From the Portland Mercury and Port Fairy Register, Wednesday, SEptember 6, 1843. News From England. "The Sentinel of the 22nd april states that Mrs. Bowden, the matron of the Hanwick Lunatic Asylum, had tendered her resignation,she having received from government an appointment as superintendent of a reformatory for female convicts, about to be established in Van Diemens Land." cheers Jenny Fawcett
Hi Jenny and others Thanks for this snippet, Jenny. For those not aware, Mrs Bowden and her husband were in charge of the 'Anson' hulk which acted as a probation station for female convicts arriving in VDL between 1844 and 1850. Mrs Bowden's husband died not long after they took on their positions, but Mrs Bowden continued in the role. Some people, like Louisa Meredith, highly praised Mrs Bowden's work, others (mainly men in Government) were more critical. I noticed yesterday that her husband's headstone survived removal from Queenborough Cemetery to Cornelian Bay Cemetery. Regards Trudy Dr Trudy Cowley List Administrator TAS Convicts Rootsweb List tcowley@bigpond.net.au AUS-TAS-CONVICTS-L@rootsweb.com -----Original Message----- From: Jenny Fawcett [mailto:jfawcett@genseek.net] Sent: Friday, 10 June 2005 6:38 PM To: AUS-TAS-CONVICTS-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [TAS-CON] Mrs Bowden & The Female Reformatory, Tas >From the Portland Mercury and Port Fairy Register, Wednesday, SEptember 6, 1843. News From England. "The Sentinel of the 22nd april states that Mrs. Bowden, the matron of the Hanwick Lunatic Asylum, had tendered her resignation,she having received from government an appointment as superintendent of a reformatory for female convicts, about to be established in Van Diemens Land." cheers Jenny Fawcett ==== AUS-TAS-CONVICTS Mailing List ==== Visit Jenny Fawcett's Tasmanian Convicts website at http://www.genseek.net/constas.htm ============================== New! Family Tree Maker 2005. Build your tree and search for your ancestors at the same time. Share your tree with family and friends. Learn more: http://landing.ancestry.com/familytreemaker/2005/tour.aspx?sourceid=14599&ta rgetid=5429