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Life could be grim during the nineteenth century for poor immigrants disembarking at Victorian Ports - unless relatives or friends looked after them until they found employment and could afford to rent a cottage or rooms.

The government and philanthropists believed that the immigrants should rapidly become self-reliant, hard-working members of society. Consequently, the shelters built were no more than staging posts between shipboard life and colonial employment. The austere buildings, poorly furnished and equipped, in which the inmates were subjected to strict rules and regulations did not tempt anyone to prolong their stay.

Where, when and how were the Victorian immigrant shelters erected during the nineteenth century? Who was permitted to enter, and what were the conditions and rules under which they lived? Answers are found in newspapers, letters, official documents and the immigrants' recollections.184pp, notes, appendices, bibliography and index.

About the Author:

Keith Pescod has published an earlier book Good Food, Bright Fires & Civility, relating how the British Colonial Office of the nineteenth century assembled, protected and accommodated over 330,000 government-assisted immigrants in depots of its own creation, before shepherding them onto the chartered ships bound for the Australian colonies.

Dr Pescod is an Honorary Associate In the School of Historical and European Studies of La Trobe University.

Softcover; 184pp, notes, appendices, bibliography and index.