Mary Butler

43

Darryl Buley on 9th May 2026

The wonders of DNA... Mary's Baptism: Baptism 5 Sep 1773 • Binfield, Berkshire, England Name Mary Butler Gender Female Christening Date 5 Sep. 1773 Christening Place Binfield, Berkshire, England Father Edward Butler Mother Mary Hodges These parents are correct because I am a DNA match to a descendant of Mary's brother William, born 1790 also in Binfield, Berkshire, England to Edward and Mary. Trust this baptism record - DNA doesn't lie.

75

iain Frazier on 19th February 2024

Family connections for Mary (Butler) are: BUTLER Mary (Butler) was born on 23 9 1769/1772. She was tried w/4others, prostitutes, for assault at a house of bad repute, on 10 11 1787, & stealing of Joseph (Clarke) at Old Bailey on 12 12 1787, sentenced to 7years. held at Middlesex Gaol Delivery & Newgate Goal until 12/3/1789 & arrived in NSW as a convict on 3 6 1790 after a voyage of 6months on Fleet ship LADY JULIANA-a ship with 228females who easily entertained the whole crew & also sailors at Teneriffe stopover. She was sent to Norfolk Island on SURPRISE, arriving on 7 8 1790. She is recorded as sentence expired on stores in February 1805. [Noted a Mary (Butler) married William (McDonald) who arrived in NSW as a convict on 26 6 1790 after a voyage of 6months on Fleet ship NEPTUNE; this Website provides no clarification as yet.] She had a first relationship with William (Saltmarsh his second (2of3) relationship) & produced 1child. She left Norfolk Island on 18 2 1813.>>> [Some details taken from this Website] William (Saltmarsh) was born about 1770 at Kingston upon Thames & became a cooper. He was tried w/1other for stealing with force of arms handkerchiefs of shop Putney at Kingston upon Thames Surrey Assizes in 1795, sentenced to 7years, held on hulks & arrived in NSW as a convict in 1788 after a long voyage on First Fleet ship ALEXANDER. On 6 6 1789 he was responsible for capturing Black Caesar a raider of the settlement. He associated firstly (1of3) with Elizabeth (Hollogan). He was sent to Norfolk Island on 17 8 1790. He left/was sent from Norfolk Island on 1 5 1792 on PITT. He died on route to Bengal India age about22.>>> [Some details taken from this Website, on which ALEXANDER is listed several times.] .. >>>Mary (Butler) had a second relationship with James (Jordan his second) & produced 5children. She was Free by Servitude by 1801. She is recorded on stores in 1812 on Norfolk Island. Mrs (Jourdan) is recorded as admitted to hospital 15 7 1812 , sang effus/bloodshed/haemorrhage, & discharged on 30 7 1812. She died on 31 8 1812 age42 mother of perhaps 6children at Emily Bay Norfolk Island; Smees records show her death as 30 11 1817 age35 & burial at St Johns CofE Parramatta. James (Jordan/Sheridan/Gordan) was born in 1756. He married firstly Jane (???). He was tried w/his wife & 1other for burglary & stealing candlesticks etc of Mr (Parker) of Rosslene at Dublin city Quarter Sessions at The Tholsel in March 1789, sentenced to 7years & arrived in NSW as a convict on 26 9 1791 after a voyage of 5months on Fleet ship QUEEN. On 26 8 1792 he was sent to Norfolk Island on ATLANTIC. In 1800 he sold 100acres to John (Barnes), land that he had bought from George W (Witticar/Whittaker)-including perhaps 10acre plot No.56 at east Queensborough which was in possession of George Whitacre) in 1796. He was issued his Conditional Pardon on 1 2 1797 & his Ticket of Leave in August 1801. He became a pilot & coxswain on ships between Sydney & Norfolk Island & was pilot of the HMS PORPOISE in March 1802. He was recorded as Free by Servitude on Government boat crew in 1805. In 1810 he is recorded as farming 12acres. He moved with his children, including his stepson, to Port Dalrymplet Tasmania, as part of the second evacuation, thence to Norfolk Plains/Longford Tasmania on 18 2 1813 on MINSTREL via Sydney & settled on Esk River. In 1819 he is recorded on 90acres at Port Dalrymple Tasmania. In 1830 he sold 60acres. He died on 6 2 1840 age84 father of perhaps 5children at Talisker White Hills & was buried at Christ Church Longford. [Some details taken from this Website] References: Craig James Smee 'Births and Baptisms Marriages and Defacto Relationships Deaths and Burials New South Wales 1788-1830' ..a complete listing from church & other records in the early colony. Irene Schaffer & Thelma McKay 'Exiled Three Times Over! Profiles of Norfolk Islanders Exiled in Van Diemens Land 1807-1813' James Hugh Donohoe 'Norfolk Island 1788-1813-The People and Their Families' Reg Wright 'Forgotten Generation of Norfolk Island & Van Diemens Land'

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Darryl Buley on 27th March 2023

12th December 1787 Tried at Old Bailey, London. Accused of robbery (feloniously assaulting joseph clark , in the dwelling house of joseph rider , on the 10th day of november last, and putting him in fear and danger of his life, and feloniously taking from his person, and against his will, a silver watch, value 4 l. a silk handkerchief, value 2 s. a guinea, a half guinea, and eleven shillings, one bank note of 20 l. and one bank note of 15 l.). Found guilty, lesser offence. Sentenced to transportation. Sentence outcome was transported.

3

brett pierce on 22nd July 2022

Dates of birth and death probably not accurate. Require source. Best evidence appears to show death between Aug 1812 (based on recorded visits to hospital) and Feb 1813 (didn't leave Norfolk Island with family in Feb 1813).

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Darryl Buley on 19th March 2022

This is how Mary Butler was transported. It begins with the evidence of Joseph Clark in court before a Middlesex jury and Mr. Justice Heath, 12 December 1787. He said that he was robbed on 10th November last at 45 Cable Street, `a house of bad repute'. `I was in Cable Street when I was first assaulted; that was on my way home from the Bank; I had half a cheese on my head; I was looking in at the window of number 45; I had no particular reason for looking in, and the prisoners Ann Clark and Mary Reading came first to the door; I never saw them before in my life, to my knowledge; they came behind me and took hold of my hand on the cheese and forced me into the house, number 45; they seized me and forced me in; they said I should go in; I said I would not go in, by any means; I said I wanted to go home.' `Could you not have disengaged yourself if you had a mind?' `I had property about me and a cheese upon my head.' `What! They forced you in against your will? `They did.' `You absolutely refused to go? - `I did'. And so the questioning went on for some time - `Did you struggle as hard as you could struggle?' - `Yes, I did and they forced me against my will into the front room .... Ann Clark took the cheese off my head; she came behind me, and pushed it into a chest by the bedside; says she, "You shall stay all night"; "No", says I, "I will not"; then she shoved me to Mary Butler who was sitting by the fire, and said I should send for something to drink; and I gave her a shilling, and she brought me half a pint of gin.' After sharing the gin and a game of cards and more gin, `I fell very sick'. He yielded to their demands for him to send for more drink and some supper .... `she said I should go upstairs before I had my supper; I told her I would not; says she, you must go upstairs; then Mary Butler took hold of my hand and Mary Randall shoved me behind, up two pair of stairs.' So the sorry tale goes on - `let me undress you and you shall have your supper in bed; .... She took and forced off my coat, my hat, my shoes, .... she threw me on the bed.' More drink and talk of the money; he had a twenty pound note and a fifteen pound note. `Then Mary Butler took my hands and put them behind me.' They took his money and he chased Mary Randall, with his coat in his hand, down the stairs and along the street to `the Green Man', where he went inside and landlord said, `You dog, what do you want?' `I told him.' Says he, `You dog, you don't look to be worth forty farthings, instead of forty pounds; and immediately he shoved me into the kennel.' [A kennel was a kind of large drain or culvert.] His account of the robbery was supported by a witness who said he watched the events in the upstairs room through a keyhole. Prisoner Randall: `Why did he not come to his assistance?' - `I should have got knocked on the head if I had gone in.' Mary Butler, `aged 15', and Mary Randall were found guilty of stealing money and sentenced to be transported for seven years. At the time of the sentence the first fleet was about to arrive at Botany Bay, and there was a long delay before the second fleet departed. Mary Butler was transported on `Lady Juliana' on the notorious voyage which took 309 days after the ship had already lain in the Thames for six months before sailing. She carried 226 female convicts of whom the majority were London prostitutes, but note that prostitution itself was not a crime and most would have been guilty of theft. The first officer was Thomas Edgar, who had been master of the `Discovery' on Captain Cook's last voyage. He was a `kind, humane man', very good to the women convicts. The `Lady Juliana' travelled by way of Tenerife, St. Jago, Rio de Janeiro and the Cape, with lengthy stays in port. She was said to be nothing but a floating brothel. `When we were fairly out at sea', recalled one of the crew, Nicol, `every man on board took a wife from among the convicts, they nothing loath.' At the various ports seamen from every vessel in the harbour were freely entertained, and there seemed no lack of either gaiety or liquor. Two months after Mary Butler arrived at Sydney in June 1790 she was sent to Norfolk Island. On the way she met William Saltmarsh. Their child William, was born in 1792. Afterwards she formed a relationship with an Irish convict, James Jordan (Sheridan) from which she was known later known as Mrs. Jordan. Their eldest son Richard, was born in December 1794. James looked after Government boats and had a farm of his own on which they had other children and lived a normal family life with apparent prosperity for about 20 years. Norfolk Island was not then the horror place of secondary punishment it became in its next period of settlement. Many people in the communities near Launceston with whom our family were associated later looked back to happy times on the island. It was on the island that enduring links were forged between those who later supported our people. Sadly, Mary died shortly before the people of Norfolk Island were evacuated in 1813 as the result of an unpopular government policy decision to resettle them at what was called Norfolk Plains (later Longford), Tasmania.

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Darryl Buley on 19th March 2022

Conviction 12 Dec 1787 • Old Bailey, Middlesex, England Name Mary Butler Gender Female Court Date 12 Dec 1787 Court Place Old Bailey ID s17871212-1-person 848 Reference Numbers 17871212-1. Tried with 4 other girls for felonious assault - it was also clear they were prostitutes. Residence 1788 • Newgate Prison Butler remained in Newgate Goal until 12/3/1789 when she was sent on board the "Lady Juliana" transport which sailed from the Thames on 4th June. She carried 226 female convicts of whom the majority were London prostitutes. Lady Juliana 1789 • Plymouth, Devon, England A ship of 401 tons, she took 309 days to travel from Plymouth to Port Jackson, after laying in the river Thames for 2 months prior to sailing. She carried 226 female convicts, mainly London prostitutes and also some thieves, receivers and shoplifters. Arrival 6 Jun 1790 • Port Jackson, New South Wales, Australia Mary Butler aged 14 years was tried for assault and stealing and was convicted at Middlesex GD England 10 September 1787 with a sentence of 7 years transportation. After a 309 day long voyage she arrived 6 June 1790 per 'Lady Juliana' Arrival 7 Aug 1790 • Norfolk Island, Australia Arrives on the Surprize after 6 days at sea. Also on board is William Saltmarsh. Family groups Dec 1790 • Norfolk Island, Australia Major Ross proposed to group male and female convicts into "gangs or messes" to be self-supporting. The groups were to be not less than 3 and up to 6 members. Mary and William were part of such a group. Marriage - no record extant 1791 • Norfolk Island, New South Wales William Saltmarsh cohabited with Mary Butler. Their son William was born 18/08/1792. This child also known by name Butler (his mother's Name). William Saltmarsh Snr. 7 May 1792 Sent back to England, described as "just another scoundrel" by Lt. Gov. King. Death of husband William Saltmarsh(1770–1792) May 1792 • At sea on route to Bengal, India Birth of son William Butler Saltmarsh(1792–1863) 13 Aug 1792 • Norfolk Island, New South Wales, Australia Marriage - no record extant 1792 • Tasman, Norfolk Island, New South Wales, Australia Mary entered into a relationship with convict James Jordan (convicted Dublin, vessel: Queen 1791) and they had five children in the years 1792 to 1809. Birth of son Richard Jordan(1794–1854) 25 Dec 1794 • Norfolk Island, Birth of daughter Catherine Jordan(1800–1838) abt 1800 • Norfolk Island, Birth of son James Jordan(1802–1888) 18 Nov 1802 • Norfolk Island, Birth of son Thomas Jordan(1807–1888) 1807 • Norfolk Island, Birth of son John Jordan(1809–1879) 28 Aug 1809 • Norfolk Island, Hospital 15 Jul 1812 • Norfolk Island, Australia Mrs Jourdan is admitted to hospital suffering from "sang effus" (bloodshed / haemorrhage). She is discharged on 30 Jul 1812. Census 6 Aug 1812 • Norfolk Island, Australia Muster: Mary Butler arrived on N.I. 7 Aug 1790 per Surprize rationed 365 days in 1792-5 inclusive. Tried Middlesex Oct 1787, 7 years, age 15, arrived per Lady Juliana. William Saltmarsh aged 20 born N.I. Richard Jordan aged 17 born N.I. Hospital 16 Aug 1812 • Norfolk Island, Australia Mrs Jordan is admitted to hospital for treatment of haemorrhages. Death 31 Aug 1812 • Emily Bay, Norfolk Island, Australia Mary Jordan is listed as "Free woman victualled" on Norfolk Is. muster. This is the last reference to Mary Jordan nee Butler. Burial Kingston, Norfolk Island Name: Mary Butler Death Date: 1812 Cemetery: Norfolk Island Cemetery Kingston, Norfolk Island

3

brett pierce on 22nd March 2013

The birthdate given here is questionable and requires a source. Age at trial points to birthdate c.1772.

Norfolk island and its first settlement by richard nobbs. mary butler.ship of arrival=lady juliana. arrived 7 aug 1790. departed N.I 18 feb 1813.convict.married. children. catherine butler/jorden born N.I 1801? departed 20 jan 1813. james " " " " 19 n0v 1802 " " john " " " " 1809 " " richard " " " " 25 dec 1794 " " thomas " " " " 1807 " " william " /saltmarsh " " 13 aug 1792 " " william saltmarsh ship of arrival=alexander 7 aug 1790 departed N.I 1 may 1792.convict. There was also a adult male richard saltmarsh who arrived N.I 31 oct 1795,departed after july 1804.member of the 102nd regiment. james jordon arrived ship queen 26 aug 1792,departed N.I 18 feb 1813,married,convict. ---chez.

Mary was transported on the 'Lady Juliana'(2nd Fleet) on a voyage that took 309 days, arriving 3/6/1790. She was transferred to Norfolk Island on the 'Surprise' on 7/8/1790. She had a relationship with William Saltmarsh (a 1st Fleet convict) and they had a son William in 1792. She then had a relationship with an Irish convict James Jordan and they had a son Richard 1794 and 4 other children. They apparently lived on a farm there. Mary died at Norfolk Island in 1812, aged 42 yrs. Some convicts were resettled at Norfolk Plains (now Longford), Tasmania and her son William Saltmarsh went there where he settled and had a family.