Her name is Mary Ann Bevan, and she was once called “the ugliest woman in the world.” Behind the sad title is the story of a devoted mother who suffered endless humiliation to raise her children.
Early years
Mary was born in East London in 1874, one of the eight children raised by a working-class family. She was a pretty girl and studied to become a nurse. In 1902, she married Thomas Bevan and gave birth to two sons and two daughters. They led a serene and happy life until, after a few years of bliss, misfortunes came one after another.
Around the age of 32 Mary’s feet and hands began to grow, her forehead and chin started to elongate, and her nose became larger and larger. She suffered from acromegaly, a rare pituitary illness caused by the excessive secretion of a growth hormone. Today, it can be treated if detected at an early stage, but medicine was not as advanced in the early 20th century, and doctors didn’t know the cause of the disease.
Besides a deformed face, other symptoms included severe headaches and fading eyesight. As her condition worsened, she had to quit her job as a nurse. Fortunately, Thomas was able to support her and the family. The next misfortune came when Thomas died from a stroke in 1914.
After her husband’s death, the burden of raising four children fell on Mary’s shoulders. She desperately needed income, but it was difficult to find a job due to her looks. She resorted to odd jobs to make a living. It was difficult to provide for her children with an unstable income. She recalled what a farmer once said: “All [she was] fit for [was] the ugly woman competition.” Nothing else mattered as long as she could make some money to feed her children. She soon entered a “Homeliest Woman” contest, and beat 250 competitors to earn the title of “The Ugliest Woman.”
Sideshow success
In 1920, she answered an advertisement in the newspaper: “Wanted: Ugliest woman. Nothing repulsive, maimed, or disfigured. Good pay guaranteed, and long engagement for successful applicant. Send recent photograph.” The advertisement was placed by a circus in America. Mary sent her photo and was invited to join the sideshow at Coney Island’s Dreamland amusement park. Although accepting the job meant that she would be exhibited like an animal, the company offered generous terms: a weekly salary of £10 (equivalent to US$600 today), paid transportation expenses, and proceeds from the sale of picture postcards of herself.
For the sake of the children, she gritted her teeth and agreed. She traveled across the ocean and joined sideshow acts with Lionel, the “Lion-Faced Man,” Zip the “Pinhead,” and Jean Carroll, the “Tattooed Lady.”
They had her wear clothes that highlighted her deformity, showcasing her “ugly” face. Crowds of spectators surrounded her, mocking, humiliating, and calling her all sorts of horrible names. The physical features she once wanted to hide from the public were under the spotlight. Mary smiled mechanically on stage, took the humiliation calmly, and offered her picture postcards for sale.
Due to her peculiar appearance, she became famous very quickly and was on the cover of most newspapers in the United States, heralding her as the “the ugliest woman on earth.” She became a star of the freak show, outshining bearded ladies, conjoined twins, little people, and giants.
Mary was later invited to perform at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey show, one of the three largest circuses in the world.
Her legacy
Amid the curious spectators, Mary quietly accumulated enough money to educate her children, earning £952,470 (equivalent to US$1.2 million today) in two years of performing in New York. She brought them to the United States, sent them to a boarding school, and often wrote to them. She provided them with a comfortable life and a good education while enduring endless ridicule and humiliation.
After lifelong ordeals, Mary died in 1933 shortly after her 59th birthday. Some say she died of a broken heart. Her children brought her back to England following her dying wish to be buried at Brockley and Ladywell Cemetery in South London.
Translated by Elaine
