Lower Court Records - Tasmania

by Dian Smith - Launceston Branch Member

When researching our Family History it is often hard to imagine what life was like for the ordinary person living in the Suburbs of the larger cities or in the many small towns throughout the State.

One set of records that can prove to be an invaluable aid in finding out more about the time and lives of our ancestors and the people that they associated with, are the Lower Court Records and these can be found at the Archives Office in Hobart.

You don't have to have a criminal in the family to have them mentioned in these records, and the type of information that can be found is as follows:

Monday, 9th April 1900 before The Warden and Andrew Morrison Esq. J.P.
John L. charged with having driven a vehicle along High Street, Oatlands after sunset and before sunrise without having any lights, the night not being a clear moonlight night. John was found guilty, fined 5/- and costs 8/6.

Monday, 7th August 1882 before The Stipendiary Magistrate, W. Cuthbert J.P. and J.W. Kellaway J.P.
Patrick H. charged with neglecting to send his 3 children, John, Kate and Mary, all under the age of 14 years to the public school at Honeywood, he not holding a Certificate of exemption. Patrick was found Guilty and fined.

Friday, 23rd October 1874 before The Stipendiary Magistrate and J.W. Kellaway Esq.
Patrick B. charged with keeping a dog within the Police District of Franklin upwards of 14 days having elapsed without registering same. Patrick was found guilty, fined 5/- and costs 7/6.

Monday, 8th April 1889 before The Warden and F. Hart Esq. Thomas J. charged with having unlawfully neglected to have his child Alice vaccinated. Thomas was found guilty and fined 1/-. Costs remitted.

12th April 1893 before E.H.Fowell S.M. John Joseph M. charged with having an unlicensed Billard Table. John was found guilty, fined £1.0.0 and costs 8/6.

On the 11th February 1868, Harriet Grace B. was convicted for unlawfully selling liquor ,she not being then the holder of a Licence (she having neglected to take it out). Harriet was fined £20 & 7/6 costs.

Some of the other interesting bits and pieces that can be found in these records are:
Billard Table Licences
Hotel Licences
Licence to sell Liquor at night
Licence to sell Liquor at Sporting matches
Straying Animals
Non payment of Road Tax and Rates
Slaughtering Licences
Breach of the Californian Thistle Act
Breach of the Codlin Moth Act
Smoking in the Auditorium of the Town Hall, Campbell Town Non payment of Tuition fees for children attending Franklin State School
Licences for Stage Coach Drivers.
Indecent Language
Disturbing the peace
Seamen absent without leave
Larcency
Discharging firearms
Assaults
Non payment of Hospital fees
Neglecting to lodge acreage returns
Trespassing
Maintenance payments
Licensing Convictions
Licences for Estate Agents

Once an Ancestor is found in these records, you can then check the papers under the heading of "City Police Court" for any additional information.
Most times you will find that the information given is much the same but in some cases especially Larceny a more detail description of the crime is given.

Other records that can be found in this series include:
The Tasmanian Police Gazettes (POL 709):
Some of the information that can be found is on Missing Persons, Escaped Convicts and Prisoners Inquests etc. Unfortunately these are not indexed which is very time consuming but can be very rewarding in the type of information that can be found.

Supreme Court records (SC series) These records contain information such as Divorces, Inquests, Articles of Clerkship (Solictors) to name a few. There are some restrictions on these records depending on the type which can range from 100 year closure to open access. This information can be found obtained from the Archive staff.

Other Articles:
Advantages of Joining a Family History Society.
A Goal For Family History Historians.
British Census Records.
Computers and Genealogy.
Finding Relatives.
Finding your Ancestors In New Zealand.
Genealogy - The Roots and a Portion of Stem.
Newspaper Research.
What is Genealogy?
Identifying Family Photographs.
Old Launceston Landmarks.

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