Jack the Rammer

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Jack the Rammer a.k.a. Billy the Rammer was a bushranger in the Monaro District near Cooma in New South Wales during the latter half of 1834.

Bushranger runaway convict during the British settlement of Australia

Bushrangers were originally escaped convicts in the early years of the British settlement of Australia who used the Australian bush as a refuge to hide from the authorities. By the 1820s, the term "bushranger" had evolved to refer to those who took up "robbery under arms" as a way of life, using the bush as their base.

Monaro (New South Wales) Region in New South Wales, Australia

Monaro, once frequently spelled "Manaro", or in early years of settlement "Maneroo" is a region in the south of New South Wales, Australia. A small area of Victoria near Snowy River National Park is geographically part of the Monaro. While the Australian Capital Territory is not considered part of the region, some towns in the Monaro have close links with Canberra.

Cooma Town in New South Wales, Australia

Cooma is a town in the south of New South Wales, Australia. It is located 114 kilometres (71 mi) south of the national capital, Canberra, via the Monaro Highway. It is also on the Snowy Mountains Highway, connecting Bega with the Riverina.

Born William Roberts, he was a cooper by trade, with a wife and three children, when he was sentenced seven years for stealing a bucket and transported to New South Wales. [1] He arrived in Australia in September 1833, and escaped from his first convict assignment the following year. [1] Placed in Goulburn Jail he met fellow convict Joseph Keys and the pair escaped together. [1]

Cooper (profession) maker of staved vessels such as barrels

A cooper is a person trained to make wooden casks, barrels, vats, buckets, tubs, troughs and other staved containers from timber that was usually heated or steamed to make it pliable. Journeymen coopers also traditionally made wooden implements, such as rakes and wooden-bladed shovels. In addition to wood, other materials, such as iron, were used in the manufacturing process.

New South Wales State of Australia

New South Wales is a state on the east coast of Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria to the south, and South Australia to the west. Its coast borders the Tasman Sea to the east. The Australian Capital Territory is an enclave within the state. New South Wales' state capital is Sydney, which is also Australia's most populous city. In September 2018, the population of New South Wales was over 8 million, making it Australia's most populous state. Just under two-thirds of the state's population, 5.1 million, live in the Greater Sydney area. Inhabitants of New South Wales are referred to as New South Welshmen.

Goulburn Correctional Centre prison in New South Wales, Australia

The Goulburn Correctional Centre, an Australian supermaximum security prison for males, is located in Goulburn, New South Wales, three kilometres north-east of the central business district. The facility is operated by Corrective Services NSW, an agency of the Department of Justice, of the Government of New South Wales. The Complex accepts prisoners charged and convicted under New South Wales and/or Commonwealth legislation and serves as a reception prison for Southern New South Wales, and, in some cases, for inmates from the Australian Capital Territory.

Roberts and Keys headed for the Monaro District, where they met up with Edward Boyd, and began bushranging. [1] In December 1834, the three "stuck up" the station of Joseph Catterall, badly wounding the station overseer Charles Fisher Shepherd, who, in turn, shot and killed Roberts. [1] [2] In January 1835, troopers caught up with Boyd and Keys, and Boyd was killed. [1] Keys was captured and pleaded guilty. [3]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Barbara Malpass Edwards (1 April 2007). Australia's Most Notorious Convicts: From Thieves and Bushrangers to Murderers and Cannibals. Exisle Publishing. pp. 24–25. ISBN   978-0-908988-88-4.
  2. "BUSHRANGING". The Argus . Melbourne: National Library of Australia. 5 March 1879. p. 6. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
  3. "Law Intelligence". The Australian . Sydney: National Library of Australia. 8 May 1835. p. 2. Retrieved 18 December 2013.