Convict journals provide a glimpse of convict life on the voyage to Australia, and sometimes accounts of colonial life. There are very few convict journals which have survived.

Sometimes it can be difficult to determine exactly when and where your convict ancestor arrived in Australia. You may need to check a few of the following sources to find the person you are looking for.

Upon arrival, a convict was usually assigned to a master, the Female Factory or to Public Works. Who and where a convict was assigned to was recorded in an assignment register. 

If they were well behaved, convicts were not usually required to serve out their full term.

From January 1788, when the First Fleet of convicts arrived at Botany Bay, to the end of convict transportation 80 years later, over 160,000 convicts were transported to Australia.

Historic newspaper archives, such as the British Library Newspapers and the Irish Newspaper Archive, can be accessed by registered library users via our eResources.

Female convicts were predominantly young, single women who had been domestic servants and/or who had come from a semi-skilled background - such as an apprenticeship.

A 1913 Russian brochure on teaching the 'Australian method' of swimming has recently been added to our collection.

Start planning your summer holidays with events happening at the Library.

You can access the music collection both in the Library and online, and you can order your own copies through our Copies Direct service. Due to the unique and fragile nature of the collection many items are not available for interlibrary loan.