An Account of a Voyage to Establish a Colony at Port Philip in Bass's Strait, on the South Coast of New South Wales

An account of a voyage to New South Wales in 1803 to establish a convict colony in Port Phillip.

James Tuckey (1776–1816) was the first lieutenant on H.M.S. Calcutta when it was given orders in 1802 to sail to Port Phillip, New South Wales (today's Melbourne), establish a convict colony and conduct a survey of the area. Tuckey recalls the journey in this account, published in 1805.James Tuckey (1776–1816) was a naval officer who was appointed first lieutenant on H.M.S. Calcutta. In 1802 the ship was given orders to sail to New South Wales, Australia, to survey the harbour at Port Phillip, and to establish a colony. The Calcutta departed from Portsmouth in April 1803 and arrived in New South Wales in October. After Tuckey returned from the assignment, he published this account in 1805. He begins the work by explaining the motives behind establishing the colony - it was to be used for convicts, some of whom he was transporting on the ship. The first four chapters discuss the journey but the final chapter focuses on the attempts to establish a colony and encounters with the indigenous population, and gives a survey of the coastline. Port Phillip became the city Melbourne, and this work is a valuable source about its early years of settlement.