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When a Spade’s a Spade: the hanging of John Hammell
Sydney Gazette, 5 May 1832, p2 via Trove On 7 May 1832, John Hammell (also reported as John Hammill, John Haymell and Charles Hammell) was hanged for the murder of his boss George Williamson. Not everyone was sorry Williamson had been…
The first woman hanged in Sydney
David Collins records the death of Ann Davis in An Account of the English Colony in New South Wales, 1798, p86 On 23 November 1789, Ann Davis became the first woman hanged in New South Wales. Listen to Rachel and Alex…
Sydney’s Oldest Unsolved Murders
An account of the English colony in New South Wales : with remarks on the dispositions, customs, manners, &c. of the native inhabitants of that country, compiled, by permission, from the MSS. of Lieutenant-Governor King by David Collins, London: 1798-1802,…
Adam Courtenay, The Ship That Never Was: The Greatest Escape Story of Australian Colonial History
Adam Courtenay, The Ship That Never Was: The Greatest Escape Story of Australian Colonial History HarperCollins Publishers (ABC Books), 323 pp., ISBN: 978073333857, p/bk, AUS$29.99 In a genuine example of fact is stranger than fiction, journalist Adam Courtenay's book The Ship That…
Convict travels
These leaves are held by the State Library of NSW and were among a store taken by Mary Bryant when she escaped and which she gave to James Boswell. The plant is Smilax glyciphylla, commonly known as wild sarsaparilla; "a small…
The old Commodore, Billy Blue
Billy Blue 1834 by JB East Courtesy Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales (a928634 / ML 560) 29 March 2017 Lisa Murray A few weeks back, we looked at the early history of Americans in Sydney. At the time, I…
Mary Reibey: Australia’s pioneering businesswoman
Mary Reibey c1835 Courtesy: Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW Today is International Women’s Day and its also Women’s History Month, so with Rani at the helm at 2SER, let's take a look at one of the Dictionary of Sydney’s most famous ladies…
‘Alternative histories’: The myth of Sydney’s foundational orgy
First page of the List of Female Convicts on board the Lady Penrhyn, from the journal of Arthur Bowes Smyth May 1787 Courtesy National Library of Australia (MS 4568) The 6 February marked the anniversary of a night of salacious activity…
Sydney's Rum Hospital
Old Sydney Hospital, Macquarie Street c1865-85, Mitchell LIbrary, State Library of NSW (a089177 / SPF / 177) It seems rum is good for your health. Or it was 200 years ago in Sydney. Sydney in 1810 was in desperate need of a permanent…
New tour! Sydney Harbour Islands
Bennelong Point c1804, Mitchell Library, State Library of NSW (a1528483 / V1/1810/1) The Dictionary of Sydney has launched a new tour! Following on from Convict Parramatta, we can now explore Sydney’s harbour islands on our mobile devices, from the Royal Australian…