[2] At a young age, she married Captain Francis Gomeldon, an officer in Sir John Bruce Hope's Regiment of Foot, and a friend of George Bowes, the coal proprietor.

Soon after her marriage, she fled to France and, according to the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, she proceeded to have many adventures, disguised as a man.

According to the Dictionary of National Biography, she fell in love with the name of Captain James Cook and wished to accompany him on his first voyage around the world.

She seems to have been a cousin of Sydney Parkinson who was employed by Joseph Banks and who travelled on that voyage, although their exact relationship is uncertain.

[8] The letter, dated 29 January 1773 relates to an attempt to "suppress" the book by Dr. Hawkesworth (who was also publishing an account of the voyage) and who filed a bill in chancery against Parkinson, claiming that Parkinson had invaded his property by printing manuscripts and engraving designs, which he sold to Joseph Banks.

Gomeldon writes: The narrator goes on to describe his (fictional) father: A recurring theme is the need for men to improve themselves to be fit companions for women.