Catchpole, Margaret (1762-1819), acted as a nurse, overseer, and midwife (a person who delivers babies) in the early years of Australian settlement at Sydney. She arrived in Sydney as a convict in 1801 and was assigned as a servant to John Palmer, a government official. In 1803, she was sent to Richmond Hill to nurse a farmer’s wife, who was having a baby. She became a respected midwife in the district.
In 1814, Catchpole received a full pardon. She remained in the Richmond Hill district, where she ran a shop and continued to serve as a midwife. She died on May 13, 1819.
Margaret Catchpole was born in Nacton, Suffolk, England, on March 14, 1762. She was a servant. In 1797, she was arrested for stealing a horse and was sentenced to death. Popular legend has it that she stole the horse to ride to see her lover after hearing of his arrest. Her sentence was commuted to seven years transportation. She escaped from jail, was recaptured, and again sentenced to death. Once more, the sentence was commuted, this time to transportation for life.
