Transported to Another World: Mary Christian-Bailey
“I bought a car within a week and had to teach myself to drive. I can remember the first time I drove down Middlegate Road, or Store Road as it was always called in those days, and suddenly I came on the view of Kingston, and I just thought I’d been transported to another world. Absolutely another world.”
– Mary Christian-Bailey – from 2021 interview with Sarah Baker & Chelsea Evans
I was a stranger and ye took me in…
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one,
Of the least of these my brethren,
Ye have done it unto me.
– from Come ye Blessed, The Pitcairn Anthem
It’s almost 60 years since Mary Christian-Bailey first arrived on Norfolk Island. She was a stranger to these shores then, but now she is a family matriarch, respected Elder and cherished repository of local knowledge. I meet Mary at her home, Devon House, and we sit on the sun-dappled ‘randa together. A former teacher, Mary has done her homework; she’s thought about her life, typed out information and sifted through precious family pictures to help me.
Mary is a great storyteller – she has a wonderful memory and is ‘sharp as a tack’. Despite the loss of her husband, Bernie, in 2020 she keeps busy and continues to take an interest in the world around her: “Bernie and I did a lot together… the time I miss him most is Sunday morning at the Chapel, where we sat side by side. He was proud of his family story, being a descendant of Fletcher Christian … He drew comfort and assurance from his faith and was grateful for his Christian heritage.”
They were married for nearly 50 years and had five children: Miriam, Charles, John, Peter and Edward; and now there are 8 grandchildren, 8 step-grandchildren and a great-grandson. Mary feels very fortunate to have four sons living and working on island, and hopes Miriam will return one day.
In the last few years, Mary has worked as a guide at the Pitcairn Settlers Village: “I just love telling some of the old family stories, and pointing people to the island’s very rich heritage and history of resilience and resourcefulness.”
She loves writing stories, too, and has been a regular contributor to Norfolk’s visitor publications, such as the Discover Norfolk magazine, since 2008. Mary’s also happy to make Boomerang Bags and help at the Op Shop every week, and she’s active in a myriad of community groups and clubs. Recently she was even immortalised in a humorous novel, The Last Honeymoon, as the character ‘Mary Christian-Bailey’ – a slightly fictionalised version of herself.
Mary believes a pivotal moment can set you on a different path, and is sure her ill-health as a child changed her life journey. She was born in England on July 30th, 1943 and spent her early years in Welling, near London, with her older sister, Sally, and her parents, Doris and David Winch.
“Mum and dad were both born and bred on the Isle of Sheppey, in the Thames estuary, and I remember many happy times visiting grandparents and other relatives there. I also have memories of an air raid shelter in our back garden… rationing, government supplied orange juice, ‘rag and bone’ men and gaslights that came on in the street after dark.”
David Winch worked in a glass factory, but times were hard after World War Two and the family struggled. Mary developed a tubercular hip and suffered with bronchial asthma, and her parents were very worried. Their girls needed to be in a healthier place, with fresh air and better food, so they decided to emigrate to New Zealand.
However, an encounter with a rude official changed Mr Winch’s mind and they moved instead to Australia. Mary feels her life may have been completely different if they’d gone with their original choice. Seven-year-old Mary and her family took six weeks to reach Australia by ship, and then spent 18 months in a Sydney migrant hostel, before finally settling in suburban Kensington.
Mary went to the local primary school, then attended Sydney Girls High and Balmain Teachers College. She began teaching in Paddington in 1963, but had expressed an interest in remote postings. Three and a half years later a position at Norfolk Island Central School (NICS) came up; Mary was interviewed and two weeks later she was on a plane to Norfolk. Once again, chance was altering Mary’s journey.
It was July 1966 and Mary was not quite 23. Flying from Sydney to a tiny, isolated community was something of a culture shock for the young teacher, but the unspoilt island captivated her from the beginning:
“I loved the tall pines shrouded in a beautiful veil of mist…and Kingston just blew me away – those white penal settlement buildings on the common’s carpet of green; against the blue turquoise backdrop of the sea, with the red-orange of Phillip Island providing an amazing visual contrast.”
After Sydney’s hustle and bustle the quieter pace of life was agreeable; although it sometimes felt like stepping back in time. A small group of children still came to school barefoot and, while cars were being adopted by many Islanders, a few people just used a horse and buggy or rode horses. Most roads were unpaved, too, so car trips were often quite muddy or very dusty.
Mary, however, loved Norfolk’s old-world charm and found locals welcoming, friendly and relaxed. She got to know the people and their children, and felt at home in the island’s tight-knit society. Sydney’s ‘rat-race’ was left behind, and she relished the peace and quiet. She also enjoyed being close to nature – foraging for wild bounty: mushrooms, flowers, bush lemons, watercress in the creeks, or hi hi (Norfolk periwinkle) from the rocks. She rambled along the beaches and in the forest: “I got to know when I could go out to Hundred Acres and see the young gannets, and loved visiting the old hollow pine up the mountain, and collecting fluorescent fungi.
Three and a half years slipped by and, at the end of 1969, Mary’s stint with Norfolk’s school was over and she reluctantly prepared to go. The day before leaving Mary went on a date to the Garrison Restaurant with Bernie Christian-Bailey. They’d met before, and she liked him, but they didn’t know each other too well. It was another fateful moment; chatting over dinner Mary and Bernie felt comfortable with each other, realised they shared many common interests, and sensed a ‘spark’.
Mary returned to Australia and began teaching at Birrong Girls High, but throughout 1970 their love blossomed and they enjoyed a courtship by correspondence:“Bernie flew to Sydney in the May; we became engaged and were married in the November, and I returned to Norfolk to make it my permanent home.”
Many busy years followed their wedding, with Mary at Bernie’s side as they ran Fletcher Christian Apartments, and began a new life together.
Bernie opened his self-contained units for tourists in 1965, but the business expanded into the 1970s. Their family also grew rapidly, with a girl and three boys born between 1972 and 1975, and one more son in 1980. Mary and Bernie managed the business on-site; first from an apartment and later from a house built in 1975. It was their home until 1996 when they moved to Devon House.
Mary embraced everything Norfolk had to offer and her days were always full. She was a wife, business partner and mother to five young children, but also found time for other interests. She did part-time and relief teaching at NICS and supervised the HSC exams every year. She was active in Church and community groups and also worked with Bernie and other Islanders to tell the Bounty descendants’ stories:
“My love and loyalty to Bernie’s island home became very important to me, and we fought side by side over many decades to have the historic rights and identity of the island’s people recognised. I continue in that struggle today, and feel saddened that so many of our ‘warriors’ have passed without seeing justice”.
Mary became one of Norfolk’s earliest computer bloggers as well, and had two separate sites from 2006 to 2020. She shared her political opinions, and enthusiasm for Norfolk’s history on her ‘Angels and Eagles’ blog, while photos and stories of her everyday doings could be found on her ‘Devon House’ blog. The latter site saw Mary writing lyrically about island events and small wonders – children enjoying the Spring Fair or cherry guava ripening by her back door; ready to be picked and turned into delicious jelly.
Her original articles can still be found online; a treasure trove for any social historian and an amazing record of Norfolk’s recent past. The Devon House blogs also showcased Mary’s gorgeous applique creations which used beads, lace, ribbons and buttons. She’s always been artistic; dabbling in painting, quilting and other handicrafts but: “…my passion is creative textile work, and I am a collector of anything that can be used to embellish fabric.”
Mary is on social media too, and regularly shares her thoughts, ideas, photos, memorabilia, and snippets of history via Facebook. Her posts conjure memories, stir interest and attract comments from her friends, followers and the general community. She feels connected to many of her former students, and has watched them grow up, forge careers and have their own children and grand-children. So, as Mary approaches 82, it’s clear that she’s enjoyed the journey and is immensely proud of her home and family.
Earlier this year Mary asked Harvey McCoy to give her a tattoo. I wondered if it had been a painful experience, but she told me: “Jenny, you wouldn’t question a new mum about whether childbirth hurts – it’s her beautiful baby you’d want to see.” These were wise words. I had a look; the simple motto ‘Inasmuch’ was inked indelibly on Mary’s forearm. How apt – an affirmation of her faith, values and love for Norfolk Island: I was a stranger and ye took me in…Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one, Of the least of these my brethren, Ye have done it unto me…
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Image Credit: Robin Nisbet
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Article content disclaimer: Article first published in Discover Norfolk, Volume 08 Issue 01, 2025. Please note that details of specific travel, accommodation and touring options may be outdated. References to people, places and businesses, including operating days and times may be have changed. References to Government structure and Government businesses/entities may no longer be applicable. Please check directly with businesses and/or Government websites directly rather than relying on any information contained in this article before you make travel arrangements.
