This is in response to the inquiry of Marjorie Earl regarding the history
of convicts sent to Australia.
Have you tried A.R. Ekirch's Bound for America? He gives a very
comprehensive treatment of the topic of transportation. While his
convicts end up in America, he does extensive research on the makeup of
the convict population, the impetus for criminality, and the British public
reaction to transportation. In fact, it is really only the last two
chapters of his work that deals with the convicts once they get to
America. Perhaps his bibliography might be useful as well.
Ellen Bastio
University of Maryland, College Park
ebastio@wam.umd.edu