Francis was a 41 burthen ton colonial schooner that was partially constructed at the Deptford Dockyard, England and sent in frame aboard the Pitt to Australia to be put together for the purposes of exploration. The vessel had originally been designed for George Vancouver’s discovery voyage of the west coast of North America. In 1803 Francis picked up survivors and cargo from HMS Porpoise, which had been wrecked on the Wreck Reefs. Francis travelled to the reefs in company with the Rolla and Cumberland.