Summary
Personal Information
Crime
Transportation
William Smith 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 235 (119). --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
No one has claimed William Smith yet.
Photos
No photos have been added for William Smith.
Convict Notes
FOOTNOTE: As John Dougan, he had been granted a Licence for Parole/Ticket of Leave in 1856, as below: Reference: PCOM 3/60/6408 Description: Licence number 6408: John Dougan. Caption order and prison record from when he was convicted of Burglary after previous conviction at the Assizes at Liverpool, Lancashire 10 August 1853. Then aged 17 and by trade a Marine store dealer [trader in scrap metal]. Sentence: 7 years Transportation. Licence granted 30 August 1856, for early release from Dartmoor prison. Date: 1856 August 30 (https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C10346637).
Is this "our" William Smith? "On the 8th instant a curious case of suicide occurred at the Gwalla Mine, where a storekeeper named William Smith, in the employ of Mr. T. Burges, shot himself in the side with his pistol. Previous to his leaving his home at Mr. Burges', Smith had written several letters declaring his intention to destroy himself as he was in a bad state of health, and requested that the pistol he meant to employ might be returned to Mr. W. Burges, from whom he had borrowed it, with his thanks for the loan." (Perth Gazette and West Australian Times, 25 Jan 1867, p2 at https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/3752569).
IN WA: From his Fremantle jail record: SMITH, William; inmate #4675, arrived 1 Jan 1858 per Nile Alias: DOUGAN John Date of Birth: 1814 [typo - born 1831] Place of Death: Bunbury Marital Status: Unmarried Occupation: Painter Literacy: Semiliterate Sentence Place: Cardiff, Glamorgan, Wales Crime: Burglary Sentence Period: Life Ticket of Leave Date: 5 Jun 1862 at Champion Bay Conditional Pardon Date: 25 Nov 1867 (https://fremantleprison.com.au/). --0--
15 September, 1857: Sent to board the Nile for transportation to WA; convict #2/4249. On the voyage his behaviour was "indifferent" and he "wounded a warder" (Western Australia, Australia, Convict Records, 1846-1930; Convict Department, Registers; Character Book for Nos 4508-5585 (R8)). --00--
15 May, 1857: Admitted to Dartmoor prison, Princetown, Yelverton -- inmate #4249; behaviour in public works "indifferent". Originally built in 1809, Dartmoor was reopened as a male convict public works prison in November 1850. Within five years the prison became reserved for less able-bodied convicts (https://www.prisonhistory.org/prison/dartmoor-prison/) --0--
23 February, 1857: Admitted to the Defence prison hulk at Woolwich -- inmate #355; behaviour "indifferent". Next of kin -- his father, William Dougan, Bridgwater Street, Manchester. Described as 25 years old when convicted, a tin man, single, able to read and write imperfectly, Roman Catholic; 5'1" tall, brown hair, grey eyes, pale complexion, slight build (UK, Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951 for William Smith; Misc.; Register of Prisoners; labelled 1790-1799). --0--
8 January, 1857: Admitted to Millbank prison, Westminster, London -- served 1 month 15 days in separate confinement; behaviour "indifferent". Also noted as "badly conducted and dangerous". “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, Pentonville, Wakefield and Mountjoy in Ireland were the “Probation” or “Separate” prisons, as were some local jails. --0--
JAILS: 28 October, 1856: Committed to stand trial at Swansea. 1 December, 1856: William Smith aka John Dougan was admitted to Glamorgan jail -- served 1 month 7 days (UK, Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951 for William Smith; Misc.; Register of Prisoners; labelled 1790-1799). --0--
OCCUPATION: Tinman -- a merchant who sold tinware (see Dictionary of Old Occupations at https://www.familyresearcher.co.uk/). --0--
NEWSPAPER REPORT of the trial: 6 December, 1856: From the Cardiff and Merthyr Guardian, Glamorgan, Monmouth, and Brecon Gazette, p8: "GLAMORGANSHIRE WINTER ASSIZES... BURGLARY AT SWANSEA.—£200 WORTH OF JEWELLERY STOLEN. William Smith, aged 25, tinman, and Thomas John, of the same age, labourer, were charged with burglariously entering the house of Mr. E. F. Moses, jeweller, Swansea, and with stealing a quantity of jewellery, value 200 pounds. The prisoners were also indicted for receiving the property knowing it to be stolen. They were both ticket-of- leave men. Mr. Gillard appeared for the prosecution, the prisoners were undefended. Mr. Moses deposed, on coming down stairs on the morning of Saturday the 18th of October, I found a great deal of jewellery had been stolen from the shop, and saw foot-marks on the counter; on examination I found a window had been taken out of the pantry; I had seen the articles safe at a quarter to one that morning and on going to bed all the fastenings of the house were safe (a coil of wire and articles of jewellery were here produced); I had wire in my shop similar to this, also rings, chains, &c., &c. I have no doubt these are mine; not half my lost property has been recovered..." FOOTNOTE: William Smith was sentenced at the Cardiff Assizes, County Glamorgan, on 1 December to transportation for life for burglary and a previous conviction for felony. Thomas John was found not guilty (England & Wales, Criminal Registers, 1791-1892 for William Smith; Wales; Glamorgan; 1856). --0--