Mary Ann, better known as Polly, was born in London to Addenell and Margaret (Rooke) Stevenson on June 15, 1739 and christened at St Lawrence Jewry Church of England, Guildhall.  Not much is known about her early life. She received a very good education and spent a lot of time as a companion to an elderly aunt. In 1743 the family was living and running a lodging house at 7 Craven Street, just off Strand. It was here where Mr Stevenson passed away in 1755, when Polly was just 16 years old.

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Much of what we do know about Polly takes place during her time at Craven Street, and is found in the over 150 letters she exchanged with one of the long-time lodgers at Craven Street, Benjamin Franklin. During his almost 16 years at the home, he grew close to the Stevenson family, becoming a surrogate father to Polly and a major influence in her life. In these letter’s we get a glimpse of the bright and remarkable woman she was. She had a natural curiosity, and her friendship with Franklin helped her better understand the world around her. Franklin would assign her books to study, and then they would discuss them.

     

She asked insightful questions about his experiments and science; and was especially curious about tide patterns and water evaporation and had interesting theories for both. Their friendship and esteem for each other was enough that she felt comfortable advising him against his phonetic alphabet, stating that she felt it would be too difficult to bring it ‘into common use’ (though she later lamented it not being an established practice after having to teach her two youngest children to read). Later during the war with the Colonies, Franklin would ask her opinion on whether, in the event of peace, it would be ‘prudent’ for him to pass through London on his way back to America from France, she counselled him not to, lest it be seen as an insult to some.

 

Though Polly had ‘determin’d [sic]… to live Single’ in 1770 at the age of 30, she married anatomist William Hewson and had three children. Unfortunately, in 1774 whilst expecting her third child, Polly was left widowed when Dr Hewson died of septicaemia; likely contracted during one of his anatomy lessons. That same year her aunt died, leaving her a small inheritance which allowed her to provide well for her children. During this time, her letter’s focus more on the domestic, giving us insight into Polly’s daily life. She provided a good education at home before sending her sons to school, and states that her daughter was just as bright as her brothers. In one letter she tells Franklin, that contrary to fashion and the opinion of most people, she has kept her 8 year old daughter out of stays and thinks her the healthier for it.

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Almost from the moment he left England in 1775, Franklin attempted to persuade Polly to join him. However, it wasn’t until 1786 after her mother’s passing, that she finally took her family to Philadelphia, and was at Franklin’s bedside when he died in 1790. She raised her children there, her second son also becoming a physician. In a book of Dr Hewson’s work published in 1846, she is described as an exemplary woman ‘well worthy to be the wife of Hewson.'  Polly died in 1795 at her son’s home near Bristol, Pennsylvania.

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