The "Lady Kennaway"

Lady Kennaway, of 584 tones, was built in Calcutta, India in 1817 and was chartered in the 1830's as a convict transport. She had a trading life of over forty years. She carried over 850 convicts and hundreds more emigrants to Australia and Van Dieman's Land (Tasmania). Lady Kennaway also traded with India and Canada.

Her first voyage in 1835 was to Hobart with 311 male convicts, under Master Robert P. Davidson. She took 109 days, and 19 of the convicts died during the voyage (a ratio of one death to every 16 convicts).

In 1836 she departed London on 11 June for Sydney with 298 male convicts, still under Master Davidson and with Surgeon Wilson on board, arriving in Sydney on 12 October, 123 days out.

On 13 June 1841 she set out on a voyage from London, via Plymouth, to Sydney under Master J. L. Spence, this time with 256 immigrants on board, arriving by coincidence on the same day as in 1836; 12 October, 121 days out.

On 11 September 1848 she sailed from Plymouth under Master James Santry carrying 190 Irish girls, all orphaned by the potato famine of 1845. She arrived in 85 days on 13 December 1848. Among those orphans was Catherine Tyrrell, who in 1854 married Frederick Taylor and was the grandmother of Melbourne Air Commodore Rex Taylor.

In 1849 she sailed from Plymouth , arriving off Pt Henry, Geelong on25th Feb 1850.
http://members.iinet.net.au/~perthdps/shipping/mig-vic.htm

In 1851 when she returned to the convict trade and departed Portsmouth on 5 February 1851 with 249 male prisoners (Master J. Santry still in command, and with Joshua Caldwell as surgeon), arriving in Hobart on 28 May after a passage of 112 days.

In 1853 she made another voyage to Victoria, Australia
Source: (1)Public Records Office Victoria -(2) Julie - julie_gregan@iprimus.com.au

The Government Archives and the State Library of New South Wales, together with Mitchell Library in Sydney, provide the following information on the Lady Kennaway:
"She was a three masted, square rigged barque of 584 tons built in 1817 of teak and iron bolted, by Kid and Company Calcutta, India. Her anchor cable was made of rope (coir) the anchor stock being wood, her rigging was hempen, she carried guns and had neither double or patent top sails. She had a long bowsprit, jib boom, quarter galleries and a figurehead of the period."

On Wednesday 25 November 1857 on the Buffalo River (East London, British Kaffraria) the Lady Kennaway was driven ashore in a heavy gale and was wrecked within the mouth of the River.

The Lady Kennaway CyberTrail by Dr Keith Tankard
http://www.knowledge4africa.co.za/eastlondon/a4german.htm#girls

Australian National Maritime Museum
Alphabetical index to Illustrations of ships of Australian and New Zealand Interest
http://www.anmm.gov.au/LIB/ilnidx.htm#L