13/08/2026
History doesn't always remember the loudest voices... but sometimes it should.
Biddy Yack McKenna refused to fade quietly into the background.
Described as ‘infamous’ in her Irish gaol report, Biddy was transported from Tyrone, Ireland, arriving in Van Diemen’s Land aboard the Phoebe in January 1845. A 36-year-old housemaid, she had been sentenced to transportation for seven years, twice, for two separate indictments.
Colonial life did little to tame Biddy’s spirit. Over the years she repeatedly found herself back at the Cascades Female Factory for offences including drunkenness, being absent without leave, refusing to work and absconding. Her punishments ranged from solitary confinement to months of hard labour.
But Biddy’s story is more than a list of offences. She arrived with her young daughter, Ann Daley, who was later admitted to the Queen’s Orphan School at just two years old. Biddy remained in Van Diemen’s Land and, after serving her sentences, finally received her Free Certificate in July 1858.
She died in Hobart in 1863, almost 19 years after arriving in the colony.
More than 170 years later, Biddy’s story invites us to look beyond the official record and consider the woman behind it. Her experiences reveal something of the hardship, resistance and complexity of life for women transported to Van Diemen’s Land.
Visit the Cascades Female Factory and uncover the remarkable lives of Biddy and the thousands of women whose stories form part of Tasmania’s history.
