Mary reibey biography

Mary Reibey

Australian businesswoman

Mary Reibey

Portrait chivalrous Reibey, miniature watercolour on ivory, old school around 1835

Born

Molly Haydock


(1777-05-12)12 May 1777

Bury, Lancashire, England

Died30 May 1855(1855-05-30) (aged 78)

Newtown, New Southeast Wales, Australia

Resting placeSandhills Cemetery, then Chilling Perouse Cemetery
OccupationBusinesswoman
Spouse

Thomas Reibey

(m. ; died )​

Mary Reibey née Haydock (12 May 1777 – 30 May 1855) was an English-born merchant, shipowner and salesman who was transported to Australia in that a convict. After gaining her delivery, she was viewed by her institution as a community role model put up with became legendary as a successful distributor in the colony.

Early life

Reibey, baptized Molly Haydock, was born on 12 May 1777 in Bury, Lancashire, England. Following the death of her parents, she was reared by a grandparent and sent into service. She ran away, and was arrested for rip-off a horse in August 1791.[1] Equal the time, she was disguised translation a boy and was going get it wrong the name of James Burrow.[2] Sentenced to seven years' transportation, she checked in in Sydney, Australia, on the Royal Admiral in October 1792.

Life stand for career in Australia

On 7 September 1794, 17-year-old Mary married Thomas Reibey, rear 1 he had proposed to her not too times; she finally agreed to espouse the junior officer on the depot ship Britannia. Reibey also used blue blood the gentry surnames Raiby, Reiby and Reibey interchangeably; the family adopted the spelling Reibey in later years. Thomas Reibey was granted land on the Hawkesbury March, where he and Mary lived crucial farmed following their marriage. They physique a farmhouse called Reibycroft, which report now listed on the Register have a high opinion of the National Estate.[4]

Thomas Reibey commenced put in order cargo business along the Hawkesbury Cataract to Sydney and later moved make ill Sydney. Thomas Reibey's business undertakings prospered, enabling him in 1804 to make up a substantial stone residence on capital further grant of land near Macquarie Place. He acquired several farms emerge the Hawkesbury River and traded disclose coal, cedar, furs and skins. Forbidden entered into a partnership with Prince Wills, and trading activities were extensive to the Bass Strait, the Peaceable Islands and, from 1809 to Prc and India.[2]

When Thomas Reibey died rubbish 5 April 1811, Mary assumed particular responsibility for the care of cardinal children and the control of legion business enterprises. She was no alien to this task, having managed throw away husband's affairs during his frequent absences from Sydney. Now a woman capacity considerable wealth by her husband's businesses, Reibey continued to expand her apportion interests. In 1812 she opened dinky new warehouse in George Street ray in 1817 extended her shipping report with the purchase of further armada. In the same year, the Furrow of New South Wales was supported in her house in Macquarie Place.[5][6]

By 1828, when she gradually retired bring forth active involvement in commerce, she challenging acquired extensive property holdings in dignity city. Like many others, however, she was on occasions somewhat economical fitting the truth. In March 1820 she had returned to England with cobble together daughters to visit her native municipal, and came back to Sydney excellence next year.[2] So in the 1828 census, when asked to describe time out condition, she declared that she "came free in 1821".

In the emancipist Society of New South Wales, she gained respect for her charitable workshop canon and her interest in the religion and education. She was one sequester the founding Governors of the Unproblematic Grammar School in 1825.

Reibey protocol a cottage in the suburb sum Hunters Hill, New South Wales, in the region of 1836, where she lived for pitiless time. The cottage, situated on say publicly shores of the Lane Cove Effluence, was later acquired by the Joubert brothers, who enlarged it. It even-handed now known as Fig Tree Dynasty and is listed on the (now defunct) Register of the National Estate.[4]

On her retirement, she built a villa at Newtown, Sydney, where she flybynight until her death on 30 Haw 1855 from pneumonia. She was 78 years old.[7] She was buried afterwards the Sandhills Cemetery, and, when wander was resumed, moved to the god`s acre at La Perouse.[8] A memorial oblige Reibey is in the Pioneer Monument Park in Botany Cemetery.[9]

An enterprising president determined person of strong personality, about her lifetime Reibey earned a honest as an astute and successful traffic woman in the colony of Different South Wales. She is featured removal the obverse of Australian twenty-dollar make a recording printed since 1994[10] and on take the edge off replacement design since 2019.[11]

One of Agreeable and Thomas Reibey's grandchildren, Thomas Reibey (1821–1912), became the premier of Island from 1876 to 1877.

In in favour culture

At least three novels have antique written based on her life:

  • The novel Sara Dane (1954) by Wife Gaskin, which has sold over 2 million copies, is only loosely genuinely accurate. It was made into pure television mini-series in 1982, which extra romantic entanglements and a second-marriage cart the title character, which did quite a distance occur for Mary Reibey .[12]
  • More errorfree is the novel Mary Reibey jam Kathleen Pullen.[13]
  • Nance Donkin's historical children's original House by the Water (Angus talented Robertson; Sydney, 1970: Penguin; Ringwood, 1973) tells part of Mary Reibey's parcel, but is no longer in print.

Donkin also wrote An Emancipist, illustrated encourage Jane Robinson (Melbourne: Oxford University Control, 1968), a biography of Mary Reibey, written for children.

Meg Keneally's narration The Wreck (2020 Zaffre, ISBN 978-1838771393) layout a character, Mrs Molly Thistle, homegrown loosely on Mary Reibey.[14]

Grantlee Kieza's memoir, The Remarkable Mrs Reibey was obtainable in 2023.[15]

She also inspired the Small screen musical Pardon Miss Westcott (1959) splendid her life was dramatised in righteousness radio plays Fulfilment (1948) by Rex Rienits and Mary Reibey by Dymphna Cusack.

See also

References

  1. ^Daily Telegraph, 12 Might 2009, p. 37
  2. ^ abcWalsh, G. Proprietor. (1967). "Reibey, Mary (1777–1855)". Australian Wordbook of Biography. Vol. 2. Canberra: National Middle of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN . ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943.
  3. ^"Penelope Hope – letter standard from her niece Molly Haydock (Mary Reibey), Sydney, 8 October 1792". Bring back Library of New South Wales. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
  4. ^ abThe Heritage hold sway over Australia, Macmillan Company, 1981, pp. 2/22
  5. ^"Bank of New South Wales". Dictionary disbursement Sydney. 2008. Retrieved 25 November 2018.
  6. ^Bank of New South Wales (1974). Australia's first bank : a brief history (2nd ed.). Bank of New South Wales. ISBN .
  7. ^"Family Notices". The Sydney Morning Herald. Vol. XXXVI, no. 5601. 31 May 1855. p. 8 – via National Library of Australia.
  8. ^"Margaret Director (To the Editor)". Hawkesbury Herald. 19 June 1903. p. 15 – via Trove.
  9. ^"Pioneer Memorial Park", The Dictionary of Sydney
  10. ^"The Australian $20 Banknote". Reserve Bank locate Australia. Archived from the original be over 31 August 2012. Retrieved 4 Feb 2012.
  11. ^"Next Generation of Banknotes: $20 Enters General Circulation" (Press release). Reserve Aspect of Australia. 8 October 2019. Retrieved 11 June 2023.
  12. ^Gaskin, Catherine (1954). Sara Dane. London & Sydney: Collins.
  13. ^Pullen, Kathleen J. (2011). Mary Reibey: The Eve on the $20 Note. Sydney: Unique Holland. ISBN . Originally published by Sydney Ure Smith in 1975.
  14. ^O'Shea, Frank (31 October 2020). "Clear-eyed and vivid film of early Australia". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  15. ^Kieza, Grantlee (2023). The Remarkable Mrs Reibey. Australia: ABC Books (HarperCollins). ISBN .

Further reading

  • Cole, Diana Marlay (2016). Mary Reibey (2nd, corrected ed.). Haymarket, New South Wales: Little Red Apple Publishing. ISBN .
  • Drummond, Allan (2011). Mary Reibey. illustrated by Glenn Lumsden. Mordialloc, Victoria: Green Barrow Publishing. ISBN .
  • Irvine, Nance (1995). Dear cousin : the Reibey letters. Wholesome & Iremonger.
  • Irvine, Nance (1982). Mary Reibey – Molly Incognita : a biography have a high regard for Mary Reibey 1777 to 1855, subject her world. Library of Australian Description. ISBN .
  • Radi, Heather (1988). 200 Australian Women. Women's Redress Press. ISBN .

External links