This months talk is by Megan Roberts.
TALK SYNOPSIS
The talk will focus on how transportation worked, what sort of people it affected, a bit about the criminal justice system, and some real life examples of individual convicts.
Speaker Bio
I am a retired Commercial Director from the construction, engineering, transport, infrastructure, and finance sectors, who has lived and worked in both the UK and overseas. For many years I have had an interest in history and genealogy, which I have been able to pursue more actively since retiring, and have written articles for various Family History Societies' publications.
Whilst researching my family line, I discovered that a distant ancestor had been transported to Australia in 1832 for horse stealing, and ended his days in California, which I thought remarkable for a farm labourer from Pembrokeshire. This led me to investigate other unrelated convicts, and discovered many of them had remarkable stories, and that I could learn more about a family’s “black sheep” that I could about its respectable members. All this investigative work led to two books being written and published since 2018.
I have given talks to a number of different groups, both in person and via Zoom, either on transportation or other subjects that have been developed from family history research.
I am currently the Chair of the Chorley Branch of Lancashire Ancestors, and also serve on the Society’s Executive Committee.
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