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The First Fleet of ships to carry convicts from England to
Botany Bay sailed from Portsmouth, England, on 13 May 1787. It
arrived at Botany Bay on 18 January 1788. When that place proved
unsuitable for a settlement the fleet made its way a short distance
up the coast and on 25 January 1788 entered what is now known as
Sydney Harbour and anchored in Sydney Cove.
This page contains statistics relating to the people who made
the voyage and provides details of the ships of the fleet. It also
provides references for further inquiry, including details of
several ebooks, which are held by Project Gutenberg Australia or
Project Gutenberg, which provide first hand accounts of the voyage
and describe the first efforts to establish the colony.
Right: The Bicentennial Monument, which commemorates the arrival
of the First Fleet and lists the names of those who arrived at
Botany Bay in 1788. The monument is at Brighton Le Sands, Sydney,
and overlooks Botany Bay.
Books about the First
Fleet:
ebooks available from this site:
JOURNALS, BOOKS, LETTERS AND ORATIONS BY PEOPLE ON THE FIRST
FLEET (at this site)
Arthur PHILLIP (1738-1814), The
Voyage of Governor Phillip to Botany Baywith an Account of
the Establishment of the Colonies of Port Jackson and Norfolk
Island, London, 1789. This book includes the Journals of
Lieutenantss Shortland, Watts, Ball and Captain Marshall, with an
account of their new discoveries. The book also includes a List of Convicts sent to New South Wales on the
First Fleet, in 1787.
Daniel SOUTHWELL (1764-1797), Journal and Letters of Daniel Southwell. Southwell
embarked as a midshipman in the Sirius in 1787 and was made
a mate on the voyage to NSW.
Also refer to the Wikipedia page, Journals of the First Fleet for details of works by
these other First Fleeters who wrote personal accounts:
Journals
Ralph Clark
John Easty
John Hunter
Philip Gidley King
Jacob Nagle
James Scott Letters
David Blackburn
James Campbell
John Campbell
Newton Fowell
Richard Johnson
Henry Waterhouse Convict narrative
James Martin
Gwendoline H SWINBURNE, A Source Book of
Australian History (Part II). This ebook contains the text of
original documents relating to Phillip's term as Governor of New
South Wales.
Also refer to the Australian
History page for ebooks which cover, in a general way, the
early settlement of Australia by Europeans.
External references:
Charles BATESON, The Convict Ships, 1787-1868, Sydney,
1974.
Mollie GILLEN, The Founders of Australia: a biographical
dictionary of the First Fleet, Sydney, Library of Australian
History, 1989. This is the definitve reference regarding those who
sailed on the First Fleet and contains a biographical entry for
every person. It is held by several local libraries in Sydney and
by the State Library of New South Wales.
Pages at the University of
Wollongong web site--personal information about the
convicts on the First Fleet .
The First Fleet
Fellowship web site, an historical society formed in 1984 to
provide an association for all those people who have ancestors who
arrived in Australia in 1788 aboard one of the ships of the First
Fleet. Based in Melbourne.
The
Fellowship of First Fleeters. A society formed in 1968 composed
of descendants of those who arrived in Sydney Cove in 1788
aboard one of the ships of the First Fleet. Based in Sydney.
6 Transports carrying the convicts. Each transport had a
detachment of marines on board.
Lieutenant John Shortland, agent for the transports. The garrison
was formed from the marines.
"ALEXANDER"
TRANSPORT 452 TONS
Arrived Port Jackson 26 Jan 1788
Departed England 13 May 1787
210 men convicts
Officers:
Lieut. J Johnston
Lieut. Shairp
"SCARBOROUGH"
TRANSPORT 490 TONS
Arrived Port Jackson 26 Jan 1788
Departed England 13 May 1787
210 men convicts
Officers:
Captain Shea
Lieut. Kellow
Lieut. Morrison
"FRIENDSHIP"
TRANSPORT 274 TONS
Arrived Port Jackson 26 Jan 1788
Departed England 13 May 1787
80 men convicts, 24 women convicts
Officers:
Captain Lieut. Meredith
Lieut. Clarke
Lieut. Faddy
"PRINCE OF WALES"
TRANSPORT 350 TONS
Arrived Port Jackson 26 Jan 1788
Departed England 13 May 1787
100 women convicts
Officers:
Lieut. Davy
Lieut. Timmins
"LADY PENRHYN"
TRANSPORT 333 TONS
Arrived Port Jackson 26 Jan 1788
Departed England 13 May 1787
102 women convicts
Officers:
Captain Campbell
Lieut. G. Johnston
Lieut. William Collins
Some First Fleeters
and the positions held by them
Augustus Alt, Surveyor
Thomas Arndell, Assistant Surgeon
Henry Lidgbird Ball, captain of Supply
William Balmain, assistant surgeon, later principal
surgeon
Lieutenant William Bradley, author of journal, water
colourist
Henry Brewer, clerk to Phillip, provost marshall,
administrator
Ralph Clark, 2nd Lieutenant , author of journal
David Collins, Judge Advocate, author
Dennis Considen, assistant surgeon
Lieutenant William Dawes, engineer, surveyor, humanitarian
James Furzer, Quarter-Master
Henry Hacking, Quartermaster settler, explorer
John Hunter, captain of Sirius, later 2nd governor of the
colony
Thomas Jamison, surgeon's mate
Richard Johnson, Chaplain
Lieutenant George Johnston, later commander of NSW Corps
Philip Gidley King, 2nd lieutenant, later lieutenant governor
of Norfolk Island, and 3rd governor of the colony
John Long, Adjutant
Andrew Miller, Commissary
Captain Arthur Phillip of the Navy, Governor and Commander in
Chief of the territory of New South Wales, and of his Majesty's
ships and vessels employed on that coast
George Raper, midshipman, notable illustrator
Major Robert Ross, Lieutenant Governor and comander of the
marines
Lieut. John Shortland, Agent for the Transports
Arthur Bowes Smyth, assistant surgeon, author of journal
Captain Watkin Tench, author
Private William Tunks, farmer, landowner and member of the NSW
Corps
Gillen notes that "during the voyage there were 22 births (13
males, 9 females), while 69 people either died, were discharged, or
deserted (61 males and 8 females). As no complete crew musters have
survived for the six transports and three storeships, there may
have been as many as 110 more seamen who have not been identified,
thus giving approximatelt 1530 people who left England and 1483 who
reached Sydney Cove.
Note that there is no definitive list of the people who
arrived at Botany Bay in the First Fleet. We will probably never
know the exact number and their names.
Updated 28 Aug 2022
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