Ocean (convict transport ship)
Encyclopedia
Ocean was an English transport ship and whaler. In 1803 she accompanied HMS Calcutta
to Port Phillip
(Melbourne
), the vessels supporting the establishment of a settlement under the leadership of Lt Col David Collins
. Calcutta transported convicts, with Ocean serving to transport supplies. When the settlers abandoned Port Phillip, Ocean, in two journeys, relocated the settlers, convicts and marines to the River Derwent (Hobart
Town) in 1804.
Ocean is sometimes credited with the official European discovery of Banaba, which she visited after leaving Australia. Ocean later returned to service with the East India Company
.
It is not known if she is the same Ocean that made voyages to Australia to transport convicts in 1816, 1818 and 1823.
, of about 480 tonnes burthen bm
. Her origins are uncertain, but Ocean was possibly built in Newcastle
England
in the late 18th century.
Originally, Ocean was a whaler owned by the newly-operating South fishers, Thomas and Edward Hurrys. The owners were bankrupted by 1806.
On her voyage with Calcutta, Ocean was armed. Accounts record a salute of 11 guns from the Ocean on the establishment of the settlement at Hobart
.
to Port Philip Bay. On the voyage to Port Philip Bay, she carried 100 people along with supplies needed for the settlement at Port Philip Bay. These included, the Captain, John Mertho, 9 officers, 26 seamen, 8 civil officers including George Harris a surveyor and Adolarius Humphrey a mineralogist, and a group of free settlers. Many of the free settlers had skills that would be of value to the new settlement - 5 were carpenters, 2 seamen, 2 millers, a whitesmith (works with white or light coloured metals such as tin or pewter), a stonemason, gardener, painter, schoolteacher, pocketbook maker (maker of wallets and covered notebooks) and 2 servants.
Ocean and Calcutta left Portsmouth on 27 April 1803 and reached Santa Cruz on the Island of Tenerife
, part of the Canary Islands
on 17 May 1803. Both ships sailed from Tenerife on 21 May and arrived at Rio de Janeiro
in Brazil on 29 June. While in Rio, Captain Woodriff of Calcutta sent 5 marines under Lieutenant Sladden to help maintain order on the Ocean for the rest of the voyage. According to Reverend Robert Knopwood's journals, ‘Mr. Hartley, a settler had behaved badly’ – and it seemed there was little love lost between some of the free settlers and Captain Mertho. They apparently regarded him as a ‘tyrant’ while he thought they were intractable.
At Rio de Janeiro, seven sailors deserted Calcutta. Portuguese soldiers captured three of them and returned them to her, receiving a reward of 6 pounds per sailor. While the ships were at berth, maintenance work was carried out on both ships and fresh provisions were taken on board for the next leg of the journey. Cloths were washed; repairs and adjustments made to the rigging of both ships and supplies of water were replenished. The fresh provisions included 36 turkeys, 13 dozen capons (roosters) and fowls, 68 very large ducks 4 geese, 13 pigs and a large quantity of fruit and vegetables. Both Ocean and Calcutta left Rio on 19 July 1803.
The Ocean, the slower of the two ships, was directed to sail direct to Port Philip Bay if she lost contact with Calcutta. The ships did lose contact so the Ocean did not put in at Cape Town
, arriving at Port Philip Bay on 7 October. At Cape Town two more sailors deserted Calcutta. One was captured and returned.
After leaving Rio, Ocean sailed through the Southern Atlantic and into the Indian Ocean. She experienced frightening weather conditions for 77 days before sighting land on course and off Port Philip on 5 October. Twenty days out of Rio, George Harris recorded that ‘for many days we could not sit at table but were obliges to hold fast by boxes and on the floor and all our crockery were almost broken to pieces, besides many seas into the cabin and living in the state of darkness from the cabin windows being stopped up by the deadlights … I was never so melancholy in my life before’. In such conditions work on deck was extremely dangerous. On 9 August John Bowers fell overboard and was lost.
Ocean and Calcutta established the first settlement at Port Phillip
in 1803 under the leadership of Lt Col David Collins
.
While at Port Philip Bay, a number of convicts escaped. According to Rev. Robert Knopwood's journal six convicts escaped from Sorrento on the evening of 27 December 1803. The settlement was in the process of closing down at the time, HMS Calcutta had already sailed for Port Jackson in New South Wales and the Ocean was preparing to sail for Van Diemen's Land. The escaping convicts cut loose a boat from the Ocean and succeed in getting to shore where two were recaptured, one of whom (Charles Shaw) was shot and seriously wounded. Their first intention was to head north to Sydney so they followed the bay to the mouth of the Yarra River where their scarce provisions ran out. They then tried heading inland for a way but before long the party separated. One of them (Daniel M'Allender) headed back to Sorrento and arrived in time to be taken on board the Ocean. William Buckley
decided to return to the beach alone and continued to follow the bay round to the opposite head in the hope of seeing and signalling to the Ocean, but by this time it had left. Buckley
lived with the aborigines in the area for 32 years and was next seen in 1835. Buckley's improbable survival is believed by many Australians to be the source of the vernacular phrase "Buckley's chance" (or simply Buckley's
), which means "no chance", or "it's as good as impossible".
When this settlement was abandoned, the Ocean, in two journeys, relocated the settlers, convicts and marines to the River Derwent (Hobart
Town) in 1804.
Ocean was released from service with His Majesty’s government after moving Collins's settlers to Hobart. She sailed to Sydney, taking fresh provisions on board and then headed to China, on behalf of the owners to pick up cargo presumably before returning to England. On her journey to China, Ocean sailed to the phosphate rich Micronesian island of Banaba, then on to the Marshall Islands in November 1804. Further details of Captain John Mertho or the fate of the Ocean is not known.
It is known that a sailing ship also called the Ocean subsequently made other voyages to Australia to transport convicts in 1816, 1818 and 1823. Whether this was the same Ocean is not known.
Other sources credit the discovery to Captain Jered Gardner of the Diana in 1801.
HMS Calcutta (1795)
HMS Calcutta was an East Indiaman converted to a Royal Navy 56-gun fourth rate. This ship of the line served for a time as an armed transport. She also transported convicts to Australia in a voyage that became a circumnavigation of the world. The French 74-gun Magnanime captured Calcutta in 1805...
to Port Phillip
Port Phillip
Port Phillip Port Phillip Port Phillip (also commonly referred to as Port Phillip Bay or (locally) just The Bay, is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia; it is the location of Melbourne. Geographically, the bay covers and the shore stretches roughly . Although it is extremely shallow for...
(Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
), the vessels supporting the establishment of a settlement under the leadership of Lt Col David Collins
David Collins (governor)
Colonel David Collins was the first Lieutenant Governor of the Colony of Van Diemens Land, founded in 1804, which in 1901 became the state of Tasmania in the Commonwealth of Australia.-Early life and military career:...
. Calcutta transported convicts, with Ocean serving to transport supplies. When the settlers abandoned Port Phillip, Ocean, in two journeys, relocated the settlers, convicts and marines to the River Derwent (Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
Town) in 1804.
Ocean is sometimes credited with the official European discovery of Banaba, which she visited after leaving Australia. Ocean later returned to service with the East India Company
East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
.
It is not known if she is the same Ocean that made voyages to Australia to transport convicts in 1816, 1818 and 1823.
Description
The Ocean was a copper-bottomed brigBrig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
, of about 480 tonnes burthen bm
Builder's Old Measurement
Builder's Old Measurement is the method of calculating the size or cargo capacity of a ship used in England from approximately 1720 to 1849. It estimated the tonnage of a ship based on length and maximum beam...
. Her origins are uncertain, but Ocean was possibly built in Newcastle
Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne is a city and metropolitan borough of Tyne and Wear, in North East England. Historically a part of Northumberland, it is situated on the north bank of the River Tyne...
England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in the late 18th century.
Originally, Ocean was a whaler owned by the newly-operating South fishers, Thomas and Edward Hurrys. The owners were bankrupted by 1806.
On her voyage with Calcutta, Ocean was armed. Accounts record a salute of 11 guns from the Ocean on the establishment of the settlement at Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
.
Charter and voyage to Australia
The British Government chartered Ocean from Messrs Hurry & Co as a supply ship for the journey from PortsmouthPortsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
to Port Philip Bay. On the voyage to Port Philip Bay, she carried 100 people along with supplies needed for the settlement at Port Philip Bay. These included, the Captain, John Mertho, 9 officers, 26 seamen, 8 civil officers including George Harris a surveyor and Adolarius Humphrey a mineralogist, and a group of free settlers. Many of the free settlers had skills that would be of value to the new settlement - 5 were carpenters, 2 seamen, 2 millers, a whitesmith (works with white or light coloured metals such as tin or pewter), a stonemason, gardener, painter, schoolteacher, pocketbook maker (maker of wallets and covered notebooks) and 2 servants.
Ocean and Calcutta left Portsmouth on 27 April 1803 and reached Santa Cruz on the Island of Tenerife
Tenerife
Tenerife is the largest and most populous island of the seven Canary Islands, it is also the most populated island of Spain, with a land area of 2,034.38 km² and 906,854 inhabitants, 43% of the total population of the Canary Islands. About five million tourists visit Tenerife each year, the...
, part of the Canary Islands
Canary Islands
The Canary Islands , also known as the Canaries , is a Spanish archipelago located just off the northwest coast of mainland Africa, 100 km west of the border between Morocco and the Western Sahara. The Canaries are a Spanish autonomous community and an outermost region of the European Union...
on 17 May 1803. Both ships sailed from Tenerife on 21 May and arrived at Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
in Brazil on 29 June. While in Rio, Captain Woodriff of Calcutta sent 5 marines under Lieutenant Sladden to help maintain order on the Ocean for the rest of the voyage. According to Reverend Robert Knopwood's journals, ‘Mr. Hartley, a settler had behaved badly’ – and it seemed there was little love lost between some of the free settlers and Captain Mertho. They apparently regarded him as a ‘tyrant’ while he thought they were intractable.
At Rio de Janeiro, seven sailors deserted Calcutta. Portuguese soldiers captured three of them and returned them to her, receiving a reward of 6 pounds per sailor. While the ships were at berth, maintenance work was carried out on both ships and fresh provisions were taken on board for the next leg of the journey. Cloths were washed; repairs and adjustments made to the rigging of both ships and supplies of water were replenished. The fresh provisions included 36 turkeys, 13 dozen capons (roosters) and fowls, 68 very large ducks 4 geese, 13 pigs and a large quantity of fruit and vegetables. Both Ocean and Calcutta left Rio on 19 July 1803.
The Ocean, the slower of the two ships, was directed to sail direct to Port Philip Bay if she lost contact with Calcutta. The ships did lose contact so the Ocean did not put in at Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
, arriving at Port Philip Bay on 7 October. At Cape Town two more sailors deserted Calcutta. One was captured and returned.
After leaving Rio, Ocean sailed through the Southern Atlantic and into the Indian Ocean. She experienced frightening weather conditions for 77 days before sighting land on course and off Port Philip on 5 October. Twenty days out of Rio, George Harris recorded that ‘for many days we could not sit at table but were obliges to hold fast by boxes and on the floor and all our crockery were almost broken to pieces, besides many seas into the cabin and living in the state of darkness from the cabin windows being stopped up by the deadlights … I was never so melancholy in my life before’. In such conditions work on deck was extremely dangerous. On 9 August John Bowers fell overboard and was lost.
Ocean and Calcutta established the first settlement at Port Phillip
Port Phillip
Port Phillip Port Phillip Port Phillip (also commonly referred to as Port Phillip Bay or (locally) just The Bay, is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia; it is the location of Melbourne. Geographically, the bay covers and the shore stretches roughly . Although it is extremely shallow for...
in 1803 under the leadership of Lt Col David Collins
David Collins (governor)
Colonel David Collins was the first Lieutenant Governor of the Colony of Van Diemens Land, founded in 1804, which in 1901 became the state of Tasmania in the Commonwealth of Australia.-Early life and military career:...
.
While at Port Philip Bay, a number of convicts escaped. According to Rev. Robert Knopwood's journal six convicts escaped from Sorrento on the evening of 27 December 1803. The settlement was in the process of closing down at the time, HMS Calcutta had already sailed for Port Jackson in New South Wales and the Ocean was preparing to sail for Van Diemen's Land. The escaping convicts cut loose a boat from the Ocean and succeed in getting to shore where two were recaptured, one of whom (Charles Shaw) was shot and seriously wounded. Their first intention was to head north to Sydney so they followed the bay to the mouth of the Yarra River where their scarce provisions ran out. They then tried heading inland for a way but before long the party separated. One of them (Daniel M'Allender) headed back to Sorrento and arrived in time to be taken on board the Ocean. William Buckley
William Buckley (convict)
William Buckley was an English convict who was transported to Australia, escaped, was given up for dead and lived in an Aboriginal community for many years....
decided to return to the beach alone and continued to follow the bay round to the opposite head in the hope of seeing and signalling to the Ocean, but by this time it had left. Buckley
William Buckley (convict)
William Buckley was an English convict who was transported to Australia, escaped, was given up for dead and lived in an Aboriginal community for many years....
lived with the aborigines in the area for 32 years and was next seen in 1835. Buckley's improbable survival is believed by many Australians to be the source of the vernacular phrase "Buckley's chance" (or simply Buckley's
William Buckley (convict)
William Buckley was an English convict who was transported to Australia, escaped, was given up for dead and lived in an Aboriginal community for many years....
), which means "no chance", or "it's as good as impossible".
When this settlement was abandoned, the Ocean, in two journeys, relocated the settlers, convicts and marines to the River Derwent (Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
Town) in 1804.
Ocean was released from service with His Majesty’s government after moving Collins's settlers to Hobart. She sailed to Sydney, taking fresh provisions on board and then headed to China, on behalf of the owners to pick up cargo presumably before returning to England. On her journey to China, Ocean sailed to the phosphate rich Micronesian island of Banaba, then on to the Marshall Islands in November 1804. Further details of Captain John Mertho or the fate of the Ocean is not known.
It is known that a sailing ship also called the Ocean subsequently made other voyages to Australia to transport convicts in 1816, 1818 and 1823. Whether this was the same Ocean is not known.
Convicts and passengers known to have travelled on Ocean
- Samuel Lightfoot had arrived as a convict on the first fleet. He then received one of the first grants for land on the lower north shore of Port JacksonPort JacksonPort Jackson, containing Sydney Harbour, is the natural harbour of Sydney, Australia. It is known for its beauty, and in particular, as the location of the Sydney Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge...
in the vicinity of Jeffrey StreetJeffrey StreetJeffrey Street or Jeffreys Street, Kirribilli is famous as one of the most popular vantage points for views of the city of Sydney, the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House...
, Sydney. Shortly after the expiration of his sentence, he returned to England, where he petitioned to be allowed to return with his wife, though she appears not to have sailed. Lightfoot subsequently returned to Australia and then traveled on the Ocean from Port PhillipPort PhillipPort Phillip Port Phillip Port Phillip (also commonly referred to as Port Phillip Bay or (locally) just The Bay, is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia; it is the location of Melbourne. Geographically, the bay covers and the shore stretches roughly . Although it is extremely shallow for...
, arriving in TasmaniaTasmaniaTasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...
in 1804. The Lieutenant-Governor of the new settlement at Port PhillipPort PhillipPort Phillip Port Phillip Port Phillip (also commonly referred to as Port Phillip Bay or (locally) just The Bay, is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia; it is the location of Melbourne. Geographically, the bay covers and the shore stretches roughly . Although it is extremely shallow for...
, David CollinsDavid Collins (governor)Colonel David Collins was the first Lieutenant Governor of the Colony of Van Diemens Land, founded in 1804, which in 1901 became the state of Tasmania in the Commonwealth of Australia.-Early life and military career:...
subsequently appointed Lightfoot supervisor of the hospital in Hobart TownHobartHobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
. Lightfoot died in 1818 aged 65.
- George Smith was a 22 year old marine from the 62nd Company of Marines, Portsmouth Division. He had been born in Solihull, Warwickshire and his occupation was given as a butcher by trade. He was one of the marines who accompanied their commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Collins, aboard Ocean to Port Philip. He married Grace Morrisby, eldest daughter of James and Ann, in 1810 – their children were all born at Clarence Plains.
- Ann Jane Hobbs, an American
- George Prideaux Harris was a Surveyor (Civil Official) and spent his early years at Exeter in Devon. In 1803 he was appointed deputy surveyor to David Collins and travelled to Port Phillip on Ocean. Soon after the Calcutta arrived, Harris along with Lieutenant James Tuckey, William Collins and William Gammon set out in the Calcuttas launch on a more detailed study of the area. They returned ten days later having travelled around Port Phillip.
- Leonard Fosbrook was a public servant appointed to the Collins expedition in 1803 at the last minute. He left England before instructions or a formal commission for his office as the Deputy Commissary could be issued. Still, he took charge of all government stores at Collins Settlement at Port Phillip. When David Collins moved the settlement to Van Diemen's Land, Fosbrook pitched his marquee on Hunter's Island, which became the site of the original commissariat store. For some years Fosbrook carried out his duties to Collins's entire satisfaction, but around August 1809 he resigned his office after a disagreement with the lieutenant-governor. The position of Deputy Commissary then went to George Harris. In April 1810 Fosbrook travelled to Sydney with the news of Governor David Collins's death. While there he successfully sought reinstatement as Deputy Commisary at Hobart Town. He was for a short time also appointed magistrate and first treasurer of the police fund.
- Matthew Bowden was a surgeon in the Royal Lancashire Regiment. In January 1803 he was commissioned as a civil assistant surgeon to accompany Lieutenant-Governor David Collins and his expedition to Port Phillip. When David Collins moved the settlement to Van Diemen's Land, Bowden was one of the first ashore, landing at Frederick Henry Bay on 12 February 1804. Bowden played a prominent role at Hobart attending to the sick. He was granted 100 acres (40.5 ha) of land at Humphrey's Rivulet in August 1804 where he had a vegetable garden and crops, and began to acquire livestock. Bowden attended Governor David Collins at his death in March 1810, then became first assistant surgeon of the civil medical establishment in Hobart. In October 1810 Governor Lachlan Macquarie granted him an additional 500 acres (202.3 ha) of land on the Derwent River. Bowden's sudden death on 23 October 1814 shocked the whole community of Hobart.
- Thomas Clark was 47 years old when he was appointed agricultural superintendent to sail with Lieutenant-Governor David Collins on the supply ship Ocean on 24 April 1803 for Port Phillip. After Collins decided to abandon Port Phillip and move the settlement to Van Diemens Land, Clark, then in charge of the convicts, supervised the reloading of stores onto Ocean. In August 1804 Clark was put in charge of the government farm at New Town, where the colony's stock had been sent. In October 1807 Clark took up residence in the main settlement at Hobart Town as storekeeper. He was still in government employment when, with J. Barnes, he printed in 1810 Tasmania's first newspaper, the Derwent Star and Van Diemens Land Intelligencer. This was a government journal edited by George Harris. Thomas Clark was granted 100 acres (40.5 ha) of land, which he finally located at Campania. He was appointed superintendent of convicts once more, but resigned in 1812. Clark passed away in December 1828, his death not being recorded in the press.
- John Blinkworth had previously been a convict at Port Jackson. He returned to England and was now on Ocean as a free settler returning to be united with his de facto wife, Elizabeth Cummings. They were formally married in Hobart in 1804.
- Richard Pitt: Richard Pitt was born on 3 March 1765 at Tiverton, Devon, England. He married Jane Tanner, also of Tiverton, and they had four children. In 1803 Pitt boarded Ocean as a free settler, together with one daughter, Salome, and two sons, Philip and Francis. Pitt's wife and eldest son stayed in England. Pitt was made constable in Van Diemen's Land and in December 1804 was granted 100 acres (40.5 ha) of land at Stainsforth's Cove (New Town). He grew wheat and barley, built up herds of sheep and pigs, and by 1809 he and his children were no longer relying on the government for support. He leased grazing land at the Green Ponds (Kempton) district, where his children also located grants. Pitt retained his farming interests, but gave increasing attention to official duties as district constable at New Town. On 14 February 1818 Pitt was appointed chief constable for Hobart Town. Pitt seized the opportunity of his new standing to ask for a free passage to the colony for his wife. Governor Macquarie sent the request to London, but Mrs Pitt declined the opportunity. Richard Pitt was one of the most respectable colonists. He remained chief constable until his death at Hobart on 14 May 1826. The three children who came with him on Ocean all settled in Van Diemen's Land.
- William and Elizabeth Cockerill migrated for green grass, together with their children William, Arabella and Ann. He became a successful farmer.
- John Hartley, his wife Hezekiah and son Joseph, migrated on Ocean as free settlers in 1803 and then at some stage travelled to Port Jackson in New South Wales. They returned to England from Port Jackson and then migrated again to Port Jackson in 1809. The family then returned to England in 1813.
- Anthony Fletcher and his wife Sarah were terribly unfortunate in that they lost two babies. One died in May 1803 while Ocean was at berth in Tenerife. Then, while Ocean was at berth in Rio de Janeiro, Sarah gave birth to a baby girl on 5 July. This little baby died at Port Phillip Heads in October 1803, just one day before arriving at Port PhillipPort PhillipPort Phillip Port Phillip Port Phillip (also commonly referred to as Port Phillip Bay or (locally) just The Bay, is a large bay in southern Victoria, Australia; it is the location of Melbourne. Geographically, the bay covers and the shore stretches roughly . Although it is extremely shallow for...
.
- John Pascoe Fawkner manuscript reminiscences, held in the collection of his papers in the La Trobe Library, were published for the first time to mark the centenary of his death on 4 September 1869.
- Joseph PotaskiJoseph PotaskiJoseph Potaski was the first Jewish Pole to arrive in Australia, and one of the first convicts to arrive in Van Diemen's Land on the Ocean. Joseph Potaski worked hard to establish himself as a successful farmer in colonial Hobart. This was however undone by the exploits of his family...
was a convict on both the Ocean and HMS CalcuttaHMS CalcuttaFive ships of the Royal Navy have been named HMS Calcutta, after the Indian city of Calcutta .* The first HMS Calcutta was a 54-gun fourth rate, originally the East Indiaman Warley and purchased in 1795, captured by the French in 1805 and destroyed by British ships in 1809.* The second HMS Calcutta...
, his wife, Catherine and son, Joseph also came out with him as free settlers. Potaski was the first Jewish pole to arrive in Australia. Catherine, Potaski's wife gave birth to a daughter, Catherine jnr. when the Ocean berthed at Risdon Cove, thus making Catherine the first European to be born and baptised in Van Diemen's Land.
Official European Discovery of Banaba
After having left Australia, Captain John Mertho and the Ocean are sometimes credited with the official European discovery of Banaba.Other sources credit the discovery to Captain Jered Gardner of the Diana in 1801.