The true story of the Kerry girls who were shipped to Australia from the four Kerry Workhouses of Dingle, Kenmare, Killarney, and Listowel between 1849 and 1850. This forced emigration was part of the controversial Earl Grey Scheme.
Under the Earl Grey scheme, a total of 4,114 Irish orphans arrived on 20 ships over a two-year period. The scheme was ultimately short-lived due to growing anti-Irish, anti-Catholic sentiment in the colony
From scenes of destitution and misery, the girls, some of whom spoke only Irish, set off to the other side of the world without any idea of what lay ahead.
This book tells of their “selection” and shipping to New South Wales and Adelaide. The author explains their subsequent apprenticeship, marriage, and life in the colony.