Emigrant Ships to Australia

For over 190 years migrants arrived in Australia by ship. Until 1945, the vast majority of these came from the United Kingdom – especially up until the end of World War II. Economic and social conditions created the ‘pushes’ that persuaded or forced people to leave their homelands, and the ‘pulls’ that brought them to distant Australia. The profitability of the migrant trade and keen competition between ship owners affected their decisions to convert, build or buy ships, to introduce new designs and technologies, and to adopt different sea routes.

During the first 50 years the ships were ordinary wooden British merchant vessels designed to carry cargo and a small number of passengers. They were small and dumpy with roughly made temporary berths built in the ‘tween decks to house hundreds of convicts or steerage emigrants. After unloading their human cargo they often returned via Cape Horn with goods from Australia or Asia. When hordes of impatient migrants raced to try their luck on the gold fields fast clipper ships were introduced to the route, some designed specifically for the lucrative migrant trade.

As steam engine technology improved through the 19th century, auxiliary steam engines were added to sailing ships and then replaced by screw steamers no longer reliant on wind to propel them. Meanwhile, faster routes delving far into the Southern Ocean or taking a short cut through the Suez Canal, favoured the development and choice of new ship designs. Over the years the average size of migrant ships gradually increased from about 360 tons to 40,000 tons, while the average time for a voyage from Britain decreased from 120 days to about 28 days.