Port Arthur Historic Convict Site: Part 2

 

Three short plays were presented each day and we managed to see all three during our two-day visit. All were representative of a prisoner's life, their treatment and the reasons they were incarcerated. Part of the dehumanizing process at Port Arthur was to assign prisoners an identification number which replaced their names. The plays seek to humanize the people who lived and died here by telling their stories and restoring their identities as much as possible.

We visited Puer Point by dinghy early one morning. Many people were originally “transported” from England and Ireland for minor crimes such as theft. Boys could be tried as adults at age 7 and theft of a toy was enough to warrant imprisonment at Port Arthur. Puer (Latin for “boy”) Point was established across the bay from the main settlement at Port Arthur as a reformatory specifically for juvenile delinquent boys. It was hard to believe that between 1834-1849, this lovely place with wildflowers in bloom and ducks swimming tranquilly in a marsh was once home to 3,000 boys, some as young as 9. A walkway leads past the scant remains of the buildings. David wandered into the old brick ovens, thick with cobwebs and a-buzz with flying insects.

The Isle of the Dead, also across the bay, is a tiny, treed island that served as the settlement's cemetery. Convicts, military and civilian officers and their family members were buried here between 1833 and 1877. It was an eerie feeling to see row upon row of gravestones … some leaning, some crumbling. We wandered respectfully and quietly among them, reading the stones, wondering what their stories were and how their lives had ended. Of the 1,646 graves recorded, only 180, those of prison staff and military personnel, are marked.

The prison closed in 1877. Many of the buildings are believed to be haunted. Screams are said to be heard from cells and rocking chairs and objects can be seen moving. Ghosthunters International did a segment here and verified paranormal activity. We visited the Parsonage, said to be the “most haunted” of all the buildings on the site. We didn't see or hear anything paranormal, but in a black-walled, dimly-lit room, with a minister's sermon playing in the background, it certainly felt creepy.

We ended up spending two full days at the Port Arthur Convict Site including our side trips to Isle of the Dead and Puer Point in the dinghy. It is wonderful, eerie and sobering all at the same time. The cheapest admission price is $32 and includes two consecutive days entry, an orientation tour and a short harbor cruise. Several other activities including after-dark ghost tours are available for additional cost. We would definitely add Port Arthur to our recommended must-see list when visiting Tasmania.

For more reading on this subject, the crew recommends For the Term of His Natural Life by Marcus Andrew Hislop Clarke, written in 1874. It's a free Kindle download.

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Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

A Federal holiday to commemorate a great man. It has been promoted as a day of public service. So go out there and volunteer to do something positive for your community in the name of Dr. King.

Port Arthur Historic Convict Site: Part 1

port arthur lock

We'd heard and read about Port Arthur. We'd seen pictures. Nothing, however, could have prepared us for our first views of this historic site as we made our way around the Isle of the Dead and headed towards Mason Cove. A picture-perfect expanse of golden, sandstone buildings lay before us on a green hillside surrounded by thick dense forest … an artist's pallet. Everything appeared so very beautiful, grand and pastoral from our vantage point … a castle or a huge mansion ... until you realized that this was once considered the harshest penal institution in the British Empire.

port arthur penitentiary

Originally founded in 1830 as a timber station, in 1833 Port Arthur, because of its isolated location, became the site of one of Australia's most shockingly cruel and brutal prisons. Now part of a World Heritage Site, this open air museum showcases the remains of the convict-built buildings which once served as their prison. In conjunction with interpretive guides, plays, museums and tours, the convicts' stories are told, providing distinctive personalities to the men and boys who served life sentences here.

port arthur convict cards lottery of life

“Transportation” was a common occurrence in England in the 19th century. Rather than hang, many prisoners were offered the option (or not) of being transported to Tasmania, among other fine localities to serve their sentences. A random playing card was provided with our admission ticket, each of which corresponded to the life of an actual prisoner who had been incarcerated at Port Arthur. We followed instructions which led us through The Convict Gallery interpretive center and allowed us to play “The Lottery of Life”. If we'd been sentenced to Port Arthur, David would have spent his life working in a blacksmith shop and I in the carpenter's shop, if I had been a male.

portarthur convict lottery

There are more than 30 historic buildings on this 300+ acre site. One of the most outstanding structures is the main penitentiary itself which housed 600+ inmates. This prison was envisaged as “a place of terror” by its builders. Now roofless and windowless with reinforced brick walls, it's easy to conjure up images of leg irons, cat-o-nine tails, inhuman treatment and hopelessness as you wander through. Most of the inmates were repeat offenders, sent here as incorrigibles from other Australian sites. However political prisoners such as Irish activist, William Smith O'Brien, were also incarcerated here.

port arthur penitentiary

The gothic-style non-denominational Church embodied the importance of religion in the attempt to reform the convicts. Capable of holding up to 1100 people, attendance and participation was compulsory. For some, it was the only social interaction with another human during the week. Much of the creative carving and stonework was done by the boys.

port arthur church

The ruins of the hospital sits on the top of the hill and reminded us of a movie set … all facade and no depth.

port arthur separate prison

Though corporal punishment in the form of flogging was the norm here, a new theory of psychological punishment was also carried out on the worst prisoners in the “Separate Prison”.

port arthur separate prison cells

Here men were kept in solitary confinement in small, dark cells. Total silence was observed at all times, even by the jailers. Involuntary coughing or sneezing brought more punishment. Bread and water were the only rations. Prisoners were required to wear a hood over their heads. Next door to the Separate Prison was the Asylum...no comments necessary as to the results of sensory deprivation.

Port Arthur: Part 2 tomorrow.

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Aquarius Day

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National Buttercrunch Day

This delicious chocolate-coated toffee can be made at home  OR alternatively you can just buy some at the candy store and enjoy nibbling on it all day long.

On to Port Arthur

 

A one-day delay due to a minor medical issue and we were down the Huon River with the wind for a change. We sped down the winding Huon at 8+ knots and were spit out across the Channel into Little Taylor's Bay. We spent a relaxing night, prepped for an early morning departure and we were off down the Channel again.

The day's forecast for early N/NW winds, backing to 25kt westerlies by midday was perfect for heading south down the Channel, then rounding Cape Bruny and heading up Bruny Island's east coast to Port Arthur on the Tasman Peninsular.

Forecasts are one thing...actual weather, well that's quite another. We did see northerlies for a short time which got us down the channel, but with less than 7 kts of wind, the engine helped considerably. When we headed east across the bottom of Bruny, the wind clocked and instead of the promised fresh west winds, we had a light headwind from the east. We motored. When we turned the corner and headed up the east coast of Bruny...that darned wind turned with us and backed to NE again and then clocked to SE and south, but light and never west...not even once did we see a hint of a west wind until... you guessed it, until we headed into Port Arthur and tried to anchor. The west wind came roaring across the bay 20, 25, 30 knots and continued to roar all evening.

We did, however, have a pleasant day despite the need to motor. It was a slate-blue kind of day. Blue hues and shades and shadows of gray pervaded the day. The water was slate-blue. The sky was overcast with massive clouds of slate blue and gray. The mountains and hills took on the same tones ... endless shades of slate. Every once in awhile, a bright patch of blue sky would open up as if someone above the clouds was peeking through.

We were in the Tasman Sea again and the bird life changed from shore birds to ocean birds. Mollymawks (small albatross) soared overhead. Yellow-headed gannets dove into the water like bullets and shearwaters in great flocks hunted for breakfast.

We passed by Bruny Light and the ragged Friars, then up Bruny's east coast past Adventure Bay where Cook and Bligh and Tasman and scores of others have sailed before, exploring a new worlds and seeking more land to claim for their countries.

We passed by the spires of Cape Raoul and West Arthur Head and entered the long south-facing entrance to Port Arthur. This particular area has been spared from the bushfires and houses and farms on the hills looked peaceful and calm. We turned the corner past the Isle of the Dead and the golden sandstone buildings of the Port Arthur historic convict site sprawled before us like a page from a history book.

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Days and Ways to Celebrate

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Strawberry Ice Cream Day

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