World Heritage Values Convict Places
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(~(iVlc/VU ( 51 ({ STUDY OF WO HERITA.GE VALUES by MICHAEL PEARSON Heritage Management Consultants of the Environment, Sport S 20 December 1995 (with additions 7 May 1996) STUDY OF WORLD HERITAGE VALUES: CONVICT PLACES EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This study was commissioned by the World Heritage Unit of the Department of the Environment, Sport and Territories, to investigate, through a study of convict places internationally and within Australia, the appropriateness ofa nomination ofAustralian convict transportation places for inscription on the World Heritage List, and to identify gaps in the knowledge base ofconvict places. The study was structured within a framework for World Heritage assessment prepared for the Department in 1992. In this report the international historical context for convict transportation is established, and themes of universal significance identified. The history ofAustralian convict transportation is then presented, and the relevance ofthe global themes to the Australian experience is identified. Places relating to convict transportation are then identified, and available information assessed, so that the relationship ofthese places to the global themes can be determined. This resulted in a short-list ofplaces being identified which appeared to be ofsubstantial importance in the context of the global themes. The short-listed places are then assessed with regards to their authenticity and degree of protective management, and against the criteria for World Heritage Listing. This reduced to eight the number of places thought to merit further investigation and assessment for possible nomination as a series-nomination for World Heritage Listing. Gaps in the information are identified, and an extensive bibliography relating to international and Australian convict transportation is provided. The report recommends that the Department undertake further research, site investigation and assessment ofa series ofeight places, in conjunction with the necessary consultation with state authorities, in order to prepare a series nomination of Australian convict transportation places for World Heritage Listing. -1- STUDY OF WORLD HERITAGE V ALVES: CONVICT PLACES CONTENTS 1. Introduction 1 1.1 The Task and the Consultants 1 1.2 Definitions 1.3 Identifying and assessing places ofWorld Heritage Significance 3 1.4 Acknowledgements 5 2. Convictism as an internationally significant theme 6 2.1 Slavery in the context of Forced Migration 6 2.2 Assessment-Slavery 9 2.3 Contract Labour in the context of Forced Migration 10 2.4 Assessment of Contract Labour 13 2.2 Convict Labour in context 14 3. Convict Transportation- The Global Context 16 3.1 British convict transportation 16 3.1.1 North America 16 3.1.2 Bermuda 18 3.1.3 Barbados 18 3.1.4 Gibraltar 18 3.1.5 Honduras 18 3.1.6 Newfoundland 18 3.1.7 Ghana 18 3.2 Indian convict transportation 19 3.2.1 Andaman Islands 19 3.2.2 Bengkulu, Indonesia 21 3.2.3 Nicobar Islands 21 3.2.4 Straits Settlements 22 3.2.5 Mauritius 27 3.3 Spanish convict transportation 27 3.3.1 Havana, Cuba 28 3.3.2 San Juan, Puerto Rica 28 3.4 French convict transportation 28 3.4.1 French Guiana 29 3.4.2 New Caledonia 29 -ii- 3.5 Russian convict transportation 32 3.5.1 The Exile System 32 3.5.2 The transportation system for Siberian Exiles 37 3.5.3 Assessment of Russian Convict transportation 38 3.6 Themes ofoutstanding universal value 39 4. Convicts in Australia 41 4.1 The origins ofthe Australian Colonies 41 4.2 The Early Convict Establishment 42 4.3 Norfolk Island-First Settlement 42 4.4 The Bigge Commission and changes to the system 43 4.5 Norfolk Island-Second Settlement 43 4.6 Newcastle and Port Macquarie 44 4.7 Tasmania-the early period 45 4.8 Sarah Island 45 4.9 Maria Island 46 4.10 Moreton Bay Penal Settlement 46 4.l1 Port Arthur 47 4.12 Port Phillip District 48 4.13 Convictism in Western Australia 49 4.14 Assignment and Private Employment 50 4.15 Work Gangs and Stockades 51 4.16 The Probation System 53 4.17 Changing Gaol Designs and the Pentonville Model 54 4.18 Australian convictism and the themes of outstanding universal value 57 5. Australian places of significance to convict transportation themes 59 5.1 The Big Picture-Australian convict places 59 5.2 Australian convict places and the themes of outstanding universal value 60 -iii- 6. Authenticity and Management 64 6.1 The issues of authenticity and management 64 6.2 Authenticity of Australian convict places 71 6.3 Management ofAustralian convict places 76 7. Australian convict places-of World Heritage Significance? 79 7.1 The World Heritage Criteria for cultural properties 79 7.2 Applying the World Heritage Criteria to Australian convict places 80 7.3 Recommendation for pursuing World Heritage Nomination 82 8. Where to from here? 84 8.1 Gaps in the information 84 8.2 Additional documentation required for a nomination 84 8.3 Additional consultation required before nomination 85 9. Bibliography 86 9.1. International context and penal settlements in other countries 86 9.2. Background to Botany Bay and Australian covictism Generally 91 9.3. New South Wales 95 9.3.1 Great North Road and Stockades 97 9.3.2 Hyde Park Barracks 98 9.3.3 First Government House 99 9.3.4 Cockatoo Island 100 9.4. Norfolk Island 101 9.5. Tasmania 107 9.5.1 Port Arthur 110 9.6. Queensland 114 9.7. Western Australia 115 9.7.1 Fremantle Prison 117 9.8. Victoria 119 -i\'- 9.9. Northern Territory 119 Appendices-Documentation of places for potential World Heritage Nomination Appendix 1 Kingston and Arthur's Vale Historic Area, Norfolk Island Appendix 2 Port Arthur, Tasmania Appendix 3 Fremantle Prison, Fremantle, Western Australia Appendix 4 Hyde Park Barracks, Sydney, New South Wales Appendix 5 First Government House Site, Sydney, New South Wales Appendix 6 Ross Probation Station, Ross, Tasmania Appendix 7 Great North Road and associated stockade sites, Wiseman's Ferry, New South Wales Appendix 8 Cockatoo Island Convict Station, Sydney, New South Wales -Convict Places and World Heritage Report- 11. INTRODUCTION 1. 1 THE TASK AND CONSULTANTS Scope of the work The Brief for this project, prepared by the Department of Environment, Sport and Territories, indicated that: "this study is intended to identify those places associated with convicts or transportation of convicts to Australia which may be considered for further detailed assessment for World Heritage values. The study also aims to identify any significant gaps in the knowledge base of convict sites". The Brief required the consultants to: • collate and present information describing the cultural values of convict sites that might be suitable for consideration for the World Heritage List • provide an initial assessment of these values against the World Heritage criteria, together with justification of those assessments • address the themes oftransportation of convicts in comparison with other forms of forced movement of people, and other penal processes The consultants approached the task by applying the Frame'rvorkfor the assessment of Australia's cliltural properties against the World Heritage criteria (Domicelj, Halliday and James no date), as describe at 1.2 below. This required: • investigating the international context for convictism, and identifying themes of global significance, as described in Section 2; • investigating the Australian context for convict transp0l1ation, and assessing how the global themes apply to the Australian experience, as described in Section 3; • applying the criteria of authenticity and management as required for World Heritage assessment; • assessing selected Australian places against the World Heritage criteria. The consultants The Project was undertaken by Dr Michael Pearson and Mr Duncan Marshall, with material overviewed and discussed at critical stages by Ms Joan DomiceJj. 1.2 DEFINITIONS Definition of some commonly used terms • 'convict' means a person convicted of a crime. For the purposes of this study the term 'convict' does not include persons sentenced within -Convict Places and World Heritage Report- 2 Australia, unless the sentence is for the secondary punishment of a transported convict. • 'convict transportation' means the removal of convicts from their country of residence to another country, usually a colony, in order to serve out their sentence there. • 'secondary punishment' means the re-conviction of a transported convict for a crime committed while en-route to, or after arrival in the colony. Secondary punishment was usually harsher than that received by other convicts, but has come to represent the 'normal' convict experience in many popular accounts of convictism. Fear of secondary punishment was used to control convicts within the colony, and to deter people from committing crime in Britain. • 'convict place' means a place associated with the direct control, housing, punishment and utilisation of transported convicts by the government, through its convict administration. Privately built and owned buildings are included in the definition of 'convict place' only where it can be shown that the building was built exclusively for, and used for, the housing and control of assigned convicts. • 'assignment' refers to the system operating in Australia (and some other British colonies) whereby convicts still serving sentences were formally allocated or 'assigned' to settlers according to a formula relating to land-ownership and investment. Assigned convicts were tied to a designated 'master' to whom they had been assigned as servants, and the master could seek corporal punishment of the assigned servant via a local magistrate for misdemeanours or poor work. Assigned convicts worked commonly as shepherds, stock-keepers, agricultural labourers, 'mechanics' and domestic servants, and were guaranteed only their rations for such labour. In Western Australia a system of more closely controlled fixed-term contract assignment, administered from 'hiring depots', operated for some years prior to 1857.