Date of Conviction: 21/10/1817

Age at Conviction: 18

Crime Convicted of: Theft

Court Convicted at: Lancaster Quarter Sessions (held at the New Bailey, Salford)

Sentence Length: 7 Years

Ship Transported on: Maria

Where Arrived: Port Jackson, New South Wales

Departure Date: 15/05/1818

Arrival Date: 17/09/1818

Biography: Maria was a single woman of Manchester. She had stolen books and bank notes belonging to Richard Harrop. She was ill upon arrival at Lancaster Castle in October 1817 but soon recovered as she behaved badly in prison and was locked up in a solitary confinement cell in February 1818. She was part of a group of 35 women who left Lancaster over several days in March (Maria was in group 2, leaving on the 16th March and was put on board ship two days later). She suffered from constipation and a cold onboard and was given ipecac, then had bowel pain and given opium, later insomnia and given opium again.

Almost immediately after arrival, Maria was sent to Port Dalrymple at Van Diemen’s Land on the Elizabeth Henrietta. However, like other convicts on the Maria she appears to have soon come back to Sydney again as she is shown as a servant at Sydney in 1819 and in 1821 was in the female factory. That same year, she married fellow convict ferryman John Sydney Bates (ship- General Hewitt) in March 1821 at Castlereagh. In 1824, Maria received her certificate of freedom where she was described as a native of Manchester, 5ft 1, ruddy and freckled complexion, brown hair and grey eyes. Her age is questionable- she was recorded as being aged 21 on the ship indent in 1818, 30 when she received her certificate of freedom in 1825 and 27 in the 1828 census. They were still at Castlereagh in early 1825 but moved to central Sydney that year.

As a couple Maria and John seem quite notorious- In August 1825, they were jointly charged with keeping a house of ill fame- that attracted the most depraved characters of both sexes and was open all hours of the night- resulting in her husband losing his ticket of leave. After being found again with another man in her house, she took her trial in January 1826. That same year, Maria (noted as living on Hunters Street) petitioned the governor that her husband be released from labour at Hyde Park Barracks as he had sight loss which made him no use to the government and he be indentured to her instead. The petition was denied due to her being an abandoned prostitute and him having no control over her but he was instead removed to the benevolent asylum . In November that year, Maria was found drunk in Pitt Street and again charged at which her husband testified she was frequently drunk, leaving her home and prostituting herself; the newspaper referring to Maria as a ‘nasty slut’. She was sent to the factory for a further month. In January 1827, Maria was charged with being a reputed common prostitute, found in the streets and was sent to the female factory for 26 months (error- possibly 6 months).

By the time of the 1828 census, they appear to have moved out of central Sydney and were recorded as living at Rooty Hill, her husband was noted as an invalid due to the loss of his sight.

Maria died in February 1831, recorded as aged 30. John Sydney would that same year be sent to the Phoenix Hulk and then to Port Macquarie for the next ten years.