sent by Colonial Secretary B. Travers Solly (1820-1902) from his office at Government House on the Queen's Domain, Hobart, Tasmania, dated 7th January 1874 to the former Commandant of the Port Arthur prison, A.H. Boyd. The letter asks Boyd to send photographic copies of prisoners who had absconded - from work gangs on Hobart's Domain, not from Port Arthur - but Boyd was already absent from his Port Arthur position by December 1873, forced to resign. There is NOTHING in this document that suggests the photographer was or would be Boyd himself. Yet this one document has spawned the personal ambitions of Boyd's descendants and his apologists in the tourism business in the 20th century to claim that here is proof enough to claim Boyd was THE photographer of more than 300 mugshots extant in public collections of Tasmanian prisoners. There were cameras and photographic equipment belonging to professional photographers Samuel Clifford and Thomas Nevin readily available on site from July 1873 to May 1874 when they were requested to provide the Parliament with visual evidence of Boyd's neglect of the prison buildings and illegal deforestation of the site, but none belonged to Boyd nor were they used by Boyd to photograph prison inmates.

TRANSCRIPT
D. 14 0
C.S.O.
7th January 1874
My dear Sir, Will you be good enough, by return of post, to send up half a dozen copies of photographs of the two "Greigson's" who absconded yesterday from the Gang employed

A. H. Boyd Esq.
Civil Commandant

employed in the Domain.
It will be a good plan to send up photographs of all prisoners transferred to Hobart Town, and I should esteem it a favor if you will do so at your early convenience.

I remain etc
B. Travers Solly



Source: Archives Office Tasmania
Colonial Secretary's Office 1869-1874
CSD7/1/60 file 1470 (not online)

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