Mary Gilbert

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Mary Gilbert was the first European woman to live in the Port Phillip settlement of Melbourne, Australia. She was married to James Gilbert, blacksmith. The Gilberts were pioneer settlers who disembarked on the banks of the Yarra River and set up camp on 30 August 1835. The schooner Enterprize, owned by John Pascoe Fawkner, had brought them and other settlers from Launceston, Tasmania.

The initial landing party included Captain John Lancey, master mariner, the landing party's leader and Fawkner's representative; George Evans, builder; carpenters William Jackson and Robert Hay Marr; ploughman Charles Wise; blacksmith James Gilbert and his pregnant wife, Mary; and Evan Evans, George Evans' servant.

On 29 December 1835 Mary gave birth to her son, James Melbourne Gilbert, the first European child born in the new district. She was given 500 acres (2 km²) of land and a town allotment. A life-sized bust of Mary Gilbert can be found at the Conservatory, in the Fitzroy Gardens.

[edit] See also

• History of Melbourne
• Fitzroy Gardens - Statue of Mary Gilbert