Farrelly, Mary Martha (née Maley)   (1886 - 1943)

Born in WA June 1866, died in Subiaco, WA, 26 August 1943,

Born in WA, the third of fourteen children, to John Stephen Maley (1839–1910) and Elizabeth Kniest nee Waldeck. The family were pioneering settlers at Greenough Flats. In 1889, Mary married Alfred William Gresswell Farrelly (d.1949), a solicitor in Geraldton. They did not have any children. In 1890, the Farrellys moved to Fremantle.

Mary collected MEL specimens (as 'Miss Fanelly') at Greenough, and Yandanooka, 1894. Her father also collected specimens, and one (dated 1897) is at PERTH. Mary was an active member of organisations that promoted women's rights and health.

In 1943 she died in a private hospital in Subiaco aged 77.

One letter from Mary to Mueller survives.

Source: extracted from: Maroske, Sara and Vaughan, Alison (2014) 'Ferdinand Mueller's female plant collectors: a biographical register', Muelleria Vol.32 [consult for source references]