Glossary
Absolute Pardon
Gave convicts complete freedom; they could return home or stay in the colony or country.
Assignment
Convict assignment allocated convicts to work for private individuals/masters during the Assignment System period (1803-1839).
Central Criminal Court/ Old Bailey
The Central Criminal Court of England and Wales, also known as the Old Bailey, is in Central London.
Certificate of Freedom/ Free Certificate
Certificates of freedom were given to convicts at the end of serving their sentence, indicating that they had completed their time as a convict.
Chronometer/ Chronometer maker
Clock or watchmaker with additional skills required to manufacture and repair chronometers. A chronometer is a more precise timepiece with a more complicated escapement.
Conditional pardon
Convicts could apply for a conditional pardon after part of their sentence had been served. The convict then had the same standing as a free person and could usually only travel within the Australian colonies.
Escapement/ Escapement maker
A clock or watch escapement is part of a mechanism that disperses power in a regulated manner. An escapement maker would have been a slightly more skilled clock or watchmaker who specifically made these parts.
Hard labour
Heavy manual work was used as a common punishment when convicts misbehaved or reoffended.
Hobart Town/ Hobarton/ Hobart
Established in 1804 on the River Derwent, the settlement of Hobart Town (Hobarton) became a city in 1842. It was renamed Hobart in 1881.
Horologist
A horologist is a skilled person who makes and repairs clocks and watches.
Master Clockmaker/ Watchmaker
A master clock or watchmaker is a horologist who has advanced skills covering all aspects of horology.
Penal Station
A settlement where convicts worked and lived, often isolated from general society.
Police number
A police number was allocated to convicts on arrival and linked all their records.
Probation
Convicts who arrived during The Probation System (1840-1853) served probation periods instead of being assigned to work for settlers.
TAHO
Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office (see separate list)
Ticket of leave
A ticket of leave enabled convicts to work for themselves while still having to report to the authorities, follow the rules, and work in a specific location. In addition, officials could withdraw a ticket of leave for disorderly misconduct.
Van Diemen’s Land
Renamed Tasmania in 1856
KEY – Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office (TAHO)
AB693 Registers of Criminal Cases Prosecuted by the Crown
AD960 Probate/ Will Files
AF35 Burials and Cremations Registers, Cornelian Bay Cemetery
CB7/12 Immigrants Arrivals
CB7/23 Immigrants Arrivals
CB7/25 Land Order Warrants
CON13 Assignment Lists and associated papers
CON14 Indents of Male Convicts
CON15 Indents of Female Convicts
CON16 Indents of Convicts locally convicted or transported from other colonies
CON17 Indents of Male Convicts arriving from Norfolk Island 1844-1848
CON18 Description Lists of Male Convicts
CON22 Comprehensive Register of Convicts
CON23 Alphabetical Register of Male Convicts 1804-39
CON27 Appropriation Lists of Convicts
CON28 Registers of Distribution of Male Convicts to Probation Stations
CON30 Employment Registers of Probation Passholders
CON31 Conduct Registers of Male Convicts arriving in the period of the Assignment System
CON32 Supplementary Conduct Registers
CON33 Conduct Registers for Male Convicts arriving in the period of the Probation System
CON35 Conduct Registers Male Convicts, Assignment System, arriving on non-convict ships
CON37 Conduct Registers Male Convicts arriving on non-convict ships or locally convicted
CON39 Conduct Registers Male Convicts transferred from Probation Series
CON40 Conduct Registers for Female Convicts
CON52 Convict Applications for Permission to Marry
CON63 Registers of Convict’s Deaths
CON84 Convict Appropriation Register Northern Tasmania
CON94 Convict Conduct Registers, Port Arthur
CSO1, CS024 General Correspondence
CSO3/1/2 Indexes to General Correspondence, Arthur Period
CSO92 Port Officer’s Reports, Ships’ Arrivals, Hobart
CUS30 Ships’ Arrivals and Passenger Lists
CSO3/1/2 Indexes to General Correspondence, Arthur Period
GD63 Prisoners Record Books
GO33/1/70 Duplicate Despatches
HSD145 Royal Hobart Hospital Death Register
MB2/39 Reports of Ships’ Arrivals with Lists of Passengers
POL220/1/1 Departures
POL708 Criminal Photographs
SC84 Documents in Cases in Bankruptcy
SC89 Divorce documents
SC195 Papers relating to Coroners’ Inquests
SC32 Minutes of Proceedings in Criminal Cases
SC89 Divorces