Media release – Port Arthur Historic Site Management Authority (PAHSMA), 11 May 2023
‘Notorious Strumpets and Dangerous Girls’ to kick off the Off season at the Cascades Female Factory
The World-Heritage-listed Cascades Female Factory has created a new evocative storytelling experience, ‘Notorious Strumpets & Dangerous Girls’ as part of Tasmania’s signature Off Season winter campaign. Through this new experience you will be introduced to seven irrepressible convict women – or ‘notorious strumpets’ as some were once described by the authorities; and hear how they railed against the convict system that was designed to break them.
Categorised by society at the time, these women were often underestimated, demeaned and neglected. The experience of Notorious Strumpets & Dangers Girls demonstrates how female convicts managed to overcome the many hardships, prejudices and inequality within the walls of the Cascades Female Factory and the wider colonial system of the time.
“Through this experience we seek to pay homage to the legacy of the strength, resilience and struggle of Australia’s female convicts,” Emily Clarke, Directory of Interpretation and Experience said. “The Cascades Female Factory is continuing to contribute to a much broader discussion around women’s issues. The site serves as an important historical reference around colonisation and drives advocacy for the women in Australia’s history.”
Notorious Strumpets & Dangerous Girls is a special feature Off Season activation kicking off Saturday 13 May and running every Saturday until 26 August at 2:30pm. Tickets can be booked online and start at $40 per adult that includes access to the site, gallery and a self-guided audio experience.
Along with this exciting winter offering, there are other features newly-opened to the public including the poignant Wall of Names, which honours the children that were born and died within the walls of the Female Factory; and the newly-reopened original building of the Matron’s Quarters.
“These new experiences aim to fill in the missing pieces of Australia’s convict history and our collective historical narrative, that has for too long been ignored,” said Ms Clarke
