Mary Dixon was born about 1781/2

Found via Ancestry.co.uk

London, England, Baptisms, Marriages and Burials, 1538-1812

• Name: Mary Dixon
• Baptism Date: 3 Feb 1782
• Parish: St Sepulchre Holborn
• County: London
• Borough: City of London
• Parent(s): William Dixon, Mary Dixon
• Record Type: Baptism

'''Marriage''' - her first husband James Barnes ((1782-<1819) 

London, England, Marriages and Banns, 1754-1921

• Name: James Barnes
• Spouse Name: Mary Dixon
• Record Type: Marriage
• Marriage Date: 08 May 1804
• Parish: St George, Hanover Square
• County: Middlesex
• Borough: Westminster
• Witnesses; Jane Johnson George Barnes

Children born in England -

• James Barnes born 1804, died about 3 years later
• Elizabeth Barnes born 1806
• James Whittaker Barnes born 1807
• George Sutton Barnes 1811

James Snr. died in Sept. 1817. The widowed Mary Dixon accompanied Henry Harper, a widower from Buckinghamshire on the ship 'Ocean' as part of Howard's Party. James Whittaker aged 12 and George aged 8 were also on the ship. Her daughter Elizabeth did not go with them for some reason, but in her book "Barnes Ancestry" Pamela Barnes Elizabeth was sent for in 1825, arriving at the Cape on 14th Nov.

Mary posed as Harper's wife in order to apply for permission to accompany him, and they continued the deception - and had a daughter Maria in 1822. They married on 11 Feb 1828, with Mary's 16 year old son George as witness.

The following extract was posted on Rootsweb -

Through the Chequered Path: The Story of William Howard's Party of 1820 Settlers

"When she came to the Cape in 1820 with her two sons James and George,

Mary Barnes had for some reason been obliged to leave behind her thirteen-year old daughter Elizabeth. As a widow with no male over seventeen in her family, she had had no chance of being included in any emigration scheme in her own right, so had allied herself to the widowed Henry Harper, who was bringing his young daughter and his brother with him to the Cape. To permit Mary's inclusion in Howard's Party, Harper had declared that she was his wife and they maintained this deception for eight years before marrying in Grahamstown in 1827"