In October 1851, Jane Ellis was the most despised woman in Brisbane. At her first Court appearance, crowds of angry citizens jostled for a seat in the public gallery, and when she was released on bail, Mrs Ellis had to be escorted through the hissing throng by two policemen. Mrs Ellis was the wife ofContinue reading “The Most Despised Woman in Old Brisbane Town.”
Category Archives: Neglect
The Uncontrollable Child
The ability to control one’s child, especially one’s male child, was a mark of successful parenting in the 19th century. For families of the middle class and respectable working class, children were expected to make themselves generally useful and be subject to parental control before they began to work to help support the family (generallyContinue reading “The Uncontrollable Child”
Juvenile Justice in the 19th Century.
On board the Proserpine, hardened juvenile offenders mixed with small children with desperately unhappy backgrounds. Life was exceptionally harsh in the 19th century for children from impoverished families, and with no social security, crime was an option. The main difference between today’s tales of horror and the Victorian stories is that today there are Federal andContinue reading “Juvenile Justice in the 19th Century.”
Young Patrick's life of crime.
He was born at sea in 1855, and grew up in the Irishtown district of Ipswich. By 15 he was called a hardened criminal by the newspapers. When Patrick Long boarded the Hulk Proserpina in 1871, his parents were no longer in the picture, and although the hulk was supposed to be a reformatory and industrial school, there wasContinue reading “Young Patrick's life of crime.”
Juvenile Justice
The problems of juvenile justice, offending and punishment dominate current affairs stories today. Kids are out of control, people call for harsher penalties and naming of juvenile offenders. I think those calling for a return to the Good Old Days of discipline would be very surprised if they examined that allegedly golden era a littleContinue reading “Juvenile Justice”
Moreton Bay and More 