Design for Convicts – An Account of Design for Convict Establishments in the Australian Colonies During the Transportation Era | James Semple Kerr | 1984 [USED – HCDJ]

An architectural and historical account of the design and construction of convict establishments across the Australian colonies during the transportation era — covering prisons, penitentiaries, probation stations, barracks, hospitals and associated infrastructure built to house, control and employ convict labour.

Written by James Semple Kerr and published in 1984, the book examines how British penal philosophy of the period — the move from transportation to reform, from assignment to probation — shaped the physical design of convict buildings. Kerr draws on architectural plans, official correspondence and surviving structures to document what was built, why it was built that way, and how those design principles changed over time.

Tasmanian convict buildings feature prominently — Port Arthur, the probation stations of the Tasman Peninsula, Hobart's penitentiary and associated infrastructure are among the most intact surviving examples of the convict building programme in Australia, and Kerr's analysis of their design is directly relevant to anyone researching Tasmanian convict heritage.

With 181 pages of text and black and white architectural diagrams throughout, this is a practical reference for heritage architects, historians and researchers as well as collectors of convict history.

CONDITION

Used, generally good condition.

Some wear to the edges.

Previous owner's name sticker and removed sticker marking in the front.

BOOK DETAILS

Hardcover book with dust jacket.

Published 1984. Now out of print.

181 pages.

Black and white diagrams throughout.

Approximately 30cm x 22cm.

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