Summary
Personal Information
Crime
Transportation
James Jones was transported on the Nile, departing 18th Sep 1857 and arriving 1st Jan 1858 with 271 passengers.
Nile (generic)References
| Primary Source | Australian Joint Copying Project. Microfilm Roll 93, Class and Piece Number HO11/18, Page Number 242. --00-- Edgar, W. (Bill). (2018). “The precarious voyage of her majesty’s convict ship ‘Nile’ to the Swan River colony, late 1857 – and the unexpected aftermath.” The Great Circle, 40(1), 20–43. |
| 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 |
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Convict Notes
From the Convicts associated with Toodyay database: Jones, James (1834- ) 4758 1858-01-01 Nile CWA: Unm; hawker; lit RC; larceny prev conv 10 yrs; Perth, Toodyay, Fremantle (https://www.toodyay.wa.gov.au/). --00--
IN WA: From his FREMANTLE jail record: JONES, James; inmate #4758, arrived 1 Jan 1858 per Nile Date of Birth: 1834 Marital Status: Unmarried Occupation: Hawker Literacy: Literate Sentence Place: Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland, England Crime: Larceny Sentence Period: 10 years Previous Convictions: Yes Ticket of Leave Date: 10 Jul 1858 Conditional Pardon Date: 15 Mar 1861 (https://fremantleprison.com.au/). --0--
September, 1857: 10 September, 1857: Sent from Portsmouth to board the NILE for transportation to WA; listed as #4/3799. By this time he had served 4 years 1 month 3 days of his 10 year sentence. Behaviour on the voyage "good" (Western Australia, Australia, Convict Records, 1846-1930; Convict Department, Registers; Convicts Transported Per Nile (R32)). --00--
23 March, 1857: He was held by the Metropolitan Police and on 27 March was re-admitted to PORTSMOUTH jail, listed this time as inmate #3799 (UK, Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951 for James Jones; Portsmouth Prison; Register of Prisoners to 1880). --0--
28 February, 1857: James Jones' Ticket of Leave was revoked; no details given. --0--
22 November, 1856: According to his jail record, he was not discharged from Portsmouth until this day (UK, Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951 for James Jones; Portsmouth Prison; Register of Prisoners to 1880). --0--
31 October, 1856: He was granted a Ticket of Leave #6608, as below: Reference: PCOM 3/62/6608 Licence number 6608: James Jones. Caption order and prison record from when he was convicted of larceny at the Quarter Sessions at Newcastle upon Tyne, on 20 October 1852. Then aged [not given] years and by trade a [not given]. Sentence: 10 years transportation. Licence granted 31 October 1856, for early release from Portsmouth prison. Comments: Licence revoked 28 February 1857, caption returned 23 March 1857. Revocation order only. Date: 1856 October 31 Held by: The National Archives, Kew (https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C10373412). --0--
11 February, 1854: Admitted to PORTSMOUTH prison; inmate #3799. Portland, Portsmouth, Chatham and Spike Island in Ireland were listed public works stations and the second stage in the penal process. After separate confinement, prisoners were “placed on work parties at various locations, most commonly naval stations, where maintenance of facilities was vital for the effective protection of Britain’s far flung commercial and military influences around the world. While there, attitude and behaviour were monitored closely. In theory, only after consistently positive reports was a prisoner moved on to the third stage of his incarceration—transportation.” (Edgar, p40) James Jones was listed as 19 when convicted, able to read and write and "pretty intelligent"; single, labourer, Roman Catholic. Previous convictions listed and he was noted to be "of a refractory nature". Next of kin -- "his parents are both living in Newcastle Upon Tyne". Behaviour "indifferent" (UK, Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951 for James Jones; Portsmouth Prison; Register of Prisoners to 1880). --0--
31 December, 1852: Admitted to PENTONVILLE, Caledonian Road, London -- served 13 months 10 days in separate confinement; behaviour "good". --0--
17 November, 1852: Admitted to MILLBANK in Westminster, London -- served 1 month 13 days in separate confinement; behaviour "good". “After a sentence of transportation was handed down, the prisoner entered into a separate stage where he was placed into an individual cell, isolated from others, apart from brief periods of exercise and attendance at chapel. However, no communication of any kind with other prisoners was permitted at any time. The philosophy behind this penal methodology had its provenances in the religious, monastic traditions; i.e., that in the isolation of his cell the malefactor would be able to contemplate the errors of his way, unadulterated by the negative influences of former contemporaries, and be reformed.” (Edgar, 2018, pp39-40) When first put into practice, the mandated period of separate confinement was 18 months. By the late 1840s, authorities had conceded that such conditions of imprisonment were “injurious to many prisoners’ mental health” and the stint was reduced to 12 months. Periods of separate confinement were reduced further “as a prisoner displayed good behaviour tendencies” (Edgar, p40). Millbank, Wakefield, Pentonville and Mountjoy in Ireland were the “Probation” or “Separate” prisons, as were some local jails. —0—