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This proved to be an entertaining look at the careers of several women in a man's world during the 18th and 19th centuries. We heard of pirates, highway'men', fencing stolen goods and pony express rider.
In most of the cases detailed the woman/girl there were difficult circumstances in early life which led to them being passed off as boys. Mary Read was brought up as a boy and worked in a shop for a time. She left and joined the navy, left that for the army as an officer but with no money behind her found life hard and resigned only to enlist in the cavalry where she met her husband with whom she started an inn/restaurant Holland only to have her husband die. A spell with the Dutch army saw her posing as a man again from where she became involved in piracy. She was successful until caught but pardoned and became a privateer only to return to the illegal ventures.
Ann Bonny started life similarly. Born to the maid of an Irish lawyer who looked after by claiming she was his nephew. He went to Charleston in America with the maid and Ann where he became a merchant buying his goods off pirates. She was brought up now as a lady who learnt to ride and shoot and she became fascinated by the lives of the pirates. She married a man called Bonny who was very much a loser and was disowned by her father. Eventually she teamed up with an adventurer called Jack Rackman, 'Calico Jack' and sailed with him dressed as a man. At one time Mary Read and Ann found themselves on the same ship and they became friends. They fought and plundered together until their luck ran out and the were captured. Mary died in prison but Ann's fate less certain.
Possibly the first female highwayman was Mary Firth, known as 'Cutpurse Moll'. Born in the 17th century she started as a pickpocket in Vauxhall Gardens until she was betrayed. She dressed in men's clothes and moved on to highway robbery at which she was successful for 10 years. When she was eventually caught and sentenced she bought her freedom and became a fence. She ran a successful business selling stolen goods back to their owners after charging a fee for 'finding' them. She also employed a forger to steal small amounts of money from the very rich. After the civil war she forged treasury bonds.
We also heard of Martha Jane Canary-Burke, Calamity Jane. She does not fit into the criminal picture of the previous people but she matched their hard-living male copying life style. She became an army scout and then a Pony Express rider.
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