Historic Sites and Museums

Imagine a new British colony in the new 19th century. The British system of convict transportation sent sailing ships crowded with settlers, soldiers and convicts to this unknown land. The settlers struggled to live off the land, the military ruled the tiny settlements, convicts in chains laboured in quarries and shipyards.

Many settlers and convicts - printers, artists, stonemasons, architects, carpenters, clerks, medical assistants - contributed their skills to the community. They built cottages and hotels, bridges and roads, which you’ll see in the towns and villages. They left a heritage of books, pictures, historic documents, carvings that tell us so much about the eventful birth of a new society.

Click here to view Historic Sites and Museums