The Brickfields Hiring Depot was a building located in

North Hobart North Hobart is a suburb of the city of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia. As its name suggests, it lies directly north of the Hobart City Centre. The main street of North Hobart is Elizabeth Street, which extends northward from the Elizabeth Stre ...

on the site of the current

North Hobart Oval North Hobart Oval is a Stadium, sports venue in North Hobart, Tasmania. Formerly used primarily for Australian rules football widely regarded as the traditional home of Australian football in Tasmania. However since the 1950s it has also becom ...

. It was completed by the

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is the engineering arm of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces ...

Department on 1 October 1842 and operated until 1852.

History

Female convicts were held there awaiting hire as probation pass holders from February 1842. Prior to 1844, the Brickfields was used as a place of confinement and punishment just as the Female Factories were. After 1844, the Brickfields was used as a convenience for . It was a reception centre for women discharged from the Anson. These women may have changed or lost their service. This meant that female convicts did not have to return to the Anson for a short period of time while they waited to be re-hired. It was not a Gaol or a Female Factory, but simply a depot for women serving probation. After its closure in November 1852, Brickfields became an immigration depot and later a pauper establishment.

References

{{coord , -42.8677 , 147.3162 Buildings and structures in Hobart Convictism in Tasmania North Hobart, Tasmania