Staff and prisoners of Fremantle Prison
[3]: 56 Henderson administered Western Australia's convict establishment for thirteen years; Battye writes that "its success was no doubt due to his wisdom and tact.
Newland's arrival closely followed the appointment of Governor John Hampton, who had previously been comptroller general of convicts in Van Diemen's Land.
[6]: 195–196 Hampton assumed far more direct control of Western Australia's convict establishment than his predecessors,[7] and was in perpetual disagreement with Newland.
This "unusually blatant act of nepotism"[9]: 302 was extremely unpopular within the colony, both Hamptons thereafter being figures of public hostility and ridicule.
[5]: 7, 24 Both men operated a prisoner classification system, until at least 1865, based on the type of convict, as well as their conduct and quality of their work.
Prisoner self-respect was an important concept for Hann, who noted in his 1912 report that "all our efforts are thrown away unless we can make them feel that they are not mere brutes, and get them to hold their heads up again like men.
"[16]: 54–55 Following a series of escapes in 1918, Hann was investigated by an enquiry, suspended, and charged with neglect of his duties; though eventually vindicated, his poor health ensured his retirement.
[19]: 65–67 The warder's role became clearly defined in 1902, having previously been unwritten, and poorly known due to a high turnover rate in those immediately in charge of prisoners.
[16]: 173, 182 Warders guarded against escapes, enforced discipline, oversaw prisoner work, and instructed inmates in trades.
[16]: 182 The nature of 20th century prison officers did not change much, with the job entailing a boredom-inducing daily routine focused on security.
During the initial years of transportation, convicts were generally young, from a rural background, and of good character, having only committed minor offences[24]: 60–61 – potential future colonists, after their sentence had been served.
[5]: 74 By the 1860s the majority were older, more serious offenders from urban areas,[24]: 61 and the final group of convicts, arriving in January 1868 on Hougoumont,[5]: 75 included sixty-two Fenians, political prisoners[25] considered to be "difficult and dangerous".
[16]: 71 At the turn of the century, the majority of prisoners were "white Australian or European men, mostly working class, below the age of forty years and serving short sentences for minor offences".
[h][16]: 74 Poverty, drunkenness, behavioural issues, and recidivism were major contributing factors in imprisonment for minor offences.
