Summary
Personal Information
Crime
Voyage
Transportation
James Campbell was transported on the Merchantman, departing 10th Oct 1862 and arriving 14th Feb 1863 with 192 passengers.
1018 ton ship built in Sunderland 1852/53. Two (2) voyages to Australia with convict transportee's - both to Western Australia. On these voyages, she also carried 'Pensioner Guards' and their families, a few free passengers and soldiers. The 1862 voyage went via Bermuda and picked up British and local prisoners.
Merchantman (generic)References
| Primary Source | Australian Joint Copying Project. Microfilm Roll 93, Class and Piece Number HO11/18, Page Number 509 (256) |
| Source Description | This record is one of the entries in the British convict transportation registers 1787-1867 database compiled by State Library of Queensland from British Home Office (HO) records which are available on microfilm as part of the Australian Joint Copying Pro |
| Original Source | Great Britain. Home Office |
| Compiled By | State Library of Queensland |
| Database Source | British convict transportation registers 1787-1867 database |
Claims
"Peter Grant - NZ great great grandson of William Sharp aka James Campbell"
Photos
No photos have been added for James Campbell.
Convict Notes
William Sharp (aka James Campbell) was born c 1832 in County Antrim, Ireland and had arrived in Paisley, Scotland with his parents when a child. He married Margaret Ewing in 1851 in Paisley and worked as a slater (roofing). A daughter Margaret Sharp was born in Paisley in 1852 and the family moved to Kilmarnock, Ayrshire. The family then moved to Ayr St Quivox, where, in 1855, William Sharp joined the 63rd Regiment under the assumed name of James Campbell (Campbell being his mother's birth surname). We know this fact from his wife's statement when later applying for parish relief in Paisley. William (as James Campbell) served in the Crimean war, but in the supply depot at Malta rather than in the Crimea itself, and went with his regiment to Halifax, Nova Scotia in 1856. In 1857 he was court martialled at Halifax for desertion and theft. From there he was sent to prison in London, England, where he was for 9 months before being sent as a convict to Bermuda in Sep 1858. When the Bermuda convict establishment was closed down he was sent on the Merchantman to Swan River Feb 1863. He received his ticket of leave a short time later and then his conditional pardon in Jan 1865, when working as a mason in Fremantle (skills he likely acquired in Bermuda). No verifiable trace can be found of him after that, although it is possible that may be the James Campbell appearing in the Bunbury WA area. By his wife Margaret Ewing, William had a daughter and two sons (Margaret Sharp (1852-1913) m George Wandrum and emigrated from Scotland to Pennsylvania, USA / John Sharp 1854-1930, emigrated from Scotland to Otago, New Zealand m Mary Dunbar Taylor / William Sharp (1856-1901) m Flora Graham Ritchie, remained in Scotland but his children and widow emigrated to New Jersey, USA). If he is in fact the Bunbury area James Campbell, he may have married again in WA and had further children in WA. Further details on William Sharp/James Campbell can be found at: https://www.nzgrantfamilygenealogy.com/getperson.php?personID=I48&tree=Grant