Most mothers, over the years, have bagged ‘best mom’ titles for their sacrifices in order to see their kids through life, and Mary Ann Bevan definitely fits this description.
She didn’t mind being part of a freak show just to make sure that she provided for her four children after the death of her husband, Thomas Bevan. His death actually unraveled a whole different perspective for Mary Ann, who was an English nurse and mother.
She wasn’t always ugly. She wasn’t born with any form of deformity. On the contrary, Mary Ann Bevan was once considered attractive until a disease known as Acromegaly began to cause deformities that changed her physical appearance to the point where she became known as ‘The Ugliest Woman in the World’.
Mary Ann Bevan suffered from Acromegaly which made Her the ‘Ugliest Woman in the World’
For context’s sake, acromegaly is a disorder that occurs when one’s body produces too much growth hormone. The growth hormone, which is produced in the pituitary gland, is responsible for the physical growth of the body.
Basically, there was an overproduction of her growth hormones in her pituitary gland, and this led to her deformity. It, however, came with pain and even began to cause her blindness.
When she got married to Thomas Bevan in 1903, the aforementioned disease began to manifest, but it was still in its early stages. She was in her early 30s at the time.
Unfortunately, by the time her husband unexpectedly died in 1914, the disease had become more pronounced and totally changed her entire outlook.
This disease caused her bones, cartilage, body organs, and tissues to increase more in adulthood. As a result, Mary Ann Bevan’s face and body changed drastically. Her facial features expanded, resulting in an elongated jawline and her brows taking on a different shape.
Her fingers, hands, feet, and other body parts also grew longer and bigger, and so she took on a deformed outlook.
With all these new changes to her physical appearance, Mary Ann’s outlook made her look less appealing, and people began to consider her ugly.
Given that this disease was exhibited back in the 1900s, science and medicine hadn’t been able to detect, understand, or proffered a solution to it yet. This meant that Mary Ann was unfortunately unable to get treatment for this rare condition.
In recent times, this disease can be treated when detected early enough, but this woman, considered to be the ugliest woman in the world, would have probably been able to save her reputation.
Mary Ann Bevan embraced her new formation because she needed to provide for her four kids after her husband’s death.
She started by partaking in a contest that was organized locally to ascertain the ‘Ugliest Woman’. There were about 250 other contestants, but Mary Ann beat all the others to clinch the title.
She worked at a freak show because of her looks.
With her new reputation and title as the ugliest woman, Mary Ann began to get roles in freak shows. Even though she was skeptical about always being placed in the public eye, her family’s comfort was at stake.
With a juicy offer, she agreed to go on tours to Hampshire, and that was where her fame began to grow.
Barnum and Bailey’s circus even put up an advertisement for the employment of the ugliest woman, and Bevan got the role. Given that the doctors then projected that her disease was going to continue manifesting, causing her to grow more, her role in the show was secured. She had bagged the role, which would also mean a chance to care for her kids.
By 1920, Mary Ann got another role in a Disney sideshow after she was hired by Sam Gumpertz. She spent the rest of her life on the show as part of the freak show. She was constantly placed in public for people to stare at and even gawk at.
For many years, she continued to be put on display for spectators, and she was making as much as $20,000 to $50,000. With this, she was able to send her 4 children to school and provide for their needs.
At a time, people got more interested in watching her than they were in watching other cast members of the freak shows. She would even entertain her spectators by showing them pictures of her and her family from way back.
Mary Ann Bevan wasn’t Always Ugly.
Mary Ann Webster was born on December 20, 1874, in Plaistow, Newham, London, England. She was the only girl among the seven boys who strived to make herself useful.
She got enough education to eventually earn a nursing degree and job, and she became a certified nurse in 1903.
Ultimately, she grew up like a regular girl and was also attractive. She had the features that could attract any man, according to information from way back.
At her prime and with her physique, she was able to attract Thomas Bevan, who got interested in marrying her.
When she was 29 years old, in 1903, Mary Ann Webster got married to Thomas Bevan. They went on to have 4 children in the 11 years that the marriage between them lasted.
By 1914, Mary Ann Bevan had lost her husband and had also lost her job. Her husband, who used to provide for the family, was no more, and this led her to seek odd jobs that would allow her to provide for her kids.
When the tides turned and Mary Ann’s disease set in, she accepted her reality and went on to make the best of having people look at her with disgust and even drop unpleasant comments about her.
When she began to feature in freak shows and sideshows, the ugliest woman in the world began to earn enough to provide for and send her kids to boarding schools.
At a point, she eventually tried to reform herself by trying out beauty practices and also became fond of a giraffe keeper whom she met during the course of her job. However, things didn’t work out well with altering her new appearance and the giraffe keeper.
She returned to work and just continued the life that she had become used to.
READ ALSO: https://jukebugs.com/category/odd-juke/
Her Last Days and Legacy
News has it that Mary Ann Bevan, the world’s ugliest woman, developed a bad drinking habit. She then went on to squander the wealth amassed from her job as part of a sideshow.
After touring the United Kingdom and the United States of America, she got hired by Gumpertz, where she continued working on the Coney Island Dreamland show, as already stated. This was the job she remained at until her death.
She eventually died in 1933 and was buried in Ladywell and Brockley Cemetery, located in South London. It was her dying wish to be buried there.
According to a Wikipedia page about her, the mother of 4 died on December 26, 1933, 6 days after her 59th birthday.
Many decades later, her image was used by Hallmark Cards on a birthday card in the United Kingdom. The card was in reference to a ‘Blind Date’ and this reference did not sit well with a Dutch doctor who expressed his displeasure.
The doctor stated that it was disrespectful to use her image in such a manner because what she suffered from was a medical deformity.
Hallmark agreed to stop the production and distribution of the cards but did not call back the ones that had already been distributed.
Over the years, Mary Ann Bevan, dubbed the Ugliest Woman in the World has been made a good symbol and role model for women. She is used as an example and inspiration to women who break their backs to provide for their kids and families.
