Date of Conviction: 14/04/1823

Age at Conviction: 43

Crime Convicted of: Receiving Stolen Goods

Court/s Convicted at: Lancaster Quarter Sessions (held at the New Bailey, Salford)

Sentence Length: 7 Years

Ship Transported on: Brothers

Where Arrived: Hobart, Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania)

Departure Date: 20/11/1823

Arrival Date: 15/04/1824

Biography: Lucy, a married woman, had received seven pieces of stolen calico at Manchester, part of a lot of 40 stolen from a warehouse on Back George St, Manchester by William Tilford and William Mitton who she was tried with. She had already been committed by the time Mitton was up for a second case of robbery, of a tea warehouse, Lucy again had received the stolen tea, a fact that was proven by her daughter saying Mitton had brought the tea to their house but as she had already been sentenced, she was not further charged. Mitton had tried to pay Lucy off to say that she had robbed the tea. Lucy had already served two prior 12 month jail sentences.

Reformer Elizabeth Fry recorded that Lucy was amongst the ‘Eleven women from Lancaster were sent to the ship ‘iron-hooped round their legs and arms, and chained to each other. The complaints of these women were very mournful, they were not allowed to get up or down from the coach without the whole being dragged together; some of them had children to carry, they received no help, or alleviation to their suffering.’

Described as ‘an old offender’ with reports of having been disorderly in jail on her arrival, Within six months of her arrival, Lucy’s husband, Robert who had also been transported (ship- Speke) in 1820 to New South Wales, tracked her down and endearingly petitioned for his wife to be able to join him. The petition reveals that they had had 15 children at Manchester, though seven of them had died and they had been married 24 years. After some initial confusion where it was agreed that he could go to her but he responded saying he was comfortably settled with a house, job and money at Windsor, and wanted Lucy to come to him, not the other way around, his initial request was granted for Lucy to go to him.

Lucy it seems, had other ideas and instead had a number of convictions in her first years for both absconding and misconduct, earning her reprimands and two week stints in solitary confinement on bread and water. During 1826 and 1827 she went quiet but by 1828, she was again absconding and in July 1829 was found drunk and given another three days locked up. However, after this time, there are no more records for Lucy.

The 1828 census over in NSW shows husband Robert still by himself, he received his ticket of leave in 1831 and his full freedom in 1834.