Ocean-Born Mary Fulton--A Family Folktale - Page 2
© Virginia Marin
The tiny helplessness of the infant touched the heart of the pirate chief. His rugged face broke into a smile as he said to the terrified mother, "Give me leave to christen this baby and promise to keep the name I give her, and I will not harm this ship or its passengers".
Elizabeth promised. A few moments later a strange crowd was assembled on deck: wide-eyed immigrants, bewildered crew hands, and rough sailors.
Holding the new-born girl in his arms, the pirate intoned, "I christen you Mary for my mother. And as you were born on the sea, your name shall be Ocean-Born Mary. May you always have a happy life".
Regretfully he surrendered the infant to her father standing beside him, then led his men over the rail and back to their boat. Then, just as the emigrant ship's passengers were rejoicing at their escape, panic again seized them. The pirates were returning!
"A present for Ocean-Born Mary!" With this, the pirate tossed a bolt of greenish-grey tapestry silk, embroidered in a flower design, onto the deck. "Goods for her wedding dress. Maybe someday I'll be seeing her again!"
The wind freshened and the two vessels parted company. Soon after the emigrants laded in Boston harbor, Ocean-Born Mary's father died The mother married again and brought the baby to Londonderry, named after their old home in Ireland.
Ocean-Born Mary grew into a tall, lovely Irish lass wih red hair, very white skin and green eyes. In 1743, she married Thomas J. Wallace, in a gown made from the embroidered silk that was the pirate's gift. A piece of the cloth is still preserved in the Henniker, New Hampshire Public Library. Widely known for her beauty and her skill with the spinning wheel, she became the mother of four boys, all unusually tall. But like her mother before her, she was suddenly left a widow at a comparatively young age.
Now, at about this same time the old pirate captain remembered the girl he had named. Aged, tired of pillaging, and seeking peace, he gave up the sea. His ship's carpenters and his slaves came with him to build a fine house on an isolated mountain side near Henniker. It was a huge house painted the old iron oxide red, which was dug in the vicinity. It had white trim and green doors. After the house was completed, a wood shed,
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