EX-PATS from Bury were told the story of one of the town's most infamous daughters at a school reunion this month.

At the Bury Grammar School reunion held in Sydney, Australia, 'old boy' Chris Schofield recounted the tale of Mary Reibey, a convict turned entrepreneur who now appears on the country's £20 note.

Next year will mark the 240th anniversary of the birth of the little-know Bury girl, whose fame and fortune was so great that her portrait has featured on the notes printed since 1994.

Alison Holland, BGS head of development, attended the reunion and said: "Chris Schofield, who emigrated from Bury in 1980, told us fascinating story about Mary Reibey, one of the earliest female convicts who was from transported from Bury and now appears on the $20 dollar note.

"Chris is a broadcaster and past journalist from The Bolton Evening News and retains a deep affection for his hometown."

Born in Bury in May 1777, Mary Haydock, also known as Molly, was convicted of stealing a horse at the age of 13 and sentenced to seven years’ transportation to the colony of New South Wales. When arrested she was dressed as a boy but at her trial her identity was later discovered.

After arriving in Sydney aboard the Royal Admiral in 1792, she was assigned as a nursemaid to a household and, two years later, married Thomas Reibey, an Irishman in the service of the East India Company who she had met aboard the transport ship.

They were granted land to farm and also began a cargo business, which prospered as they acquired more farms and started trading in coal, cedar, furs and skins.

When her husband died in 1811, aged 42, Mary assumed sole responsibility for the care of their seven children and control of their now large-scale business interests.

As well as expanding the business by running a hotel, building warehouses and buying more cargo ships, she became a respected member of Sydney society thanks to her charitable works and her interest in the church and education.

She briefly returned to England, accompanied by her daughters Celia and Eliza, to visit relatives in Lancashire in 1820, and died from pneumonia in 1855 at the age of 78.