''Phoenix'' was a three-decker merchant ship built on the

Thames The River Thames ( ), known alternatively in parts as the River Isis, is a river that flows through southern England including London. At , it is the longest river entirely in England and the second-longest in the United Kingdom, after th ...

in 1798. On a voyage in 1824 on which she first transported

convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convicts ...

s to

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania during the European exploration of Australia, European exploration and colonisation of Australia in the 19th century. The Aboriginal Tasmanians, Aboriginal-inhabited island wa ...

she was damaged on the

Sow and Pigs Reef Sow and Pigs Reef is a rocky reef in Sydney Harbour, New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Quee ...

inside

Port Jackson Port Jackson, commonly known as Sydney Harbour, is a natural harbour on the east coast of Australia, around which Sydney was built. It consists of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta ...

Heads,

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. She was then condemned and turned into a

prison hulk A prison ship, is a current or former seagoing vessel that has been modified to become a place of substantive detention for convicts, prisoner of war, prisoners of war or civilian internees. Some prison ships were hulk (ship type), hulked. W ...

. She was broken up in 1837.

Career

''Phoenix'' was launched in 1798 for Hibbert & Co., who were replacing an earlier ''Phoenix'' that they had just sold. ''

Lloyd's Register Lloyd's Register Group Limited, trading as Lloyd's Register (LR), is a technical and professional services organisation and a maritime classification society, wholly owned by the Lloyd’s Register Foundation, a UK charity dedicated to research ...

'' for 1799 gives the name of the master of the new ''Phoenix'' as "Stimpson", and her trade as London-Jamaica, like that of her predecessor in 1790.''Lloyd's Register'' (1799).
/ref> On 1 December 1804, Captain John Graham received a

letter of marque A letter of marque and reprisal () was a Sovereign state, government license in the Age of Sail that authorized a private person, known as a privateer or French corsairs, corsair, to attack and capture vessels of a foreign state at war with t ...

."Register of Letters of Marque against France 1793-1815"; p.81

Final voyage

''Phoenix'', under the command of Captain Robert White and with surgeon Charles Quaede, left England on 29 March 1824, and arrived in

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

, on 21 July 1824. She was

transporting Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional movement of humans, animals, and goods from one location to another. Modes of transport include air, land (rail and road), water, cable, pipelines, and ...

204 male

convicts A convict is "a person found Guilt (law), guilty of a crime and Sentence (law), sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a commo ...

, and landed 202, two having died during the voyage. From Hobart ''Phoenix'' sailed to Sydney. ''Phoenix'' picked up a pilot just outside Sydney Heads but on entering the harbour struck the Sow and Pigs Reef. helped refloat ''Phoenix'', but inspection determined that ''Phoenix''s keel was so damaged that she could not be repaired in New South Wales.

Prison hulk

The New South Wales Colonial Government bought ''Phoenix'' for £1000 and converted her to a

for convicts awaiting transportation to

Norfolk Island Norfolk Island ( , ; ) is an States and territories of Australia, external territory of Australia located in the Pacific Ocean between New Zealand and New Caledonia, directly east of Australia's Evans Head, New South Wales, Evans Head and a ...

and

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

. She thereby became Australia's first prison hulk. She was moored in Hulk Bay (now

Lavender Bay Lavender Bay is a harbourside suburb on the lower North Shore (Sydney), North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Lavender Bay is located three kilometres north of the Sydney central business district, in the Local government in Austral ...

). She was considered a much better place to be imprisoned than on shore; contemporary reports described her as ''cleanly wholesome and ...spacious.'' She could hold up to 200 prisoners. However, by 1837 ''Phoenix'' was in a "sinking state"; the government therefore grounded and auctioned her off. for £145. Her prisoners were temporarily housed on Goat Island.

Fate

Thomas Hyndes broke her up in Cockle Bay in December 1837.''The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser'' 21 December 1837, p.2.

Notes

Citations

References

* * *

External links

Colonial Secretary's papers 1822-1877

State Library of Queensland State Library of Queensland (State Library) is the state public reference and research library of Queensland, Australia, operated by the Government of Queensland, state government. The Library is governed by the Library Board of Queensland, whi ...

- includes digitised letters written to the

Colonial Secretary of New South Wales Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French colonial architecture * Spanish colonial architecture Automobiles * Col ...

regarding the ''Phoenix'' and its voyages as a prison hulk to penal settlements, such as the

Moreton Bay Penal Settlement The Moreton Bay Penal Settlement operated from 1825 to 1842. It became the city of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. History The Moreton Bay Penal Settlement was established on the Redcliffe Peninsula on Moreton Bay in September 1824, under t ...

{{Navbox shipwrecks of New South Wales, Wreckshunter 1798 ships Ships built on the River Thames History of New South Wales Sail ships of Australia Individual sailing vessels 1824 in Australia 1788–1850 ships of Australia Merchant ships of Australia Maritime incidents in July 1824 Convict ships to Tasmania Age of Sail merchant ships Merchant ships of the United Kingdom