William Buckley (convict) - Transportation and Escape

Transportation and Escape

Descriptions of the adult Buckley vary. According to John Helder Wedge, who met him in 1835, 'with his long, matted hair, he was a most awfully savage-looking fellow, standing 6 ft. 5⅞in. in height without shoes, erect in person, and well proportioned'. When Buckley appeared at their camp, James Gumm out of curiosity measured him as 6' 7" or 6' 8". Buckley himself records his height at 6' 5". John Fawkner who was also at Sullivan Bay when he was 11 years old states that Buckley's height is 6' 4⅓" According to George Russell who met him near the Yarra River in 1836, Buckley stood 6' 4" tall, but numerous other heights are reported, ranging from 6' 3" to 6' 7". According to Russell, Buckley "was a tall, ungainly man...and altogether his looks were not in his favour; he had a shaggy head of black hair, a low forehead with overhanging eyebrows nearly concealing his small eyes, a short snub nose, a face very much marked by smallpox, and was just such a man as one would suppose fit to commit burglary or murder".

This general description was echoed by other reports of the day, although not always as flattering. His mental condition also often came into disrepute.

Buckley left England in April 1803 aboard HMS Calcutta, one of two ships sent to Port Phillip to form a new settlement under Lieutenant-Colonel David Collins. They arrived in October 1803, and anchored off the south-eastern side of the bay, near modern day Sorrento. The new settlement, called Sullivan Bay, subject to drought and poor soils, soon ran into problems and they started to abandon the site in January 1804, with the remainder leaving in June.

After hearing that the settlement was about to move to Tasmania, on 27 December 1803 at 9 pm, Buckley and several other convicts cut loose a boat and made their escape to the shore. They made their way around the bay, and the party split up in the vicinity of present day Melbourne. His companions went north-east, hoping to reach Sydney, which they thought was not far, although it was 1000 km away. Buckley, tired and dehydrated, continued alone around the bay.