Anne Jane Thornton, The Female Sailor

This portrait shows the Female Sailor Anne Jane Thornton (1818-1847?), who sailed as a man between 1834 and 1835.

"Female Sailor" is a term referring someone who was assigned female at birth but who went on to live and sail as a man, either short-term or long-term, in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. This term was used in the press but also in popular culture, such as the balladry tradition. Because of the popularity of her story, Anne became the eponymous Female Sailor of numerous ballads and prints.

Newspapers reported that Anne had "dark and brilliant eyes", a "comely face" and a dark or tanned complexion, but this portrait emphasises Anne's occupation rather than any individual features. Anne is shown wearing the outfit of a sailor: a blue round jacket, a colourful waistcoat with a striped shirt underneath, a black silk handkerchief and a sennit hat. The newspapers described Anne wearing a "red worsted jacket" and "duck trowsers". Anne's pose is playful, and the figure in the print looks like one from a toy theatre or a portrait of an actor in sailor's clothing.

This portrait is identical to one found in the frontispiece of a short biography entitled The interesting life and wonderful adventures of that extraordinary woman, Anne Jane Thornton the Female Sailor, now held at the British Library and printed by J. Thompson. This suggests that it may originate from a similar source. We know that during her lifetime Anne was the subject of several popular publications: the National Maritime Museum holds two broadsides, PBH2390 and PAI9693, as well as another portrait (PAI9693).

What we know of Anne's life and career as a sailor can be pieced together through articles in the press, which were often sensational. These were published chiefly between February and April 1835 and included the transcript of a deposition to the Mayor of London.

The articles state that Anne was born in Gloucestershire but grew up in Ireland. Having met a navy captain and fallen in love, she followed him to America, but when she landed in New York, dressed as a ship's boy, she learned that he had died. Anne decided that a sailor's career was "a more probable mode of existence," and eventually ended on the ‘Sarah’, commanded by Captain McEntire. She was publicly outed in London in February 1835.

After the news broke, Anne was invited to see the Lord Mayor, who had read about her in the news. He interrogated Anne with the captain of the 'Sarah' and started a search for Anne's family. Eventually a sister was found, and Anne was able to return to Ireland. She received a pension and a plot of land and got married. She died in 1847.

Anne's story became a popular culture sensation. The inn where she was staying in London in February 1835 was swarmed by crowds, and in April of the same year there was even a racehorse named Anne Jane Thornton. At least one play about her life was produced, and she became the subject of a popular ballad, which features in the broadsides PBH2390 and PAI9693.