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William Handford (c. 1759–?)

William Hanford (c.1759- ) and William Tyrrell were found guilty on 1 March 1785 at Winchester, Hampshire, of cutting and stealing 160 pounds of lead from a Crown building. Sentenced to 7 years transportation, the men were sent to the Ceres hulk, where they remained until they embarked for New South Wales on the Alexander in January 1787, arriving in Sydney in January 1788 as part of the First Fleet.

Handford appeared in the colony at Port Jackson in the first year to 17 November 1788. There are no further records for him. He is one of the many who disappeared from the records without trace — either because they absconded, died, or left the colony unremarked.

* information from Mollie Gillen, The Founders of Australia: A Biographical Dictionary of the First Fleet (1989), p 158

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Citation details

'Handford, William (c. 1759–?)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/handford-william-31232/text38619, accessed 29 March 2024.

© Copyright People Australia, 2012

Life Summary [details]

Alternative Names
  • Hanford, William
  • Stamford, William
Birth

c. 1759

Passenger Ship
Occupation
Key Events
Key Places
Convict Record

Crime: theft
Sentence: 7 years