The Magdalena was a Government ship of 870 tons which sailed from Southampton on 23rd May 1853, with Captain Brenton as Master. She arrived in Port Adelaide on 25 August 1853 with 363 passengers. There were nine births and eleven deaths on the voyage out.

Ancestors on board were Henry Talbot and his wife Susannah (nee Hobbs) and their son, John Henry . Other relatives on the voyage were Henry's brother, Thomas Talbot and his wife Eliza (nee Barnard) and their two sons, David and Charles . Also with them was Susannah's brother, George Hobbs , his wife Harriet (nee Moore) and their daughter Fanny.