Mary Christopherson: A tale of arson and transportation

Mary Christopherson was born in about 1805 in Cumberland. She had been married to an auctioneer and furniture broker in Carlisle, but widowed for several years. In around 1840-1841, she took over the Angel Inn on English Street in Carlisle. A fire was discovered there on Saturday 12^th March 1842, and upon closer inspection, the police superintendent discovered that the fire had been deliberate.

The modern day site of the Angel Inn, English Street, Carlisle, with the original Angel Inn sign in-between the first floor windows. © Copyright The Carlisle Kid and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons License. Link

Mary was taken into custody, along with her servant and daughter. Her servant, Mary Blaylock confessed to having prepared flammable materials upon her mistress’ orders, so that she might make an insurance claim of £400 on her stock and furniture.

By the time of the trial at the Cumberland Assizes in July, there was said to be a great amount of excitement in the case and people were turned away from the packed courtroom. It transpired that Mary had planned to emigrate to America after the insurance claim.

As her arson had been committed while others were sleeping, meaning they might not have had opportunity to save their lives, this made it a capital offense, and instead of her planned emigration, she was sentenced to transportation for life. Mary, who had had her head down throughout the whole case, was then led away from the dock in tears.

One of the courtrooms at Cumberland Assizes. © Visit Cumbria. Link

Britain had been participating in the forced migration of its criminals to the Americas for almost two centuries, before it was brought to a halt by British defeat in the American War of Independence. The government had settled on Australia as an alternative settlement. After the cessation of transportation to New South Wales in 1840, the penal colony of choice became Van Diemen’s Land, now known as Tasmania.

Mary was one of 191 female convicts who were transported to Van Diemen’s Land on board the Garland Grove, and was one of only six convicts with a life sentence. The women boarded the ship throughout September at Woolwich, and waited to embark.

During the time they were waiting on board, a Minister came to pray with them, and their families were able to visit them on the ship. They were also visited by ladies from Elizabeth Fry's committee, who supplied them with books and small bags of sewing equipment.

Elizabeth Fry was a prison reformer who had long since understood the importance for female officers for female convicts, and it was at her insistence that two female matrons were appointed to chaperone the convicts on this journey. This was regarded as an important step for female prisoners.

The ship finally embarked on the morning of 29 September 1842.33 As well as the 191 convicts,30 there was a crew consisting of a Commander and 28 Officers, and some 25 or 29 children on board.

Mary’s conduct on board was “very good” and she was stated to be “worthy of encouragement”. As a middle class woman who likely had some education behind her, she was selected as one of two schoolmistresses to teach letters to those women and children who didn’t know them. 

Those that could read or write a little were also helped to improve by practicing their writing. The women had some free time in the afternoon, where they could read, and they also sung evening hymns, read Scriptures and said prayers together.

It was said to have been an agreeable passage, and most of the women were able to go on deck every day. They finally anchored at Hobart, Van Diemen’s Land at 9pm on 20^th January 1843.

Van Diemen's Land circa 1837-1840. Link

Upon arrival, Mary was entered into a description book, which provides amazing detail in a pre-photography era! She was described as 5 foot 2¼, with a fresh complexion, dark brown hair, light blue eyes, a round chin, and a small scar on her left eyebrow. When asked to describe her crime, she added the slightly defensive “it was my own property” afterwards.

Good conduct permitting, convicts were often not required to serve their full sentence. Mary was made a 3^rd Class Probation pass-holder in 1844, meaning she was given consent to work in paid employment. Later that year she was permitted to work for William Turner, of Sandy Bay Road, who probably had an inn there.

While convicts were still under sentence, they needed permission to marry. Mary received permission, and went on to marry John West on 9 March 1846. After a heroic act where she caught and detained a man who was stealing from her master, she was granted a pardon on 05 March 1847.

After serving little more than four years of a life sentence, she was a free woman! She had shed the name of her criminal past, and was free to begin her new life with her husband.