Author(s): Jennifer Harrison

History

Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, was first known as Moreton Bay, a place of secondary punishment in New South Wales until 1859. Who were the women convicts who were sent there? Were they part of a distinct criminal class? Could they control their own destinies in any way or were they victims of an uncompromising penal system? Were they irretrievably tied to their criminal past or did they develop new lives?This book identifies each woman sent to Moreton Bay and brings to light their full stories. Here the women are evaluated to enable an understanding of the procedures which ordered their lives. As the new settlement developed, the social conditions proved as much a shackle as their criminality.