The Dark History of Port Arthur, Tasmania

As many people know, European settlement of Australia began as a way to relieve the problem of over-crowding in British prisons. Those criminals who were sent to Australia and its island of Tasmania were not usually murderers and rapists but small-time thieves, including juvenile thieves. By today’s standards, the punishment of Port Arthur far outweighed the crime: not only did the sea voyage from Britain to Tasmania take over eight months on crowded, disease-ridden ships, but once the convicts arrived in Port Arthur, Tasmania, they were treated more like slaves than like the small-time thieves they were.

A Penal Colony in the Wilderness

Even today, Tasmania is a lush, green island composed of rainforests and unsullied wild. In 1830, when the first British convicts began to arrive, they were faced with a terrain wholly foreign to what they had known in Britain: to the convicts, Tasmania must have appeared to be the most wild place on earth. Although there were aboriginal people in the Port Arthur area when the British convicts arrived, they were soon driven out forcibly or died from diseases brought from Europe, suffering a similar fate to the Native Americans of North and South America. These human settlements were pushed aside as a penal colony was carved out of this wild place: Port Arthur, Tasmania.

Port Arthur Brings Riches to Britain; Woes to Prisoners

Port Arthur, Tasmania, became one of Britain’s most important penal colonies, as it soon became a major center of ship production within the British colonial empire. In fact, at one time, Port Arthur, Tasmania, was Britain’s largest penal colony. By day, prisoners worked in shipyards; at night, they suffered in cold, damp prison cells. Prisoners were not allowed to talk to each other or even look at each other, and corporal punishments, such as public floggings with razor-sharp ropes, were not uncommon. During the mid-nineteenth century, such treatment of prisoners was considered the best way to rehabilitate them. Unfortunately, many died under the harsh treatment, and many went insane. It is no wonder that one of Port Arthur, Tasmania’s main tourist attractions today is its ghost tours.

Escape from Port Arthur for the convicts was unlikely – where would they go? Surrounding Port Arthur on all sides were shark-infested oceans and wild forests – that was if they could escape the prison guards and their dogs. For nineteenth century Britain, Port Arthur, Tasmania, was viewed much the same way as Alcatraz was in America: it was the last place you wanted to go, and if you went, you would never escape.

Port Arthur as a Tourist Destination

Port Arthur as a penal colony came to an end in 1877. It became a popular tourist destination almost immediately. Much like visitors to San Francisco’s Alcatraz today, early visitors to Port Arthur, Tasmania, wanted to see the horrible prison conditions for themselves. By the 1920s and 1930s, Port Arthur already had several hotels, museums, and guided tours catering to these tourists. Port Arthur – and Tasmania as a whole – relies upon its tourism industry to this day as a major source of income. Perhaps something good came from its history as a penal colony, after all.

Sources:

The Interactive Tour of Tasmania

Wikipedia – Port Arthur

National Geographic Traveler

Port Arthur Official Website