Convict Data Base and Adopt A Convict

The ultimate aim of the Adopt a Convict project is to eventually produce a biography of every known convict who worked on the construction of the Great North Road and its branches. At this stage the information is presented in a data base format. The History group initially developed a list of 750 men. This has expanded to over 1400 men.

Many of these men did not marry or leave descendants so despite the popularity of researching our convict ancestors few of these men have been researched. Through the Adopt a Convict project where people volunteered to research a convict, a group of convicts or a gang of convicts, many of the convicts were researched. A NSW Centenary of Federation grant allowed this research to be verified and placed on the web site in a searchable database format.

The collection of this data, which is ongoing, provides a unique database that can be used to provide answers to many questions about the convict system in the 1820s and 1830s.

To find out more about this project or volunteer to research a convict contact Mari Metzke at outreach@rahs.org.au, or Elizabeth Roberts at convicttrail@bigpond.com. There are many convicts who still need researching.