The post you are reporting:
I bet there were a few female sailors DISGUISED AS MEN, in Dover:
YOUNG Rebecca
"Death of a female Sailor" - an inquest was held at the Town Hall Gravesend a few days ago. On view of the body of a woman named Rebecca YOUNG, but who was better known by the name of Billy BRIDLE. She having for the last year or two sailed in the "Hatch" boat as a seaman with a man of that name, and always passed as a seaman. It appeared by the evidence taken before the Coroner that about 9 o'clock in the morning of the day on which the deceased met her death, she dressed herself in a pair of trowsers, a shirt, jacket and neckerchief which she borrowed of a sailor belonging to one of Don Pedro's ships lying off Pier, and went on board with him. About 5 or 6 o'clock the deceased who it appears was groggy wished one of the men to go to the mast head with her and after some hesitation, he went to the main top; the deceased wished the man to go higher and he went up to the topmost cross tree. After sitting there a few minutes the man was called down and in about five minutes afterwards the deceased followed, and in attempting to come down by the top gallant halliards, her hands fired, which obliged her to let go her hold and she fell on the deck about the height of 20 feet and was killed on the spot. Jury returned verdict of accidentally killed."
(Kentish Gazette 18 June 1833 back page col.4)
[Note: presumably "groggy" in this report means "in drink"?]
Mary Ann ARNOLD:
The Sailor Girl - Mary Ann ARNOLD, a comely girl who said she was just 15 yrs of age came, accompanied by another young female, to the Justice Room in order to request assistance for a few weeks previously to her departure for India, to which country she had obtained a passage through the kindness of the owners of a ship in which she had served as one of the crew for a considerable time. As the vessel was not to sail until next month and as her parents were both dead and she had no relative to relieve her necessities, she fancied that the best thing she could do was to represent her situation to the Lord Mayor of London who was well known in all the countries to which she had travelled to be the friend of the unprotected. With reference to her exploits in sailing having appeared in the newspapers, she said the Captain of the E.Indiaman in which she was engaged, reported to his owners from the Cape of Good Hope he had found a girl among his crew. She was asked by a Mr HOBLER "were you led by a childish freak into so odd and dangerous a change of life?" to which she replied "Not at all sir, it was nothing but want that drove me to sea. She said she was born at Sheerness, mother and father being dead she thought she had no chance of avoiding starvation except by taking a job on board ship so she acquired a jacket and trousers. She said she had strength beyond her years and the sailors never did her any harm and she worked hard.
"I know everything about a ship and could get into the shrouds in an instant. If I had not been discovered perhaps I never should have left the sea but I have no idea of returning to it" She was paid £4.10s a month, and never seasick. She was given cash to pay her "mess and hammock" until the arrival of an Alderman PIRIE who would vouch for her. (Dover Telegraph 11 Jul 1840 p.7, col.2) (long report - more detail)
From Queenborough Registers, Sheppey, Kent:
Burial on 28 December 1798: A person from HMS Spanker, by the name of William HOLLAND, found to be a female.
