Tasmania is also home to Australia’s most notorious colonial prison, Port Arthur. Port Arthur, located on a peninsula on the Southern coast of Tasmania, was established in 1830 and operated for 40 years, processing 12,500 convicts. You can imagine the location having an immense psychological impact on the prisoners. In the 1800’s being sent from England to Tasmania would have been the equivalent of being exiled on Mars today. It took 6 months by sail to reach and if there was trouble you couldn’t just call up for help. So those in command tended to become cruel and heavy-handed, for there would be no rescue should a rebellion occur. Even the guards were prisoners in that they were often soldiers who had done something wrong and were being punished by being sent As Far Away As Possible to guard dregs in an inhospitable, strange, terrifying, lonely land they had probably never heard of. The official term was “Transportation”. For something as minor as stealing a sheep you could be sentenced to Transportation which meant you probably weren’t coming back.
In 1996 Port Arthur was the site of Australia’s worst (modern) mass killing…
Just north of the township he entered the home of a local couple he knew. Inside, he shot and killed them both. He drove to the Historic Site and ate a meal on the deck of the Broad Arrow Café. He re-entered the café, which was crowded with lunchtime customers, took a rifle from his bag and began shooting. In the first 90 seconds, 20 people died and 12 were injured. – from Historical Society website.
Next time we’ll discuss the wiley Tasmanian Devil…
2 comments:
but now a days all they have is nature shows...
where's mic dundee when ya need him?
Have you read "The Road to McCarthy" by the late lamented Pete McCarthy? Part of the book is about his visit to Tasmania, including Port Arthur, and is fascinating. His first book, "McCarthy's Bar" is hilarious, but the second is well worth a read.
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