''Francis'' was a 41 tons (bm) colonial schooner that was partially constructed at the

Deptford Dockyard Deptford Dockyard was an important naval dockyard and base at Deptford on the River Thames, operated by the Royal Navy from the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries. It built and maintained warships for 350 years, and many significant events ...

, England, and sent in frame aboard the ''Pitt'' to Australia to be put together for the purposes of exploration. The vessel had originally been designed for George Vancouver’s discovery voyage of the west coast of North America. It is generally regarded as the first ship built in Australia. For some years it was the only government vessel available to the governor. Although it arrived in frame in February 1792, assembly was not complete until 17 months later. ''Francis'' was launched at Sydney Cove,

Port Jackson Port Jackson, consisting of the waters of Sydney Harbour, Middle Harbour, North Harbour and the Lane Cove and Parramatta Rivers, is the ria or natural harbour of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The harbour is an inlet of the Tasman Sea ...

on 24 July 1793. She left Port Jackson on 8 September, with ''Britannia'' to Dusky Bay, New Zealand on a survey and sealing expedition. ''Francis'' made a survey of Port Stephens in February 1795 under the command of deputy surveyor-general Charles Grimes. The vessel also sailed regularly between Sydney and the settlement on Norfolk Island from 1794 to 1804. It was the only government vessel available to make the Norfolk Island run unless a

convict transport Penal transportation or transportation was the relocation of convicted criminals, or other persons regarded as undesirable, to a distant place, often a colony, for a specified term; later, specifically established penal colonies became their ...

or supply ship happened to be in Port Jackson. ''Francis'' was sent on three rescue voyages in 1797, to the ''Sydney Cove'' wreck in the

Furneaux Group The Furneaux Group is a group of approximately 100 islands located at the eastern end of Bass Strait, between Victoria and Tasmania, Australia. The islands were named after British navigator Tobias Furneaux, who sighted the eastern side of ...

of islands,

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

. While in the Furneaux Group, Matthew Flinders undertook a survey of the islands. She accompanied to

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

in 1801 and collected 75 tons of coal. In June 1801 ''Francis'' sailed to the Coal River (Hunter River). She returned to Sydney with 150 tons of coal from

Newcastle, New South Wales Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...

. This was loaded on the ''Earl Cornwallis, which took the coal to Whampoa. This is believed to have been the first export of coal from Newcastle.Free Settler or Felon? - Convict Ship Earl Cornwallis 180

- accessed 18 November 2014. In 1803 ''Francis'' picked up survivors and cargo from , which had been wrecked on the Wreck Reefs. ''Francis'' travelled to the reefs in company with the '' Rolla'' and '' Cumberland''. In November 1804 Francis was one of small fleet of ships embarking with a party of 181 persons to form a new Settlement at Port Dalrymple. She was in the company of , His Majesty's Armed Survey Vessel , and .

Fate

She was wrecked on 21 March 1805, north of the

Hunter River Hunter River may refer to: *Hunter River (New South Wales), Australia *Hunter River (Western Australia) *Hunter River, New Zealand *Hunter River (Prince Edward Island), Canada **Hunter River, Prince Edward Island, community on Hunter River, Canada ...

, Newcastle, on the Oyster Bank. Her master at the time was Captain Edwards, and there were no casualties.Bateson, Charles (1982), ''Australian shipwrecks, Vol One, 1622-1850'', Sydney, Reed, p.38-9.

Citations

{{coord missing, New South Wales 1793 ships Ships built in New South Wales Maritime incidents in 1805 1805 in Australia Shipwrecks of the Hunter Region Schooners of Australia 1788–1850 ships of Australia