Peter & Jenny, Also worth considering is that he died as one of the 2220 people who are listed in the NSW BDMS 1788 - 1900 with no known surname or indeed in many cases no known name. Several of those are infants. Just take away all the current ID you carry now and think about how someone who was travelling, who may also be illiterate, could be identified especially if a body was found on a hot summers day. They wouldn't be kept at the morgue until next of kin made enquiries nor were fingerprints in use. I also wonder if remains were found, if the deaths were always reported and registered. A quick bush burial might have been the order of the day. A respectful burial on the spot could be a lot more convenient than travelling to the nearest town to bring back a policeman then being required to be part of an inquest. Qld was still part of NSW until late 1859. Good luck and if you find my Charles Summerell who was last known to be living on the "Sholehaven" in the 1840's, I'd love to know. David Hi Peter, Given that the ToL in 1844 says that Thomas was going to Moreton Bay, have you consider the following as a possibility for his death? http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/3715124?searchTerm=Thomas+lynch&searchLimits=l-decade=184|||l-year=1847|||l-state=Queensland I couldn't find a corresponding death record in either Qld or NSW online BDM indexes, but I have found similar cases where deaths went unregistered if there was an inquest. The newspaper doesn't say there was an inquest but there may have been. It might be worthwhile following up in the absence of any other possible death. One further point regarding not find a cert of freedom, from my understanding, a convict had to apply for one - it was not automatic. I have a similar case where a female convict didn't get hers for a further 8 years, she had no other convictions etc and it seems to be a case of just not getting around to applying for it. Hope some of that helps. Jenny W [Brisbane] <<I am trying to find details of Thomas Lynch(ey) my GG grandmother's brother Thomas was apparently born in County Down and was sentenced on the Isle of Man to transportation to New South Wales in 1833. He arrived in Sydney in 1835 and spent some, at least, of his time in the upper hunter valley where he received his Ticket of Leave from "The Muswellbrook Bench" in 1844. His sentence would have been completed in 1847 however no Certificate of Freedom has been found. There is no death or marriage recorded in Australia, including Convict Deaths in Custody. Thomas may have continued life as "LYNCH" Thomas was sentenced and transported as "LYNCHEY" however changing a name was a common exconvict way of starting anew, also throughout the 19th century "LYNCHEY" seems to have morphed into "LYNCH" and there are no "LYNCHEYs" listed today in the white pages of the Irish Republic or Ulster. Does any Lister have any information which may help me please?>>