Identity area
Type of entity
Person
Authorized form of name
Alexander Cairnduff
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
1815-1880
History
Appointed religious instructor of a proposed labour depot in Hobart Town for Pentonville convicts. With his wife Margaret he sailed in the Sir George Seymour, arriving at Hobart in February 1845. The depot was not ready, so Lieutenant-Governor Sir John Eardley-Wilmot appointed him religious instructor at Port Arthur. In 1846 he was moved to the coal-mines probation station in February and to the station at Long Point, Maria Island, in August. Humble and humane of purpose, he scorned the futility of instructing convicts by 'dull mechanical routine' and governing them by 'blind, naked strength'. His enlightened methods won repute. In the Sir George Seymour 151 male adult convicts presented him with a thankful address for his care, and his methods attracted the attention of James Backhouse and George Washington Walker, who used his information to stoke the fires of reform in England. For more information see : https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/cairnduff-alexander-1864