Henry Barret The First 100 Years

By Carol Titmus

On 28July 1870, the Mercury newspaper ran an article entitled 'Death of an Ancient Colonist'. The article briefly described one of the West Tamar's better-known characters, who had died at York Town aged 100. In part, the notes read:

Mr. Barrett was in tolerable health and in use of all his faculties up to Sunday week when he began to sink, [and] the wheels of life which had run freely for a century at last came to a dead halt from sheer exhaustion.

What a remarkable man, who had, indeed, lived a remarkable life.

My search for ancestors led me to the Barrett family of the West Tamar and to early records held by the Archives. Unfortunately, Henry Barrett (or Harry as he was known) was in the colony almost from the turn of the century and his convict records here are not known. However, I was able to access the Calendar of Prisoners of Buckinghamshire where, in 1804, at the age of twenty-one, Henry was condemned, then reprieved, for having stolen a canvas bag containing twenty guineas in gold, twenty pounds in notes and other valuable bank notes valued at sixty pounds. He was transported for seven years aboard the Fortune, arriving in Sydney in 1806. He was later sent by the Sophia with twenty convicts to York Town, where he became overseer of the Government Gardens under Lieutenant Colonel Paterson, Lieutenant Governor. When Paterson moved the settlement to Launceston, Barrett was left in charge of the Gardens. There are varying accounts which record his date of arrival in the colony as anywhere between 1804-1806. He was granted his freedom in 1811. He remained at York Town until his death, although there were attempts to 'evict' him during the change of governorship, but Henry continued to 'squat' and raise his family. It is said that Henry was responsible for planting the first orchard in the West Tamar Valley.

Henry was interviewed by C.J. Vandermeulen in April 1820, and his experiences of the area and life at York Town are chronicled in Historical Records of Australia . He recounted his experiences with the Aborigines and described the countryside. Henry was often rewarded with a supply of rum for his capture of aborigines during his time as District Constable.

In 1823, Henry married Mary Murray, who was also a convict, sent out from Ireland. They had three children but, sadly, Mary was to lose her life in 1831, when the thatched roof of their cottage caught fire, and she perished when she went into the house to save household goods. By chance, this episode was written about in the Weekly Courier at the time. Her death, however, was not recorded officially. Henry later married Mary Smith in 1832, and Ann Mayoll in 1839. Their deaths have been impossible to find, and at the time of Henry's death, his wife was recorded as Rose Ann, so we are left wondering if he, indeed, had had four wives.

In 1827, Henry petitioned the Governor to provide him with a portion of land and an increase above ten pounds per year. In reply, cornerwise across his petition, a notation, perhaps by Lieutenant-Governor Arthur, stated:

It has been owing to some present mistake that Henry Barrett may not command from the Garden long since. I am quite certain I gave orders for his being dismissed from the situation in consequence of his very improper conduct as a Constable. I wish some careful prisoner to be placed in charge of the Garden at York Town, and if he has only the honesty to take care of the fruit no other qualification is requisite.

Henry's colourful life in Tasmania was often written up in journals, and an account of how he assisted the convict, John Mitchell, to make his escape occurs in Mitchell's Jail Journal. Not only did Henry provide the escapees with a boat, but he rowed Mitchell, Dease and Connellan to George Town under cover of darkness in order that they could make their escape.

There are many anecdotal accounts of Henry Barrett in Bush Life in Tasmania , which was written by James Fenton. Fenton speaks of Henry Barrett:

Barrett's stories about 'The Colonel' the hard times 'at the beginning' the blacks, the bushrangers etc. were so interesting that I took every opportunity to stay at his house. He was not a blue-ribboner - a condition which, in his case, did not seem to be essential to longevity; but he was intelligent, true hearted, jolly type of the olden time, well worthy of the gift bestowed upon him by his friend and patron, the Lieutenant-Governor.

Henry Barrett and his family of rogues were also written about in Coultman Smith's Beaconsfield. Here, it is recorded that the grandsons of Henry Barrett robbed the bank at Beaconsfield in 1884-quite an amusing story which resulted in the Barrett boys suing the bank when the charges were withdrawn 'due to insufficient evidence'. They were later caught passing the stolen money at the Mowbray Racecourse in February the following year. Coultman Smith noted that a descendant of Henry Barrett described the family as a 'wild and woolly mob.'

An obituary for Henry's wife, Rose Ann, who died in 1885, speaks about Henry and their family:

Anyhow, Barrett lived there quietly and retired (the cottage & orchard at York Town) for more than 50 years, having married, and reared a respectable family. The few explorers who passed that way always found a warm welcome at Mr. Barrett's house, and spared no trouble in old times to make strangers comfortable.

Wild and woolly, rogue or respected, the life and times of Henry Barrett give me a feeling of pride in my ancestor. Henry was my great-great-great-grandfather and my grandsons are seventh generation Tasmanians. I imagine the scene when the boat arrived at York Town 200 years ago-and those who disembarked having to carve out an existence in an almost unforgiving land. The fact that Henry later lived to 100 years of age is testament to his strong character and tenacity. There are still many descendants of Henry's living in the area today. The stories and memories that have been passed on to them for generations will always keep Henry's memory alive.

A monument at York Town depicts a map of the immediate area in relief, and this shows the location of Barrett's house, and also that of another convict, William MacDonald, who married Henry's daughter, Margaret. I have it on good advice that the bones of Henry's first wife, Mary Murray, are buried in an iron pot in what was once the local cemetery. Now if only I had a metal detector …

This story was originally published in 2004 by the Writers Group of the Hobart Branch of the TFHS Inc. in the publication PROS and Cons of Transportation A collection of convict stories.

Not only does this publication celebrate the cessation of transportation of convicts to Van Diemens Land, it also celebrates the work of the Family History Writers Group. This group was formed in 2003 to assist members who wanted to write their family histories. The monthly meetings stimulated great interest and enthusiasm.

The original introduction may be found here.