Mary Anne Arnold

Mary Anne Arnold (born c. 1825) was an English sailor and crossdresser. She was born in Sheerness, Kent, England and worked aboard the naval ship, Robert Small until the captain of the ship discovered she was assigned female at birth.

Early life At age 10, Arnold's mother died. She thus performed physical labour to provide for herself, and her eight month old sister. Arnold first gained employment at a rope factory in Sheerness. Upon discovering that boys her age were making significantly more money as sailors, she began to crossdress and gained employment as a cabin boy in the Williams, a Sutterland collier.

Cabin boy Arnold sailed with the Williams for two years until 1839 (she changed ships due to her dislike of the commanding officer) at which point she became a cabin boy for the Anne. She successfully sailed with the Anne for several voyages until the ship wrecked but she survived and then transferred to sail on the ship Choice which held stores for the Robert Small.