Australian Women's Register

An initiative of The National Foundation for Australian Women (NFAW) in conjunction with The University of Melbourne

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Reibey, Mary (1777 - 1855)

Born
12 May 1777
Bury, England
Died
30 May 1855
Newtown, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Occupation
Businesswoman and Convict
Alternative Names
  • Burrow, James (alias)
  • Haydock, Molly (maiden name)
  • Raby, Mary (alternative spelling)
  • Raiby, Mary (alternative spelling)

Summary

Mary Reibey was orphaned as a girl and arrested in 1791 after disguising herself as a male, James Burrow, and attempting to sell a stolen horse. As James Burrow she was sentenced to seven years transportation and arrived in the colony on 7 October 1792. Through marriage to her husband Thomas Raby, with whom she had seven children, Mary grew wealthy. She continued to accumulate property after his death, though the family fortune was strained by the misadventures of two of her sons-in-law.

Published resources

Books

  • Irvine, Nance, Mary Reibey - Molly Incognita: A Biography of Mary Reibey, Library of Australian History, Sydney, 1982, 161 pp. Details

Edited Books

  • Irvine, Nance (ed.), Dear Cousin: The Reibey Letters: Twenty-two letters of Mary Reibey, her children and their descendents, 1792-1901, 2 edn, Mary Reibey, Hale & Iremonger, Sydney, 1995, 150 pp. Details

Online Resources

See also

Barbara Lemon

Created: 8 October 2008, Last modified: 27 October 2008

Site-wide information and acknowledgements

National Foundation for Australian Women The University of Melbourne, eScholarship Research Centre

http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE3743b.htm