When researching my family tree, I came across Jack Kirby (my 5x great uncle). Jack was born in 1761 in Blean, Kent, and in 1789 having been sentenced to transportation to Australia for seven years, wrote a pamphlet in which he confessed to all his crimes. This pamphlet provides an intriguing insight into life in the late 18th century.
Whilst reading it though, I got the impression of a young man who had fallen into thievery and found he could make an easy living out of it. Jack didn’t come across as an evil person – more of a lovable rogue.
So, 250 years later, I decided to find out more about Jack, his family, and the other residents of Blean from whom he stole or whose house he broke into. I put together my findings in a book for my family, but it is such an interesting story that I have also made it available online HERE.
