Molly Morgan

Molly Morgan

Molly Morgan (baptised 31 January 1762 – 27 June 1835) was an English landowner, farmer, and convict. She was born as Mary Jones in Ludlow, Shropshire, England, and stayed there throughout her childhood and early adulthood, marrying William Morgan on 25 June 1785 and having two children with him. In 1789, hempen yarn stolen from a factory was discovered at the Morgans' house, resulting in the couple being sentenced to penal transportation. Although William was able to escape initially, Molly was transported to New South Wales as a convict with the Second Fleet on the Neptune, and William was eventually caught and transported as well. After working together for a while in Australia, William left Molly due to her flirting with other men. In 1794, Molly Morgan was able to escape back to England aboard the Resolution by becoming Captain John Locke's mistress. Once back in England, she recovered her children and became a dressmaker in Plymouth, marrying Thomas Mears in 1797. However, she was transported back to Australia on the Experiment, after she was accused of burning her husband's house down in 1803.When Morgan returned to Australia, she acquired land and cattle. In 1814, she was sentenced to seven years in jail for milking a stolen cow. However, by 1819, she was trusted enough to be one of the twelve convicts given several acres of land to farm at Wallis Plains (now Maitland), and was set free by 1822. She married Thomas Hunt on 5 March 1822. She started a wine shanty on the land she was given at Wallis Plains and received a grant of additional land by the governor, Thomas Brisbane, where she built the Angel Inn. By 1828, she was described as "one of the largest landholders on the Hunter River" and had several features in New South Wales named after her. Morgan also aided other settlers several times, including donating money to help build a school, turning part of her home into a hospital, and riding to Sydney on behalf of convicts. Her wealth significantly decreased throughout the later years of her life and she died on 27 June 1835, at Anvil Creek in Greta, New South Wales, where she owned 203 acres (82 ha) of land.

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