Women in male dominated professions is common today. Women in male dominated professions back in the 18th century? Not so common. However, a pirate does not designate a gender, and a pirate's life proved to be for more than just a man. Exciting, reckless, adventurous, murderous, and untethered is a lifestyle that many flocked to, including this next woman in our blog series covering Whitman Publishing's 100 Greatest Women on Coins. Author Ron Guth introduces us to a female pirate whose tales, whether fact or fiction, have remained to this day.
#96 – Anne Bonny
Born from an affair in March 1702 to lawyer William Cormac and his maid, Peg Brennan, Anne Bonny and her parents would leave Ireland and sail for the New World. They ended up in the Bahamas. Her mother would die when Anne was 13, forcing her to take over the household. Reportedly, even at a young age Anne had a temper. She was said to have attacked, possibly killed, another girl with a knife.
When Anne was 16, she met and fell for a married James Bonny, who was suspected to be a pirate. Because of this, he was offered and granted clemency from the British government and became an informant for the Crown. Eventually Anne would become pregnant, but it was also at this same time that she would embark on a whirlwind romance with Calico Jack. She gave birth to her son and left him with James, setting sail with Calico Jack on his pirate ship.
Coinage featuring Anne is rare, but Guth mentions the 1995 colorized Cuban peso. It depicts Anne in full pirate clothes with her shirt open and holding a cutlass (sword) in her hand. Ships appear behind her. The seal of Cuba is on the other side.
According to Guth, collecting difficulty is just that: difficult. The trading of coins between America and Cuba is prohibited.