Mary Russell

Mary Russell may refer to:

Mary Russell (character)

Mary Russell is a fictional character in a mystery series by American author Laurie R. King.

Written over a period of nearly two decades, King's novels are portrayals of a succession of memoirs written and compiled apparently by an aged Mary Russell. A note from the editor (signed by Laurie R. King) tells readers of a mysterious occurrence wherein a collection of written accounts was anonymously delivered to the unsuspecting novelist; the note ends with a plea for information from anyone with information on the identity of Mary Russell.

The stories are set between 1915 and the late 1920s, mainly in England but extending to Scotland, Wales, Palestine, northern India, California, Portugal, and Morocco. They begin with fifteen-year-old Mary Russell (she was born on 2 January 1900), who runs into a middle-aged individual she realizes is, in fact, Sherlock Holmes - the former consulting detective of Baker Street, now retired to Sussex, where he keeps bees. However, in the form of Mary Russell's memoirs, Sherlock Holmes stays in the stories mostly through the influence he has in Russell's life. Laurie R. King strives to clarify this, and is quoted on her website, "I did not write Sherlock Holmes stories, I wrote Mary Russell stories". Holmes plays a considerable role at first as Russell's closest friend, her calculating and idiosyncratic mentor, and as time and circumstance conspire, the Great Detective takes up the role of companion detective. During that time, Russell and Holmes come to have a great respect for one another. Seven years from their first meeting, the two negotiate a marriage agreement, and are married in 1921.

Mary Russell murders

The Mary Russell was a trading boat that set sail from the harbour of Cobh in County Cork on 8 February 1828, carrying a cargo of mules bound for Barbados. When it returned to Cobh on 25 June 1828, the ship's captain had brutally murdered seven of his crewmen. The story had been largely forgotten until 2010, when a book detailing the case was published.

Built in 1817, the Mary Russell was a small wooden brig of 132 tonnes, drawing 13 feet under load, single-decked with beams. That tonnage would make it about 80 feet in length. The ship was built entirely of wood, with wooden masts and rope rigging. The bottom was sheathed in copper to protect the vessel from shipworm.

Crew

The ship's captain was William Stewart, a Protestant man born in Cobh in 1775. His chief mate was a Scotsman named William Smith, and his second mate was a Swede named William Swanson. Also on board were John Cramer, the ship's carpenter; seamen John Howes, Francis Sullivan and John Keating; and three apprentices – John Deaves (aged 15), Daniel Scully (13), and Henry Rickards (12). There were also two stablemen on board to look after the mules: Timothy Connell and James Morley. In addition to the crew, there was one passenger on board: an eleven-year-old boy named Thomas Hammond.