Anne Bonny
Anne Bonny (c. 1700 – c. 1782) was an Irish woman who became a famous pirate, operating in the Caribbean. What little is known of her life comes largely from Captain Charles Johnson's A General History of the Pyrates.
Early life
Anne Bonny was born around the year 1700. Her birth name was Anne McCormac, and her birthplace was Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland. She was the daughter of servant woman Mary Brennan and Brennan's employer, lawyer William McCormac. Official records and contemporary letters dealing with her life are scarce and most modern knowledge stems from Charles Johnson's A General History of the Pyrates (a collection of pirate biographies, the first edition accurate, the second much embellished).
Anne's father William McCormac first moved to London to get away from his wife's family, and he began dressing his daughter as a boy and calling her "Andy". When discovered, McCormac moved to the Carolinas, taking along his former serving girl, the mother of Anne. Anne's father dropped the "Mc" from their Irish name to more easily blend into the Charles Town citizenry. At first the family had a rough start in their new home, but Cormac's knowledge of law and ability to buy and sell goods soon financed a townhouse and eventually a plantation just out of town. Anne's mother died when Anne was 12. Her father attempted to establish himself as an attorney, but did not do well. Eventually, he joined the more profitable merchant business and accumulated a substantial fortune. It is recorded that she had red hair and was considered a "good catch", but may have had a fiery temper; at age 13, she supposedly stabbed a servant girl with a table knife. She married a poor sailor and small-time pirate named James Bonny. James hoped to win possession of his father-in-law's estate, but Anne was disowned by her father.