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This 1199 ton ship was built at Dundee in 1866. It was employed as a
convict transport for Western Australia and left Portland, England on
October 16, 1866 bound for the Swan River Colony. She carried the thirty
fifth of 37 shipments of male convicts destined for Western Australia. The
voyage took 67 days and the Corona arrived in Fremantle on December 22,
1866 with 79 passengers and 304 convicts [Erickson]. William S.
Crudace and William Crauford were the captain and surgeon respectively.
The two deaths recorded on the convict shipping and description lists
were for Thomas Hinson (9194) who other sources say died on the voyage
out, and Charles Ward (9341) who died in the Convict Establishment
Hospital soon after arrival. There were 306 convict numbers assigned for
the voyage ranging from (9059 to 9364). No source seemed to entirely agree
for this voyage and the [Bateson] account claimed that 310 convicts
embarked and 305 arrived.
Of the 79 passengers mentioned above, 75 were pensioner guards and
their families, the number being made up of 30 pensioner guards, 20 wives,
11 sons and 14 daughters. The other 4 passengers have not been accounted
for but were possibly cabin passengers or regular soldiers.
William Crauford's surgeon's journal for the voyage is preserved in the
Public Record Office (PRO) in London. Researchers can view a copy on the
Australian Joint Copying Project (AJCP) microfilm reel 3181 which is held
in most major libraries and archives offices throughout Australia.
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