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The remains of the Ross Female Factory today – the
cottage still standing was that of the Superintendent.
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The
Ross Female Factory operated towards the
end of the transportation period from March
1848 to January 1855. It served as
a factory as well as a hiring depot, an
overnight station for female convicts travelling
between settlements, a lying-in hospital
and a nursery.
A
factory was deemed necessary in the 'interior'
as many female convicts were assigned in
areas at a distance from both Launceston
and Hobart, particularly in the Campbell
Town area. It was also needed to ameliorate
the overcrowding in the other female factories.
When
it opened, Dr Irvine was appointed joint
Superintendent and Medical Officer at the
factory, and his wife was appointed as matron.
The death rate of babies and children was
much lower at Ross Female Factory than either
Launceston or Cascades.
After
the factory was closed the Police Department
took over most of the establishment, though
the chapel was used by the Roman Catholic
Church.
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