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Robert Abel (1772–?)

Robert Abel, was sentenced to seven years transportation for committing highway robbery with William Rellions in 1784. He arrived in Sydney in 1788 aboard the Alexander as part of the First Fleet.

On 12 June 1790 Abel was sentenced to 200 lashes for the theft of several pounds of sugar from the Lady Juliana. In February 1794 he received a 30 acre grant of land at Bulanaming, which he sold to Thomas More. In 1795 he left the colony on the Endeavour, bound for India. The ship was later scuttled at Dusky Bay, New Zealand. Abel was among those rescued and was taken to Norfolk Island in January 1796. He didn't remain on the island and there are no further records of him.

* information from Mollie Gillen, The Founders of Australia: A Biographical Dictionary of the First Fleet (1989), p 1

Citation details

'Abel, Robert (1772–?)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/abel-robert-29762/text36848, accessed 7 December 2024.

© Copyright People Australia, 2012

Life Summary [details]

Alternative Names
  • Able, Robert
Birth

1772
England

Cultural Heritage

Includes subject's nationality; their parents' nationality; the countries in which they spent a significant part of their childhood, and their self-identity.

Passenger Ship
Occupation or Descriptor
Key Events
Social Issues
Convict Record

Crime: assault and robbery
Sentence: 7 years