The ''Victoria Police Gazette'' commenced in December 1853 and was initially

published Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, news ...

weekly by the

Victoria Police Victoria Police is the primary law enforcement agency of the Australian state of Victoria. It was formed in 1853 and currently operates under the ''Victoria Police Act 2013''. , Victoria Police had over 22,300 staff, comprising over 16,700 ...

. Originally the '' Gazettes'' for each state were not available to the public, but were produced for informing members of the police force and

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

officials. Today

archival An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials – in any medium – or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or ...

copies are a resource for

historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the st ...

s because the ''Gazette'' provides early records detailing names members of the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

and the police force, lists

deserters Desertion is the abandonment of a military duty or post without permission (a pass, liberty or leave) and is done with the intention of not returning. This contrasts with unauthorized absence (UA) or absence without leave (AWOL ), which a ...

from merchant ships, the armed forces and of wives and children. It also provides details of victims and

felons A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resul ...

, the names absconded

convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as " prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former conv ...

s from

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

and

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, along with reports of serious crime from

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

. Another section in the ''Gazettes'' was one headed 'Missing Friends'. Most people listed thereunder were not criminals, but were merely sought by police so that relatives, old friends, or government officials could renew contact with them. In the case of the deserters of wives and children, the ''Victoria Police Gazette'' would list (where known) the name of the offender, their place of birth, age, occupation, the area in which they had been living, their possible future movements and known relatives. In some cases the deserted person was also named. It included entries that covered: * People wanted for questioning in relation to various other crimes. * Prisoners discharged from either city or country gaols. * Extracts from ''Police Gazettes'' in New South Wales,

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, Tasmania,

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, and occasionally, overseas countries. * Extracts from the ''Hobart Town Gazette'' of escaped convicts and the name of the person to whom they were assigned.

Legislative origin

The Legislative Council of Victoria passed an Act on 8 January 1853, for the regulation of the police force. At the time there were seven distinct police bodies in Victoria, each acting independently: the Melbourne and County of Bourke Police; the City of Geelong Police; the Goldfields Police; the Gold Escort; the Water Police; the Rural Bench Constabulary; and the Mounted Police. In December of that year, the ''Victoria Police Gazette'' started as an official means of pooling information among these newly uniformed bodies.

References

Newspapers published in Victoria (state) Publications established in 1853 Weekly newspapers published in Australia Police gazettes Victoria Police Government gazettes of Australia {{Australia-newspaper-stub

Legislative origin

Archives

See also

References