The Cascades Female Factory Audio Experience
The Cascades Female Factory Audio Experience provides an overview of the history of the site as well as the stories of the women and children that spent time here. Most of the structures and buildings that made up the Cascades Female Factory have been removed or lost with time. Today, you can take your time as you wander through the space and listen to true tales of the courage, resourcefulness and resilience of the women lived, worked and aspired to a better life outside these same walls. The audio experience fills in the space between then and now.
The Cascades Female Factory Audio Experience
Chapter 9: The Chapel and the Flash Mob (Location: Yard 1)
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The Christian religion played a big role in the daily lives of convict women. However, Senior Chaplain, Reverend William Bedford, wasn't the most popular person at the Factory ...
If at Cascades Female Factory, we recommend you listen to this chapter from the location of the chapel (stop 9).
A chapel once stood within these walls. The Christian religion played a big role in the daily lives of women convicts. It was believed that genuine reform could only be reached if the women became good Christians who understood and would not commit sin.
The Chapel was where a big part of this reformation was supposed to occur.
Every morning and every evening all convict women would gather in the chapel to listen to the Superintendent read a portion of scripture and lead prayer. Unless, of course, the Chaplain was present in which case he would speak to the women himself from the pulpit.
Even in Chapel the women were kept in their classes, a barrier separating the pews.
Reverend William Bedford was the colony’s senior chaplain and saw himself as an expert on convict management. He believed convict women to have ‘depraved and vicious habits’ and admonished the women from the pulpit. In return, the women actively disliked the Reverend, giving him nickname of ‘Holy Willy’. He was considered pompous and his preaching style evangelistic. He held a lot of power over the convict women – residing over their marriages, reading the last rites at their deaths.
You may have heard of the infamous flashing bottoms story: to show their mocking displeasure, 300 convict women turned their backs on Reverend Bedford while he preached, pulled up their skirts and slapped their bare bottoms. This story has been told for more than sixty years, becoming something of a folktale. But just like a folktale, it is not true. The story was created by a disgruntled clergyman, Reverend Crooke.
This story was reproduced in cartoon form on postcards you may still find today. The depiction of the convict women as vulgar, crude and coarse figures reinforces the stereotypes we aim to break here at Cascades Female Factory Historic Site. Of course, many of the women who spent time here would have found ways to mock the authorities and behave in ways considered … inappropriate. But this particular story is simply unfounded.
What has been proven is the existence of the Flash Mob. This name does not come from the fictional flashing bottoms story rather the ‘flashy’ style of dress they wore. They made a statement with their brightly coloured handkerchiefs and embroidered caps and wore rings in their ears and on their fingers. They somehow managed to have money with which to buy meat, tobacco, brandy, sugar and tea – items that were definitely not a part of the limited, rationed convict diet. They kept themselves amused with singing and dancing and putting on costumed plays. But they were also power brokers who led riots and could make life miserable for women outside the Flash Mob.
Ellen Scott was named in a 1841 Inquiry into Convict Discipline as a ringleader of the Flash Mob.
Ellen was 16 when she was transported for life for stealing a watch. Less than a month after her arrival to Van Diemen’s Land, Ellen was charged with the colonial offence of ‘being out of bed at an unreasonable hour on Sunday’ and ‘disobedience of orders’. For these crimes she was sentenced to the cells in crime class with seven days on bread and water. Over the next thirteen years, Ellen racked up a lot of offences and spent a significant amount of time in the cells of the crime class. Most of her offences were around her refusal to work, disobedience and absence. Except in 1833 when she was charged with ‘wilful and wicked neglect’ of her master’s infant child. For this she sentenced to wear the Iron Collar –and stay in solitary confinement on bread and water for as long as Regulations allowed.
Ellen's other offences included assaulting Superintendent John Hutchinson and behaving indecently before Reverend Bedford.
Reducing the stories of the women from Cascades to a caricature on a postcard does not honour the real stories, the real women who spent time here.
One woman who was here, in death, and whose story needs to be known and honoured and shared is Trukanini. You will see a stringy-bark tree in Yard One – this is your next stop …