Summary
Personal Information
Crime
Voyage
Transportation
Thomas Lauder was transported on the Palmerston, departing 8th Nov 1860 and arriving 11th Feb 1861 with 296 passengers.
978 ton ship was built at Moulmein, Burma in 1853. On the voyage from Portland, England to the Swan River Colony, Western Australia in 1860/61 the ship also carried passengers, pensioner guards, wives and children as well as soldiers and 296 convicts.
Palmerston (generic)References
| Primary Source | Australian Joint Copying Project. Microfilm Roll 93, Class and Piece Number HO11/18, Page Number 352 (178). --0-- 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 |
Claims
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Photos
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Convict Notes
See DANIEL McCONNELL's bio at https://convictrecords.com.au/convicts/mcconnell/daniel/60969
IN WA: From his Fremantle jail record: LAUDER, Thomas; inmate #5602, arrived 11 Feb 1861 per Palmerston Date of Birth: 1823 Date of Death: 18 Oct 1883 Place of Death: Geraldton Marital Status: Married 4 children Occupation: Stonemason Literacy: Literate Sentence Date: 1856 Sentence Place: Ayr, Scotland Crime: Forging & uttering Sentence Period: 15 years Ticket of Leave Date: 11 Apr 1861 Conditional Pardon Date: 26 Mar 1864 Certificate of Freedom Date: 29 Aug 1871 Comments: Builder, grubber (https://fremantleprison.com.au/). --0--
TRANSPORTATION: 3 November, 1860: Thomas Lander was sent from Portland to board the Palmerston for WA (UK, Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951 for Thomas Lander; Portland Prison; Prison Records to 1885). --0--
NOTATIONS: Two notations on his Portland prison record are of interest: "Very superior both before and after conviction". This appears to have been "intelligence" that was passed on from a previous jail record, but not attributed. The second, probably written by an officer at Portland, but not signed, says: "My own opinion is: That he is more a victim, than criminally disposed." --0--
1 February, 1860: Admitted to Portland prison, Grove Road, Portland, Dorset. Listed as inmate #9702; 33 when convicted (born 1823); married, able to read and write, a mason, Church of Scotland. Next of kin -- Mrs Lander, Newton-on-Ayr [about 32 miles south of Glasgow]. He had a previous conviction for poaching. Served 9 months 10 days in public works; behaviour “very good”. 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) --0--
19 June, 1857: Admitted to Dartmoor prison, Princetown, Yelverton, Devon. Reopened as a male convict public works prison in November 1850, within five years Dartmoor became reserved for less able-bodied convicts (https://www.prisonhistory.org/). Thomas Lander's behaviour in public works at Dartmoor was described as "very good". --0--
6 August, 1856: After just two days he was transferred to England, to Wakefield prison in West Yorkshire—he served 7 months 6 days in separate confinement; behaviour “moderately 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). Wakefield, Millbank, Pentonville and Mountjoy in Ireland were the “Probation” or “Separate” prisons, as were some local jails. While at Wakefield, Thomas Lander developed a hernia. As a result, he was sent to Dartmoor as an invalid. --0--
4 August, 1856: He was sent from Ayr and admitted to jail in Glasgow, possibly to the Duke Street prison -- behaviour "very good". --0--
JAIL TIME IN SCOTLAND AND ENGLAND: In all of the following jail records, he is called THOMAS LANDER. 3 January, 1856: He was committed to stand trial at Ayr. From the time of his committal and following his trial and conviction, on 24 April, he served a total of 7 months 2 days in jail (UK, Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951 for Thomas Lander; Portland Prison; Prison Records to 1885). --0--
OTHER: NEWSPAPER coverage of his trial: 1 May, 1856—from the Glasgow Courier, p4: “SPRING CIRCUIT —The case (as formerly alluded to) of Thomas Lauder and Daniel McConnell, indicted for the crime of having forged the name of Mr. John Kinross, an aged gentleman residing in Ayr, to two promissory notes, and afterwards of uttering them, was concluded late on Thursday night, having lasted nearly two whole days. The notes were drawn in favour of Lauder, and the body of them was written by McConnell who usually acted as clerk to Kinross. Evidence was adduced at great length for the prosecution and defence. Mr. Clark, the Advocate-Depute, Mr. Adam Gifford and Mr. Andrew Mure, for the prisoners, having addressed the jury, Lord Ardmillan then gave his charge, reading most of the evidence. Both prisoners were convicted, and sentenced to fifteen years’ transportation. The case excited great interest in Ayr and its neighbourhood.” (https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/) --0--