The extraordinary stories of ordinary people, who just happened to be criminals, are highlighted in the latest exhibition showing at the University of Wollongong.
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On Tuesday, the new exhibition developed by NSW State Archives, that explores the criminal pasts of NSW lawbreakers from 1870 to 1930, opened at the Panizzi Gallery.
NSW State Archives acting executive director Theresa Fairman said the Captured: Portraits of Crime 1870-1930 exhibition features a wide selection of records and images sourced from 46,000 inmate records contained in 199 jail photographic description books.
“These records have all been digitised to ensure we can preserve history and protect this information for future generations,” Ms Fairman said.
Exhibition curator Dr Penny Stannard said working with a team of research archivists from all different backgrounds ensured the most interesting stories were identified.
“Our expert staff have peeled back the layers of these historical records and illuminated the events that led these people to commit a crime,” Dr Stannard said.
“We looked at the offence type, gender, age and location of crimes to piece together a collection of compelling stories.”
One interesting story featured in the exhibition is about William Plummer, a former convict who served a number of sentences at jails across NSW from the 1840s to the 1880s.
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Plummer arrived in NSW from England in 1835 and was initially assigned to James Macarthur, son of the entrepreneur and pastoralist, John Macarthur.
Having been granted a ticket of leave in 1843, Plummer was convicted of larceny and incarcerated at the notorious Berrima Gaol, the principal jail that served the Illawarra region at the time.
For the next four decades, Plummer was in and out of jail for stealing offences. Thieving, it would seem, was a means of survival and a way of life for the ageing crook.
UOW library services director, Margie Jantti, said the exhibition tells the extraordinary stories of ordinary people. “The Captured exhibition highlights the untold stories of individuals in the historic NSW justice system,” Ms Jantti said.
Captured: Portraits of Crime exhibition is at the Panizzi Gallery, located inside the UOW library, until August 3.