The Ross Female Factory, a former

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 ...

workhouse In Britain and Ireland, a workhouse (, lit. "poor-house") was a total institution where those unable to support themselves financially were offered accommodation and employment. In Scotland, they were usually known as Scottish poorhouse, poorh ...

for female

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 ...

in the

penal colony A penal colony or exile colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general population by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory. Although the term can be used to refer ...

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 ...

, is located in the village of Ross, in the midlands region of

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 ...

. The site was operational between 1848 and 1854. Collectively, Australia’s convict sites represent an exceptional example of the forced migration of convicts and an extraordinary example of global developments associated with punishment and reform. Representing the female experience, the Ross Female Factory demonstrates how

penal transportation Penal transportation (or simply transportation) was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies bec ...

was used to expand Britain's spheres of influence, as well as to punish and reform female convicts. The overseer's cottage is open to public who can get a glimpse of the history of the convict site, which has been kept on display. The archaeological excavations of the site have revealed that the factory was divided into three sections - the Crime Class, the demoted Solitary Cells, and the promoted Hiring Class. These were considered the three stages of reform during the incarceration of the female convicts.

History

The Ross Female Factory opened in March 1848 and closed in November 1854. Transportation to Van Diemen's Land had ceased in 1853. The site served as a

factory A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. Th ...

as well as a hiring depot, an overnight station for female convicts travelling between settlements, a

lying-in hospital A maternity hospital specializes in caring for women during pregnancy and childbirth. It also provides care for newborn infants, and may act as a centre for clinical training in midwifery and obstetrics. Formerly known as lying-in hospitals, most ...

and a nursery. Female convicts were hired for many different reasons from the factory as probation passholders to local settlers, mainly to work as domestic servants. They could be sent back to the factory for punishment if they were charged with an offence by their master or mistress. The first Superintendent to be appointed was Dr William J Irvine; he also acted as the Medical Officer at the Factory. His wife Ann was appointed as Matron. The Police Department took over use of the buildings after the female factory closed in 1854. The chapel was used by the Roman Catholic Church. Several archaeological digs have been conducted at Ross Female Factory, under the supervision of Eleanor Casella since 1995. Hundreds of female convicts passed through the Ross Female Factory during its six and half years of operation. Some of their stories appear in ''Convict Lives at the Ross Female Factory''.

References

External links

Female Convicts Research Centre Inc.

List of Female Convicts in Ross Female Factory

Parks and Wildlife Service Tasmania

Ross Female Factory Archaeological Project
{{Coord, -42.032, 147.492, display=title Prison museums in Australia Protected areas of Tasmania Australian Convict Sites Defunct women's prisons in Australia Defunct prisons in Tasmania 1820 establishments in Australia 1856 disestablishments Tasmanian Heritage Register British colonial architecture in Australia