Captured: Portraits of Crime 1870-1930 - Flipbook - Page 83
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B AT H U R S T
GAO L
A KNIFE IN HAND
Mar y Anderson
G R I E VO U S B O D I LY H A R M
Mary Anderson, a 40 year old married woman from America, was photographed at Bathurst
Gaol on 27 July 1906 while serving a six month sentence for grievous bodily harm.
Mary — or Janet Anderson as she was sometimes known — was born at sea in 1866.
It is not known when she came to Australia, but in 1904 she married Emil Anderson in
East Maitland and was later living in the Goulburn area. Their relationship seems to
have been marked by periods of drunkenness and violence.
There are several references to Mary and Emil appearing before the Goulburn
courts on charges of drunkenness, indecent language and resisting police, but gaol
time was avoided and fines were paid. On one occasion, in September 1905, a knife was
confiscated by police as both Emil and Mary claimed that the other was willing to use
the weapon.
On 9 March 1906 Mary and Emil were staying at the Telegraph Hotel in Gunning.
Emil had left their home in Braidwood to find work as a carpenter in Goulburn and
Gunning. The pair quarrelled early in the evening but later shared a drink and went
to bed. Emil said:
[I was] awakened with a blow. I staggered out of bed. I fell down on the floor
unconscious. When I came to I saw my wife coming through the window with a knife
in her hand. I believe she had been drinking and I don’t think she is always
right in her mind.
Emil fled the room and went to the police station where he received medical
attention. Mary was arrested and held in custody. She was tried before Goulburn
Circuit Court on 18 April 1906. Emil claimed that he was worried about Mary’s state
of mind. A doctor examined Mary in gaol and declared that she was sane. Mary had no
defence counsel and rambled—at times incoherently—through the trial. She was found
guilty with the jury strongly recommending mercy. She was sentenced to six months
light labour in Goulburn Gaol. Mary served her time in Goulburn and Bathurst gaols
and was discharged on 3 September 1906.
Mary Anderson does not appear again in the NSW Gaol Photographic Description
Books, 1870-1930.
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