Summary
Personal Information
Crime
Voyage
Transportation
Robert Hay was transported on the Calcutta, departing 31st Jan 1803 and arriving 4th Oct 1803 with 305 passengers.
HMS Calcutta was the East Indiaman Warley (1795), converted to a Royal Navy ship. This ship of the line served for a time as an armed transport. She also transported convicts to Australia. The French Magnanime captured Calcutta in 1805. In 1809, after she ran aground during the Battle of the Basque Roads and her crew had abandoned her, a British boarding party burned her. In 1803 the Calcutta sailed into Port Phillip bay where at least 4 convicts escaped , in Sydney in April 1804 it was reported that 8 had died on the trip. Of the four known escapees one was shot on escape, 2 turned back after 2 days to reattach to the group at the camp in bay before the boat left , one continued on ...into Australia's history books. At least 13 convicts were transferred on to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania), Australia.The ship also carried officers, wives and free settlers.
Calcutta (generic)References
| Primary Source | Australian Joint Copying Project. Microfilm Roll 87, Class and Piece Number HO11/1, Page Number 345 (172); ScotlandsPeople.com (church registers, old parish registers - marriage 288/50-263 Forfar p 263); ancestry.com (NSW Bound Indentures 1801-1814), Trove news articles, 1811--1839); LINC Tasmanian Archives (RGD34/1/2-194; RGD36/1/1-193; CON22/1/1-433), dcaldlan.com (the Hay Family) |
| 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
"3rd great Grandfather"
Photos
No photos have been added for Robert Hay.
Convict Notes
High Court of Justiciary Trial Papers: -------------------------------------- Name: Robert Hay Alias: James Colven Role: Accused Crime Committed: Sheep Stealing Trial Date: 1801 Trial Location: Perthshire, Scotland Court House: Perth Verdict: Guilty: Trial At Perth 22 Oct 1801 Sentence: 14 Years Transportation Designation: Prisoner in the Tollbooth of Perth Notes: Pled Guilty. Related Trial Papers: Jc26/1801/58 URL: https://www.scottishindexes.com/jcdetail.aspx?jcid=1801058&pid=180105884
Robert Knopwood’s Diary. The Rev. Robert Knopwood sailed from England, on the Calcutta in 1803, and landed in Port Phillip with the prisoners. He later became the first chaplain appointed in Van Diemen’s Land, and was also appointed a Magistrate. He kept a diary, from 1805 -1808, which can be downloaded by following the links: https://eprints.utas.edu.au/13550/ https://eprints.utas.edu.au/13563/ Entry for Monday 25 March 1805. am. This morn was missing from Hobart Town the following Prisoners – James Ballance, John Rogers, Henry Rice, Robt. Hays, Richd. Kidman – they took away some Doggs. Entry for Saturday 15 June 1805. am Early this morn the 5 prisoners that went away on the 25th of March Tuesday 18 June 1805. am engaged all the Morn upon business examining the 5 prisoners that went into the Bush They informed me that on the 2 of May when they were in the wood they see a large Tyger that the Dog they had with them went nearly up to it and when the Tyger see the men which were about 100 yards from it, it went away. I make no doubt but here are many wild animals which we have not yet seen. --------------------------------------------------------------------- It was significant that the convicts took dogs with them. Dogs would have been vital for catching food, - kangaroos or emus, and were highly prized by their owners. Rev. Knopwood offered a £10 reward when one of his bitches was stolen. Food was scarce in early days, and often the settlement ran out of food and depended on killing kangaroos, emus, duck , pigeons, etc.
Tasmanian Records https://stors.tas.gov.au/CON22-1-1_0444 Per Calcutta, Robert Hay, alias James Colvin, tried at Perth Ct. of Jy., 23 Oct 1801, 14 years.
Born in Kirkmichael, Banffshire, Scotland to James Hay (1736-1795) and Anne Riach (1741-), Robert was one of 8 children. He married Katharine Ogilvy (1778-1855) on 21 Apr 1798 and had 2 daughters, Barbara born 1798 and Ann born Feb 1801, 8 months before Robert was convicted in Perthshire, Oct 1801. He spent 17 months aboard the hulk Prudentia at Woolwich before sailing to Port Phillip on the Calcutta where he subsequently ended sailing on the Ocean to Van Dieman's land after Lt Col Collins deemed the Sorrento, Victoria settlement was not suitable. Robert arrived at Sullivan's Cove 20 Feb 1804 after Lt Col Collins rejected the Risdon Cove settlement. Robert Hay received an absolute pardon due to servitude in 1812. With Rev. Knopwood officiating, he married Maria Hazlewood Hopper after fathering 3 children, he continued to father 9 more all the while farming his properties at Back River and acting as a constable before expiring on 8 June 1839.
From State Library of Victoria site: Settlement at Sullivan Bay The Calcutta arrived October 1803 in the Port Phillip area (near present day Sorrento, Victoria). After expedition leader Lieutenant David Collins found the area unfit for a settlement the site was abandoned and they left aboard the transport ship the Ocean for Van Diemen's Land. They left for the Derwent River (the present site of Hobart) on 1st January 1804. NOTE: The infamous William Buckley was among the convicts on the Calcutta. Robert Hay settled in New Norfolk, Tasmania. In 1813 he was appointed as a Constable for the area. He married Maria Hopper Hazlewood in 1815 and they had at least 12 children (the last one when Robert was 61).
In a book called Stock Returns And Lists- Vandiemens land by Irene schaffer, it states that Robt Hay was victualled in Hobart on the 17th Oct 1803. This suggests that Robert was in Tasmania earlier than most people think.