David Poultney
Convict Number P565
Policeman, Milkman, Landowner
© Richard Carlaw. 2003-2006

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Introduction to documentation
These pages contain documentation on David Poultney that I have collected over time. I apologise for the size of some of the documents, but I have tried to preserve the quality as much as possible, whilst also being mindful of download times and restrictions on my own web storage space. Some of the documents are of very poor quality and some detail may have been lost in scanning and subsequent image reduction. If you are interested in a particular detail, feel free to email me and I may be able to check on higher-res copies or on the paper copies in my possession. I have provided a rough transcript next to each document, which may also be of assistance.

I have generally only included primary references, ie original or near original copies from source. On occasions I have included secondary references (eg transcripts) where these seem authentic and add substantial information to the story. I have not included other references such as internet lists or IGI transcripts, although I have a fair number of these.

1. Convict documentation

9th April 1829 - David Poultney, transcript of trial record from Warwick Advertiser
Source: Unknown, but possibly Warwick Advertiser

Warwick Advertiser report

This report, dated the day of the trial, is reputed to come from the Warwick Advertiser. The source is unproven, but the report seems authentic enough. Some of the defendants names appear differently on convict papers in Tasmania.

10th April 1829  - David Poultney, Letter to the Earl of Denbigh (by John Carter)
Source: Unknown

Letter to the Earl of Denbigh

This letter, dated the day after the trial, appears to be from the prosecution to the Earl of Denbigh. It gives the outcome of the trial and suggests that the Earl uses his influence to ensure that the death sentences given at the trial are not commuted on clemency appeals.

1829 - David Poultney, Convict Indent
Source: Archives Office of Tasmania, MM 33/2

    Scan 1 (503 Kb)



 

Alternate Copy
   Page 1 (105 Kb)       Page 2 (73 Kb)

This document would typically have been compiled on board ship, either en route to Hobart or, more likely, on arrival at the port and prior to disembarkation. When a hulk ship arrived at Hobart with new convicts on board, the receiving authorities typically boarded the ship and spent a day or two enumerating and classifying the arrivals prior to allowing disembarkation. It is interesting to note that the Newham Paddox poachers are listed together, bar one - a Thomas Ensor, who is possibly listed on the previous page (references at the Archives Office of Tasmania for an application to marry indicate that Thomas Ensor was indeed transported aboard the Thames).

Of further note in the above list is the inclusion of one poacher who was not part of the Newham Paddox party. James White was one of the Merevale Poachers, a remarkably similar incident that makes incredible reading in itself. (Note in the "remarks" column above, the wording looks like "Poaching. Shooting with intent to kill. not with the others".) The Merevale incident took place on the estate of DS Dugdale Esq, near Atherstone North of Coventry, and occurred a few days before that of the Newham Paddox incident; both incidences involved shooting at and wounding the gamekeeper; the Merevale trial was heard immediately after the Newham Paddox trial and sentences of death, commuted to transportation, were given in both cases. Most of the Merevale convicts were transported to mainland Australia (Sydney), including three other White brothers (Henry, David, John). Only James and possibly a John Mogford were transported to Tasmania. David Poultney and James White became good friends (it is perhaps significant that their names appear consecutively on the above list). James appointed David to be executor of his Will, to hold his property in Trust on behalf of his wife, Sarah. When James died, David Poultney duly held the property in Trust and upon her demise, duly passed its care to her children. Sarah's death registration shows David Poultney of 144 Upper Goulburn Street as the informant, and her burial register entry gives her address as Goulburn Street. David Poultney also signed as witness to Sarah's marriage to John Mogford, another of the Merevale Poacher, following the death of James. For more info, read the story of James White and The Merevale Poachers.

1829 - David Poultney, Convict Description (196 Kb)
Source: Unknown, but possibly, Archives Office of Tasmania, Con 31/34

This document would also have been compiled onboard ship, possibly by the ship's surgeon as he examined each of the convicts for their general health. In the absence of "mug-shots" the Convict Description passed for an early version identikit
 

1829 - David Poultney, Convict Conduct record (351 Kb)
Source: Archives Office of Tasmania, Con 31/34

"No 565 Poultney David Thames Nov 1829 Warwick ­4 April 1829 Conditional Pardon No 820 9th May 1836 Transported for shooting with intent to Murder    Goal report good   Good Character   Conexions Unknown   Hulk report  single, stated this offence poaching shooting with intent to murder   single"

Note: The microfilm copy of this record at the Archives Office of Tasmania seems to be very faint (as is the original, I presume). In a 2004 scan ordered from the Archives Office of Tasmania, the text describing the nature of the offence etc was not visible at all. It was also obvious that the copy above contains a transcript of the text, added in the space below the original text. The origins of this particular scan are unknown as it has been forwarded from one person to another, but it would seem that the researcher who obtained this copy also had access to the original, and was able to add the transcript accordingly. We are grateful for the diligence of that researcher.

This document was an ongoing record of the convict's passage through the penal system. Starting with the initial offence and sentence, goal records and family connections, it was later augmented by any additional offences and completed with details of Conditional Pardon, Free Certificate, etc. Unfortunately in David Poultney's case, we are denied any details of his family connections.

David's Conditional Pardon in 1836 comes 7 years after his sentencing at the Warwick Assizes. For prisoners serving a 14 year term, 7 years was the earliest they could obtain a Conditional Pardon. The Conditional Pardon enabled them to live as free persons within the penal colony (ie Hobart/Tasmania, possibly Australia), but not to leave. David would only have been allowed to leave Tasmania/Australia after his full 14 years and the granting of a Free Certificate, although by that time he was fully settled and probably not interested in returning to England.

1829 - David Poultney, Convict Appropriation List (930 Kb)
Source: Archives Office of Tasmania, MM 33/5, Thames, p 15