Searching Early Colonial Records 1788–1856 

Join us for a full-day seminar on Searching Early Colonial Records 1788-1856 featuring talks by renowned expert historians Adjunct Associate Professor Carol Liston AO, Gary Sturgess AM, Dr Terry Kass, Bonnie Wildie, and Michael Flynn

The talks will focus on information and case studies gathered from the records of this early colonial period covering topics including female convicts, land records, shipping and the records of the Colonial Secretary. 

There will also be the opportunity for a behind-the-scenes tour of the Western Sydney Records Centre.

Program

9.00am to 9:15am
Registration

9:15-9:30 
Welcome

9:30am–10:15am
Talk: The real story of convict women
Speaker: Adjunct Associate Professor Carol Liston, AO

10:15am –11.00am
Talk: Early colonial life through the eyes of money 
Speaker: Gary Sturgess, AM

11.00am–11.30am
Morning Tea (Refreshments provided)

11.30am–12.15pm
Talk: An overview of Pre-1856 Land research 
Speaker: Dr Terry Kass

12.15pm–1.00pm Lunch
(BYO)

1.00 -1.45pm 
Talk: Colonial Secretary – records and recordkeeping
Speaker: Bonnie Wildie

1:45pm-2:30pm
Talk: Bringing it all together
Speaker: Michael Flynn

2:30pm – 4 pm
Optional ‘behind the scenes’ tour of the NSW State Archives Collection

Talk: The real story of convict women – Adjunct Associate Professor Carol Liston, AO

Carol Liston, AO will explore her current work on piecing together the lives of female convicts before and after transportation.

About Adjunct Associate Professor Carol Liston, AO
Carol Liston, AO is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Western Sydney University, where she taught 19th century Australian history, local history and heritage, and is currently President of the Royal Australian Historical Society. Her research explores early colonial history in New South Wales, investigating people (convict, colonial born and free immigrant), local history, heritage and the built environment. With Dr Kathrine Reynolds she is researching convict women transported from Britain to New South Wales between 1800 and 1836, many of whom were the mothers of the children in the Female Orphan School, Parramatta (now part of Western Sydney University).

Talk: Early colonial life through the eyes of money – Gary Sturgess, AM

Gary will explore a jewel from the State Archives Collection, the cashbook from the ‘Britannia’ (1792) and what it tells us about the early days of the colony.

About Gary Sturgess, AM
Gary L. Sturgess, AM is a former public servant and academic who specialises in the legal, financial and managerial infrastructure which underpinned the transportation system, particularly in the early years of the penal colony. This includes a study of the store ships which were essential to the colony's survival over the first decade and a half, and the merchant vessels which traded in and out of Port Jackson in the period up to 1800.

Talk: An overview of Pre-1856 Land research – Dr Terry Kass

Terry will demystify researching land transactions before 1856 and how land records can assist with your research.

About Dr Terry Kass
Terry Kass is a consulting historian specialising in heritage and conservation work. He has extensive experience in researching land, both Crown land and freehold. His publication Unlocking Land: A Guide to Crown Land Records held at State Archives NSW won the Phyllis Mander Jones Award from the Australian Society of Archivists.

Talk: Colonial Secretary – records and recordkeeping – Bonnie Wildie

Join Bonnie as she explains the role of the Colonial Secretary and how that impacts historical research.

About Bonnie Wildie
Bonnie Wildie is the Lead Archivist, Public Access Policy and works closely with the State Archives Collection at MHNSW. In addition to her work as reference archivist, she also has extensive experience as an educator in the information science and cultural heritage sector. She is passionate about communicating history to the broader community and seeks new and innovative methods that might challenge traditional notions of historical research and information access.

Talk: Bringing it all together – Michael Flynn

Learn about the work of the Biographical Database of Australia (BDA) and how it can help with pre-1856 research.

About Michael Flynn
Michael Flynn is the Assistant Editor and Honorary Research Officer for the BDA. In the 1990s he worked as a freelance researcher specialising in convict, colonial and indigenous history. He is the author of The Second Fleet, Britain’s Grim Convict Armada of 1790 (1993) and was employed as research.