The Ships
Four shipments of farm apprentices arrived before the Great War commenced:
| Steamship | Line | No. of Apprentices | Departure* | Arrived in Adelaide | Superintendent | Database Refs |
| Beltana | P&O | 81 | London 15/5/13 |
23/6/13 | A de Vere Mingard | 16-96 |
| Geelong | P&O | 10 | London 28/8/13 |
11/10/13 | Mrs Ramsdaile, Matron | 99-108 |
| Irishman | White Star | 42 | Liverpool 21/3/14 |
11/5/14 | A de Vere Mingard | 109-153 |
| Orsova | Orient | 37 | London 5/6/14 |
11/7/14 | Edward Purchase | 156-193 |
*Passenger departure lists are available to subscribers of Findmypast.com
As you can see, the journey took about six weeks. The boys were accompanied by a superintendent employed by the South Australia Government, or in the case of the Geelong, a matron who was also responsible for the domestic helpers on board. To get an idea of what the journey was like, you may wish to consult the journal of a superintendent of youth migrants bound for Victoria on the SS Hawkes Bay in 1913, available in the Australian National Maritime Museum's collection.
All four ships were used as troopships during the War. You can check which ship an apprentice departed on by checking the digitised First World War Embarkation Roll at the Australian War Memorial. Their service records usually record on which ship surviving soldiers returned to Australia - see the database for their regimental numbers.
The following photos were taken of each shipment of boys with the Commissioner of Crown Lands and Immigration, Frederick Young, before they were dispersed to farms across the state. The photos were available for the boys to purchase at 1 shilling each. No legend of which boy is which has been archived. The photos appear courtesy of the History Trust of South Australia's Glass Negative Collection.
^ The boys who arrived on the SS Beltana on 23 June 1913 at the Exhibition Building, North Terrace, Adelaide (glass negative no. 1005). Note the scout uniforms worn by some apprentices.
^ The boys who arrived on the SS Geelong on 11 October 1913 at the Domestic Helpers' Home, 5 Charles Street, Norwood (glass negative no. 1017). Note the photo also includes 23 year old British agricultural labourer James Kirkland, who had arrived aboard the SS Orphir on 27 September.
^ The boys who arrived on the SS Irishman on 11 May 1914 in the grandstand at the Jubilee Oval behind the Exhibition Building, North Terrace, Adelaide (glass negative no. 1022A). Gentlemen in middle are (L to R): Commissioner of Crown Lands and Immigration, FW Young; superintendent on board, A de Vere Mingard; and Immigration Officer, EJ Field. Seated at front is Immigration Clerk, D Davidson.
