Cascades Female Factory Historic Site

Cascades Female Factory Historic Site Tragic and triumphant stories of Australia's convict women. Women were incarcerated here as punishment or while waiting to be assigned.

Australia’s most significant site associated with female convicts sits in the shadow of Mount Wellington, a short distance from the Hobart CBD. With guards, nurses and babies, up to 1000 people lived here at any one time. Discover the stories of female convicts and their children on a guided tour or experience morning tea with the matron.

Bridget Hehir was transported for stealing a cow. Pregnant while serving punishment at Cascades Female Factory, she gave...
16/06/2026

Bridget Hehir was transported for stealing a cow. Pregnant while serving punishment at Cascades Female Factory, she gave birth to a son who lived for only six days.

Her life is one of grief, survival and uncertainty. After multiple marriage applications, Bridget eventually wed fellow convict John Appleby and later had six children, but hardship continued to follow the family.

The stories held within these walls are not simple. It's history of motherhood, loss and resilience. Walk through Cascades Female Factory and discover the lives history nearly left behind.

Who decided which women were “notorious”? At Cascades Female Factory, many women arrived carrying convictions shaped by...
13/06/2026

Who decided which women were “notorious”?

At Cascades Female Factory, many women arrived carrying convictions shaped by poverty, survival and desperation. Yet history often reduced them to a single word or stereotype.

The Notorious Strumpets Tour explores the realities behind these labels and reveals the humanity of the women who lived within these walls.

Hear the stories history almost left behind.

Image credit Sarthure

For many convict women transported to Van Diemen’s Land, the journey began at the waterfront before continuing uphill to...
08/06/2026

For many convict women transported to Van Diemen’s Land, the journey began at the waterfront before continuing uphill to the Cascades Female Factory.

Their crimes were often acts of desperation. The theft of food, clothing or small items committed during times of poverty, hunger and uncertainty. Yet thousands of women and children were separated from family and sent across the world to an unfamiliar colony.

Today, their stories stand in the light rather than the shadows.

The Footsteps Towards Freedom sculptures at Hobart’s Macquarie Wharf honour the women and children who arrived on these shores during the nineteenth century. Each figure reflects a different story of hardship, survival and resilience, reminding us that many of Tasmania’s founding stories began with women whose voices were too often forgotten.

At Cascades Female Factory, we believe those stories deserve to be heard, and we continue to share them in the very place where many of these women once lived, worked and endured.

Image credit Rosemary Noble

Nature continues to soften a place once built for punishment.Trees line the pathways, the rivulet flows beside the walls...
05/06/2026

Nature continues to soften a place once built for punishment.

Trees line the pathways, the rivulet flows beside the walls, and native wildlife now shares space with one of Australia’s most significant convict sites.

On World Environment Day, we recognise the importance of preserving not only our built heritage, but the natural environments surrounding it.

Behind these walls were women history tried to reduce to numbers, sentences and punishment.But the stories survived.Stor...
04/06/2026

Behind these walls were women history tried to reduce to numbers, sentences and punishment.

But the stories survived.
Stories of overcrowded cells, separation from children, hard labour and lives shaped by a system that offered little mercy. Stories that still sit heavily within the walls of Cascades Female Factory today.

Condemned invites you to confront the choices, fears and injustices that led four women to the gallows.

Not every verdict is easy.

Image credit: University of Tasmania, https://eprints.utas.edu.au/3561/, James Walker, Cascades' Female Factory, Hobart, November 1892.

Hidden amongst the stories of Tasmania are a little bit of magic and wonder.The beautifully illustrated Faeries of Tasma...
30/05/2026

Hidden amongst the stories of Tasmania are a little bit of magic and wonder.

The beautifully illustrated Faeries of Tasmania books are now featured in our Gift Shop, including Volume 2, home to a very special Cascades Female Factory fairy.

A charming keepsake for dreamers, storytellers and lovers of Tasmania’s hidden tales.

Mary Braid arrived in Van Diemen’s Land with her daughter after being convicted of in**st and murder.Despite this, recor...
25/05/2026

Mary Braid arrived in Van Diemen’s Land with her daughter after being convicted of in**st and murder.
Despite this, records show she became a skilled and respected servant, eventually receiving her Conditional Pardon and rebuilding her life.

Her story reflects the complexity of the women who passed through Cascades, far more than the crimes that brought them here.

The past is not always visible.Through archaeology, we uncover traces of lives once lived within these walls.Each find h...
21/05/2026

The past is not always visible.
Through archaeology, we uncover traces of lives once lived within these walls.
Each find helps us better understand the site.

There was a time when little attention was given to this place.Now, every effort is made to protect and share its storie...
20/05/2026

There was a time when little attention was given to this place.
Now, every effort is made to protect and share its stories.
Caring for the site is caring for its history.

Source: Libriaries Tasmania - The Cascades Female Factory on a cold winter’s day, with snow on the mountain and fog in the valley. TAHO, NS1013/1/45, E.R. Pretyman collection

Four women. Four lives. Four outcomes that still invite debate.Eliza Benwell, Mary McLaughlin, Margaret Galvin and Mary ...
19/05/2026

Four women. Four lives. Four outcomes that still invite debate.
Eliza Benwell, Mary McLaughlin, Margaret Galvin and Mary Sullivan each faced the ultimate judgement within the colonial system.
Condemned invites you to hear their stories, weigh the evidence, and decide for yourself.

Address

16 Degraves Street
South Hobart, TAS
7004

Opening Hours

Monday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Tuesday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Wednesday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Thursday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Friday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Saturday 9:30am - 4:30pm
Sunday 9:30am - 4:30pm

Telephone

+611800139478

Website

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