Legge, George (c. 1762–1807)
George Legge (c.1762-1807), a shoemaker, was found guilty on 16 March 1786 at Dorchester, Dorset, of stealing a gold watch and other goods. Sentenced to 7 years transportation, he was sent to the Dunkirk hulk and was discharged to the Charlotte in March 1787, arriving at Sydney in January 1788 as part of the First Fleet.
On 9 January 1789 at Port Jackson Legge was sentenced to 100 lashes, and ordered to work in a gang supervised by John Carver, for disposing of two chickens that did not belong to him.
He was sent to Norfolk Island on the Supply in February 1789. By early 1791 he was living with Ann Harmsden; they were married in a mass wedding ceremony held on the island in November 1791. Legge was appointed to the night watch under Samuel Hussey to patrol the Arthur's Vale area in December 1791. In January 1792 he was settled on 12 acres.
Legge and his wife returned to Port Jackson in August 1795. He was prosecuted for debt in December of that year and in August 1797 was sentenced to seven years transportation at Sydney for receiving stolen property. The couple were mustered at Sydney in 1801 and were childless.
George Legge drowned on 9 June 1807 when a sailboat in which he was travelling with several Aboriginal people overturned during wild weather. His body was later found in the shoals at Botany Bay.
* information from Mollie Gillen, The Founders of Australia: A Biographical Dictionary of the First Fleet (1989), p 217
Additional Resources
- a human hand is found in the belly of a shark near where Legge drowned, Sydney Gazette, 21 June 1807, p 2
- Legge's remains are interred, Sydney Gazette, 26 July 1807, p 2
Related Entries in NCB Sites
- Talbot, Ann (wife)
Citation details
'Legge, George (c. 1762–1807)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/legge-george-31105/text38476, accessed 28 March 2023.