This post contains references to John Rackam, Anne Bonny, and Mary Read in quote unquote "primary sources"--basically I am including everything that predates the General History. 1720 September 4 New-Providence, Sept. 4th. Several Pirates are on the Coast of the Bahamas, among which is one Rackum who Run away with a Sloop of 6 Guns,… Continue reading The Documentary Record
The World of the Pirate by Val Garwood
Illustration by Richard Berridge This children's book was published in 1997. It says Mary Read was born in 1690, and Anne Bonny was born in Cork. Jack Rackham wears bright clothes made from stolen calico, and Mary dies in 1720.
La grande imagerie: Les pirates by Stéphanie Redoulès
This children's book was published in 2011. It says Mary Read was born in 1690 and Anne Bonny in 1697, and that Anne lived with her father in the Caribbean. They both die in 1720.
The Story of Sierra Leone by Francis AJ Utting
This book was published in 1931, and says that Jack Rackham and Anne Bonny captured two merchantmen in Sierra Leone in 1719.
World of Chartering
This column appeared in the October 1994 issue of Latitude and publishes a list of trivia about the British Virgin Islands, according to which Anne Bonny ran a gaming house in St Thomas after Jack Rackam was hanged.
Pirates and Pirate Treasure
This informative essay was included in a 1968 Classic Press printing of Treasure Island, and no author is credited. It says that Anne Bonny joined a pirate crew when she was 16 and became a captain, and disappeared at age 20.
Women: The New Criminals by Richard Deming
This book was published in 1977, and includes a biographical sketch of Anne Bonny informed by Mistress of the Seas. According to Deming, she is born in 1700 to William Cormac, and grows up to be a beautiful redhead in Charleston. She marries James Bonny when she is 16, and then moves on to Chidley… Continue reading Women: The New Criminals by Richard Deming
The Captain Jack Sparrow Handbook: A Swashbuckler’s Guide From the Pirates of the Caribbean by Jason Heller
This book was published in 2011, and writes Jack Rackham, Anne Bonny, and Mary Read into the Pirates of the Caribbean universe. It says that Jack only ever commanded one sloop and that at one point Anne was his "kept woman".
Female Pirates of Olden Days
This article was published in the February 19, 1913 issue of the Peterborough Morning Times. According to this article, Mary Read joins the navy when she is under 18 years old and goes by the name Frank Read. She and her husband keep an inn in Flanders, until he dies after 1 or 2 years.… Continue reading Female Pirates of Olden Days
Colonial America, 1607-1763 by Harry M. Ward
This book was published in 1991, and says that Anne Bonny lived in Charleston and was ultimately pardoned.
Frommer’s Comprehensive Travel Guide: The Virgin Islands, ’92-’93 by Darwin Porter
This travel guide was published in 1992 and includes a bio of Anne Bonny, whom Porter says lived on multiple pirate ships and murdered her first husband in a brothel in Charlotte Amalie. In the 2011 edition of this guide, Porter has updated the bio to say that Anne was born in 1697 and died… Continue reading Frommer’s Comprehensive Travel Guide: The Virgin Islands, ’92-’93 by Darwin Porter
Depictions of John Rackam, Anne Bonny, and Mary Read 