Question about emigrating from 19th Century Ireland.

Er, excuse me but...

this is not my era but weren't the assisted passages to Australia only available for a short time, 1849 -1851/2 as a result of the Great Famine and only to 'decent' families.

If your chappy is being transported as a criminal would his family receive assisted passage?

As Ireland was being governed by the British at this time would she go to the local Magistrate or JP if she was in the country and to the local govt/town hall in the city?

I think the local official was the 'Resident Magistrate', refered to as the RM

Ah, what an interesting subject

I believe the name of the place in England was called the Home Office where such applications were made. They were mainly done there as the CLEC (see below) did not always allow the transportation of wifes and children.

At least between the years of 1819 - 1849, (I am not sure of all years for Irish wives located in Ireland) wives of convicts could request to be shipped to Australia, although some may have come on the same ships as their husbands, some came out after their husbands were granted Ticket of Leaves, or were given their freedom.

I know there were schemes for Irish wives to meet up with their convict husbands in Australia in at least in the late 1840s, which the cost was partly met by the colonial government - a rule they had relaxed because of the famines.

Look UP CLEC – Colonial Land and Emigration Commission

The transportation of wives was encourage from within Australia throughout the settlement at various times.

Transporting of convicts to Australia was formally abolished in 1868 although it had basically stopped by 1857, with rare occurrences of transportation in the few years prior to 1857.

So you will need to look carefully at your time line.

I would suggest you go to the library and engross yourself on non-fiction books about this issue, of which there is a wealth of information to be found in them. Although I can’t recall any by name, there are many written specifically about the Irish in Australia and how they got here.

Good luck with it.

Oh, I just realised you say you are in outback Australia, so maybe a library is not that easy to get to.

Google will be your friend if do it enough.

Here is a couple of links to get you going.


THE EMIGRATION OF IRISH WOMEN IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY: AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY http://www.mith2.umd.edu/WomensStudies/Bibliographies/19c-irish-women

Irish Women in Colonial Australia
http://books.google.com.au/books?id...esult&ct=result&resnum=4#v=onepage&q=&f=false

Although I only live 2 1/2 hours from Sydney I have the same issue with the library here. And normally the books I want, I can't get unless I go to the National or State Library which is not an option. A lot of the books are in collections, and I can't even pay to have them sent up here and loaned, and the only way I can pay a researcher is if, I know what I am looking for - when usually, I'm not totally sure myself.

You will be safe if you mention the Home Office. It is still called that.

I believe so.

Not that I take wikipedia to necessarily be correct on all matters of fact, but it is a good place to start.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Home_Office

If you take a moment to browse online the previous links I gave you, they will steer you in the direction for further research. The Home Office and the CLEC – Colonial Land and Emigration Commission is refered to in any Australian non-fictional work covering this period and subject.

One more - National Archives has some information and links speficially related to the Irish

http://www.nationalarchives.ie/topics/transportation/transp1.html

Good luck with it

Nope, but just don't finish yours before mine, ok.

Ha, neither is mine But it is set before the 1850s