A history lover's delight!
Museum and boathouse
Kingston is the capital city of Norfolk Island and the original site of the European settlements on the island. It's now an heritage area and on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The island was first claimed for Great Britain by Captain James Cook as he thought the tall Norfolk pine trees could be used for ship's masts and the flax that was growing there for making canvas. Within weeks of the landing of the First Fleet in Botany Bay and the establishment of the penal colony that would develop into the city of Sydney, Governor Arthur Philip sent a ship to establish a settlement on Norfolk Island.
The first Europeans landed on March 6th, 1788 and Lieutenant Philip Gidley King established the settlement on the south side of the island and named it Kingston (after himself?). The buildings from that settlement were all wooden and were destroyed when the settlement was abandoned but a replica of Gidley King's house has been reconstructed.
Replica of Philip Gidley King's house looking down on Kingston jetty.
The major event from this period of settlement was the shipwreck of the supply ship the HMS Sirius. As well as being able to see where she was shipwrecked there is a small Sirius museum that contains one of her anchors and some smaller artefacts. (I did a tagalong tour and the guide was able to provide lots of information about the Sirius and its later life as a wreck off the coast of Norfolk Island.)
Inside the Sirius museum
Kingston common looking across to the Sirius museum building and further back Philip Island.
The first European settlement was abandoned in 1814 and all the buildings were destroyed, to make it less attractive for another country to move their settlers in.
Ten years later in 1824 the decision was made to reestablish the convict settlement for the worst prisoners. Norfolk Island was re-opened to European settlement on June 6th, 1825 and it's from this settlement that the impressive buildings that can be seen today were established.
The Royal Engineer's Office
Next to the engineer's office is an old whaling boat, whalers visited Pitcairn Island and taught the islands how to build and use the boats. These type of boats are still used to unload cargo from the supply ships that come in.
Prison wall
The New Barracks
The prison was built next to the jetty and beach, and the official buildings, such as the barracks were built away from the prison, with the accomodation for the families further along up the hill.
The administrative building inside the New Barracks
All Saints Church
The church building was originally the Commissariat Store dating from 1835, apparently one of the finest examples of a colonial commissariat store in Australia. To the left on the ground floor is one of the museum open to visitors.
Going further along the road are the houses built for the married officers, it's now called Quality Row, renamed for the Pitcairn Islander settlers. During the convict settlement era it was named Military Row. One of the houses is open as a museum.
Number 9 Quality Row
This house was chosen as the one to be opened as a museum as it was the house in the most original condition with no electricity and no running water. The rooms have been restored, the china artefacts have been painlessly put together from broken pieces found at the bottom of the privy, it was amazing to me how many smashed pieces have been reconstructed. (Some people must be really good at jigsaws!!)
The dining room
The bedroom
Going further up the hill on Quality Row
Number 1 Quality Row
With transportation of convicts coming to an end, the penal settlement came to an end in 1855, the remaining prisoners were either given a 'ticket of leave' or send to Port Arthur in Tasmania. A few people were left on the island to care for the animals and maintain the buildings for the next settlers.
Descendants of the Bounty mutineers had begun to outgrow Pitcairn Island (by the mid 1800s) there were nearly 200 people living on a small rock. Queen Victoria gave them the right to live on the now abandoned convict settlement on Norfolk Island. They arrived at the Kingston Jetty on June 8th, 1856.
Kingston Jetty, built by convict labour.
Pitcairn Islanders were given grants of land and they moved into the abandoned buildings, it was a culture shock for them to live in stone buildings and they had to be taught to care for animals, such as sheep, cows, poultry as these were all foreign to them.
Also at Kingston is Government House, it's still occupied by the present administrator of Norfolk Island.
Government House
Government House is open once a month to visitors, just not in January when I was there! The entrance fee is donated to local charities. The house was built in 1829.
Kingston also has evidence of settlement much older than that by Europeans, the island's Polynesian past. There's a dig site next to Emily Bay that looks over to Government House. Some stone tools have been found there and radiocarbon dating (I looked this up!) dated the Polynesian settlement to have been between 1200AD (Or CE) and 1600AD before they abandoned the island.
Polynesian dig site
I really enjoyed the Kingston historic area and over 4 days came and explored it on different occasions. The tagalong tour was good value in having someone explain parts of the buildings around us. There are more in-depth convict tours offered as well, I just didn't enough time to do them! (Always leave something for the next visit!!)
Kingston is the capital city of Norfolk Island and the original site of the European settlements on the island. It's now an heritage area and on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The island was first claimed for Great Britain by Captain James Cook as he thought the tall Norfolk pine trees could be used for ship's masts and the flax that was growing there for making canvas. Within weeks of the landing of the First Fleet in Botany Bay and the establishment of the penal colony that would develop into the city of Sydney, Governor Arthur Philip sent a ship to establish a settlement on Norfolk Island.
The first Europeans landed on March 6th, 1788 and Lieutenant Philip Gidley King established the settlement on the south side of the island and named it Kingston (after himself?). The buildings from that settlement were all wooden and were destroyed when the settlement was abandoned but a replica of Gidley King's house has been reconstructed.
The major event from this period of settlement was the shipwreck of the supply ship the HMS Sirius. As well as being able to see where she was shipwrecked there is a small Sirius museum that contains one of her anchors and some smaller artefacts. (I did a tagalong tour and the guide was able to provide lots of information about the Sirius and its later life as a wreck off the coast of Norfolk Island.)
The first European settlement was abandoned in 1814 and all the buildings were destroyed, to make it less attractive for another country to move their settlers in.
Ten years later in 1824 the decision was made to reestablish the convict settlement for the worst prisoners. Norfolk Island was re-opened to European settlement on June 6th, 1825 and it's from this settlement that the impressive buildings that can be seen today were established.
Next to the engineer's office is an old whaling boat, whalers visited Pitcairn Island and taught the islands how to build and use the boats. These type of boats are still used to unload cargo from the supply ships that come in.
The prison was built next to the jetty and beach, and the official buildings, such as the barracks were built away from the prison, with the accomodation for the families further along up the hill.
The church building was originally the Commissariat Store dating from 1835, apparently one of the finest examples of a colonial commissariat store in Australia. To the left on the ground floor is one of the museum open to visitors.
Going further along the road are the houses built for the married officers, it's now called Quality Row, renamed for the Pitcairn Islander settlers. During the convict settlement era it was named Military Row. One of the houses is open as a museum.
This house was chosen as the one to be opened as a museum as it was the house in the most original condition with no electricity and no running water. The rooms have been restored, the china artefacts have been painlessly put together from broken pieces found at the bottom of the privy, it was amazing to me how many smashed pieces have been reconstructed. (Some people must be really good at jigsaws!!)
With transportation of convicts coming to an end, the penal settlement came to an end in 1855, the remaining prisoners were either given a 'ticket of leave' or send to Port Arthur in Tasmania. A few people were left on the island to care for the animals and maintain the buildings for the next settlers.
Descendants of the Bounty mutineers had begun to outgrow Pitcairn Island (by the mid 1800s) there were nearly 200 people living on a small rock. Queen Victoria gave them the right to live on the now abandoned convict settlement on Norfolk Island. They arrived at the Kingston Jetty on June 8th, 1856.
Pitcairn Islanders were given grants of land and they moved into the abandoned buildings, it was a culture shock for them to live in stone buildings and they had to be taught to care for animals, such as sheep, cows, poultry as these were all foreign to them.
Also at Kingston is Government House, it's still occupied by the present administrator of Norfolk Island.
Government House is open once a month to visitors, just not in January when I was there! The entrance fee is donated to local charities. The house was built in 1829.
Kingston also has evidence of settlement much older than that by Europeans, the island's Polynesian past. There's a dig site next to Emily Bay that looks over to Government House. Some stone tools have been found there and radiocarbon dating (I looked this up!) dated the Polynesian settlement to have been between 1200AD (Or CE) and 1600AD before they abandoned the island.
I really enjoyed the Kingston historic area and over 4 days came and explored it on different occasions. The tagalong tour was good value in having someone explain parts of the buildings around us. There are more in-depth convict tours offered as well, I just didn't enough time to do them! (Always leave something for the next visit!!)
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