John Vernon Warren (1826–1898) was a convict transported to Western Australia. He was one of only 39 such convicts from the 9721 convicts transported to the colony to overcome the social stigma of convictism to become schoolteachers. The position of ex-convicts in the Australian penal colonies led to significant political conflict during the nineteenth century (cf. emancipist). Most freed convicts became part of an underclass and the social characteristics of the convicts has been a point of Australian historiographic argument throughout the period of European settlement in Australia.