Mary was born in March 1851 in St Enoder, Cornwall and was baptised on March 30th, 1851. Mary's father was Thomas Pearce and her mother was Mary Bullock. Her paternal grandparents were Thomas Pearce and Ann Clemow; her. She was the third of five children. She had a brother and three sisters, named Thomas, Ann, Dorothy and Ann. She had a half-brother and a half-sister, named Thomas and Elizabeth.