Tragic tale of Harleston woman Mary Tyrell and her surviving child’s journey

The tragic story of a Harleston woman and the journey of her surviving child has been captured in a new book.

The Low Road, by author and investigative journalist Katharine Quarmby, tells the tale of Mary Tyrell, who killed herself with poison in 1813 while under suspicion of having killed her own child.

“I discovered Mary’s story from a single line I read in a book about local walks while planning a walk in Waveney Valley,” said Ms Quarmby.

“She was given a sentence of having a stake driven into her heart after her death for having committed suicide while suspected of infanticide.

“This was an archaic sentence to prevent the spirit from wandering from the body, and was outlawed shortly after her death, in the 1820s.

“The infanticide charge relates to the body of a baby girl found in a mill pond, and we have no way of knowing whether Mary was guilty or not, but we do know she had a surviving daughter named Ann.

“Ann lived in Harleston for a further four years before being sent to a Hackney refuge for the destitute after being caught stealing.

“She was sentenced to imprisonment in London, before later being sent to Australia.”

Ms Quarmby gathered information from archives, museums, Norfolk Records Office and Harleston and District Historical Society.

The trail of Ann’s story goes cold after her transport to Australia, but Ms Quarmby’s book offers a taste of what her life could have been like, based on the accounts of others who went through similar experiences.

“I wanted to tell as much of the story as I could, in a way which was faithful to history, but had to novelise those parts of the book due to the absence of information,” said the writer.

“I covered how many women lived after being transported. Many of them actually had good lives.”

Having trained as a financial journalist, Ms Quarmby worked on Panorama before specialising in environmental journalism, where she currently investigates the legacy of asbestos.

“I’ve always loved writing, but it isn’t a great living on its own, so I have worked on my books alongside my job,” she said.

“I’ve written two non-fiction books, some children’s books and short fiction.”

Ms Quarmby, who moved to Harleston at the age of seven, before later moving to London after finishing her A-levels, spent seven years researching the book, which she launched at St John’s Church on Thursday.

“I’ve done a few book launches before but it was special to do one in my home town,” she added.

She has pledged to split funds from her first 50 sales, totalling £750, between Waveney Foodbank, St Mary’s Church in Redenhall, and Harleston and District Historical Society.

The book is published by Unbound and is available from bookshops, Robinson’s Traditional Stationers in Harleston and online .