Had to look that one up! Van Diemens Land was colonised by the British in 1803 as a penal colony. It became part of British Colony of NSW. In 1824 it became a colony in its own right. Sheila. CandROverson wrote: > Hi Lynne > > I think that transportation to Australia began at the end of the 18th > century. But I think you are probably right that transportation to Tasmania > (or Van Diemens Land as it was then) began some years later, once NSW began > to get a bit full up! >