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  1. The Dictionary of Sydney
  2. Roles
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  4. Seaman

Seaman

Occupation - Seaman
Bailey, Charles
Blanket, John
Boatswain Maroot
Brinkworth, Paddy
Day, Joseph
Ellerington, William
Elliott, Eliot V
Farrell, Philip
Fenwick, Andrew
Fenwick, Andrew jnr
Fenwick, James
Fenwick, John
Fenwick, Thomas
Fisher, John
Fowler, Mick
Griffiths, Thomas
Hibbs, Peter
Johnson, James
Jong, Ngock Bew (William Jong)
Jorgenson, William
Laughton, John
Page, Benjamin
Parsons, Eric John
Petersen, Axel
Petersen, Harold
Shapcote, Peter John
Sharp, William
Siddons, Richard
Sinclair, Duncan
Stannard, Alan
Stannard, William
Underwood, William
Walton, Francis
Watson, Robert
Watson, Thomas
Yorganness, Yorgan
Position - Seaman of Justinian
Shapcote, Peter John
1790
Position - Seaman of Lady Penrhyn
Anstis, Nicholas
1787 - 1789
Fisher, John
1787 - 25 Mar 1788
Position - Seaman of Neptune
Ellerington, William
1790
Position - Seaman of Prince of Wales
Yorganness, Yorgan
1787

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Seaman

Bailey, Charles

Tugboat operator in Balmain at the beginning of the twentieth century.

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Blanket, John

Māori man who was one of the early harbour pilots and then worked for many years as a servant and part of the household of the politician John Robertson at his property Clovelly at Watsons Bay. On 8 Feburary 1874 Blanket and three other men from Watsons Bay were on a fishing expedition outside the heads. A storm blew in on their return journey and the boat was swamped near DeeWhy and sank. One of the men, a Portuguese sailor named Emmanuel Jacinto (or Jesson) was drowned, while the other three eventually managed to swim. Blanket was described as tattooed and as a Maori chief.

Blanket died in late 1889, aged about 82, and was buried at South Head Cemetery. In 1899 his remains were removed to be placed beside those of John Robertson.

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Boatswain Maroot

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Boatswain Maroot was born at the Cooks River near Botany about 1793, the son of Maroot and Grang Grang. Nicknamed Boatswain or Bosun, he was a sailor and one of the first sealers put ashore at Macquarie Island in the sub-Antarctic ocean in 1810 where he was stranded for 18 months without food rations, later petitioning Governor Macquarie for unpaid wages. He had land at Botany Bay where he lived with his wife, and had several white tenants. He gave evidence to the Select Committee on the Condition of the Aborigines in 1845 where he spoke frankly about his life, his family, his Country and the impact on Indigenous people since 1788. His name is also often spelt as Mahroot.

Brinkworth, Paddy

Tugboat crewman.

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Day, Joseph

Mariner.

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Ellerington, William

Chief mate of the Second Fleet transport, Neptune, who, along with the captain Donald Trail, was prosecuted for the mistreatment of the ship's convicts after they returned to England. They were both acquitted.

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Elliott, Eliot V

Merchant seaman and militant trade unionist who emphasised the importance of unity, solidarity and internationalism amongst maritime workers.

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Farrell, Philip

Pickpocket who was tried at the Old Bailey, London in 1784 for stealing a handkerchief and sentenced to seven years' transportation. He led an attempted mutiny along with accomplice Thomas Griffiths on board the First Fleet transport, Scarborough. He received 24 lashes on HMS Sirius and was transferred to Prince of Wales.

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Fenwick, Andrew

Seaman who emigrated from Scotland.

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Fenwick, Andrew jnr

Tugboat proprietor and partner in J & T Fenwick.

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Fenwick, James

Third generation businessman in the towage business.

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Fenwick, John

Operator and partner of towage company with his brother Thomas. He retained the Sydney branch of the business when the partnership dissolved in 1883.

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Fenwick, Thomas

Operator and partner of a towage business with his brother John before expanding his business to Ballina and pursuing success with brute force if necessary.

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Fisher, John

Seaman who sailed to New South Wales with the First Fleet. He developed a relationship with convict Catherine Hart and would swim ashore to see her each night. He contracted dysentery and died within two months of arriving in Sydney.

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Fowler, Mick

Seaman, jazz musician and Communist Party member whose involvement with green bans became personal when his own home was barricaded in Victoria Street Kings Cross.

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Griffiths, Thomas

Convict tried at the Old Bailey, London in 1784 for stealing material with a value of 80 shillings. He was sentenced to seven years' transportation and paired with fellow convict Philip Farrell in an attempted mutiny on Scarborough. He received 24 lashes on HMS Sirius and was transferred to Prince of Wales.

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Hibbs, Peter

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First Fleet seaman who played a role in the exploration of Tasmania and Australia's eastern seaboard. He allegedly sailed with Captain James Cook on HMB Endeavour and was credited in the Windsor and Richmond Gazette of 1890 as being the second Englishman after Sir Joseph Banks to step ashore at Botany Bay in 1770. However, no primary source material has been found to confirm this. Hibbs was part of the crew during the wreck of HMS Sirius on its way to Norfolk Island. While at Norfolk Island his wife arrived aboard Surprize with her baby girl, whom they raised as their own.

Johnson, James

Lone survivor of the wreck of the Dunbar in 1857.

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Jong, Ngock Bew (William Jong)

Trade unionist who political activities saw him discriminated against be Australian authorities for many years by having one-year renewals of his papers.

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Jorgenson, William

Tugboat operator in Balmain.

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Laughton, John

Pioneer settler on the Hawkesbury River.

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Page, Benjamin

Sea captain from Rhode Island, United States of America, who made stops at Sydney in the 1790s.

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Parsons, Eric John

Seaman and husband of madam and sly-grog seller, Tilly Devine who claimed he was the best man she'd ever known. She famously shot Parsons in the leg after an argument only months before they were married at her other Palmer Street, Darlinghurst residence. They stayed married until his death from cancer.

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Petersen, Axel

Danish seaman who became partners with Harold 'Mack' Mackenzie to form a towage company in the 1930s.

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Petersen, Harold

Danish seaman who worked in towage with his brother's company.

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Shapcote, Peter John

Seaman who sailed with the Second Fleet aboard the storeship, Justinian, arriving in Sydney only to find his father had died during the voyage aboard Neptune.

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Sharp, William

Mariner who mastered supply ship Golden Grove during the First Fleet and its return voyage to England.

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Siddons, Richard

Harbour pilot who operated from Watsons Bay in the 1820s and 1830s.

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Sinclair, Duncan

Mariner who mastered the convict transport Alexander during the First Fleet voyage.

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Stannard, Alan

Tug operator who pioneered small steel tugs.

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Stannard, William

Waterman whose family established a towage business in 1937.

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Underwood, William

Whaler who continued the family business in Vanuatu.

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Walton, Francis

Mariner who mastered Friendship during the First Fleet voyage.

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Watson, Robert

Quartermaster on the Sirius who became a harbour pilot for Port Jackson from 1809.

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Watson, Thomas

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Master mariner and harbour pilot who received a land grant at Watsons Bay in 1835. He raised the first tribute to Captain James Cook at Liverpool and the first statue in Australia to Cook at Randwick. He was superintendent of Macquarie Lighthouse and made the newspapers in 1841 when he, in his schooner 'Essington', rescued a boy called Forbes allegedly held captive for 16 years by 'the Savages of Timor'.

Yorganness, Yorgan

Seaman who fell overboard and drowned whilst working on the Prince of Wales.

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Justinian

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Three decked storeship of 389 ton that travelled via Madiera and Saint Jago to arrive just slightly ahead of the Second Fleet. Its cargo of flour, salted pork, oil, cloth and blankets and a portable military hospital were sorely needed in the colony which was on the verge of starvation.

Lady Penrhyn

First Fleet transport ship of 333 tons which brought 101 female convicts to Port Jackson in 1788.

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Anstis, Nicholas

Ship's captain who did little to aid the convicts of the Surprize in the Second Fleet - over 30 dying on the journey and many more in the weeks after they landed.

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Neptune

At 809 tons the largest convict transport ship of the Second Fleet which lost 30% of the 500 convicts aboard due to ill treatment and disease.

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Prince of Wales

A barque of 350 tons and 103 feet long, it was one of the newest vessels of the Fleet carrying about 52 convicts and 29 marines with a crew of 25.

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