Lydia Lee Mather facts for kids

Lydia (Lee) George Mather (born around 1670 – died January 23, 1734) was an important English-American woman. She was married to a rich businessman named John George. Later, she married the famous Reverend Cotton Mather.

Lydia was a mother to Katherine Howell and a stepmother to five of Cotton Mather's children. For a woman in the 1600s and early 1700s, Lydia was quite unusual. She was well-informed, wealthy, and very independent. Before marrying Cotton, she protected her money with a special agreement. This was rare for women back then.

Like many women in Colonial times, she had few choices in her marriage. After a few years, she found her marriage stressful. She would get very angry with Cotton, which made him feel sad and embarrassed. However, things changed after she left for ten days. She came back when she heard Cotton's son, Increase, was lost at sea. Lydia then cared for Cotton during his last five weeks of life.

Early Life

Lydia Lee was born in England around 1670. Her father was Dr. Samuel Lee, a minister and writer. He was also interested in Native American stories and American diseases. Dr. Lee was quite wealthy, having inherited a lot of money.

The Lee family moved to the American Colonies by 1686. Dr. Lee became a minister in Bristol, which is now in Rhode Island. He built a large house for his family there. Lydia's father had studied at Oxford University and was known as a very smart man. Cotton Mather himself said that few people were as learned as Dr. Lee. Lydia had three sisters.

Marriage to John George

Lydia returned to the colonies by 1687. She married John George, a rich merchant and trader from Boston. He also served as a town leader. Their daughter, Katherine, was born around 1692. Katherine later married Nathan Howell, who was John George's business partner.

John George passed away in 1714. This left Lydia a very wealthy woman.

Marriage to Cotton Mather

Lydia married Cotton Mather on July 5, 1715. She then became Lydia Lee Mather. Cotton's father, Increase Mather, performed the wedding. Lydia was Cotton's third wife.

Because Lydia had so much money and Cotton did not, she had a special agreement made before they married. This agreement gave her full control over all her money and property. Cotton's first two wives were likely very obedient, which was expected of Puritan women. But Lydia was different. She was independent, richer, and older than his previous wives.

Soon after their wedding, the Mathers moved to a big house on Ship Street in Boston. It was a large house with many rooms and gardens. Cotton used some of the rooms for his church work, like his study and library.

In the fall of 1715, Lydia's daughter Katherine became a widow when Nathan Howell died. Katherine and her two sons moved in with Lydia and Cotton. Lydia became a stepmother to Cotton's children from his earlier marriages: Abigail (21), Hannah (18), Elizabeth (11), and Samuel (9). Cotton also had a son, Increase (16), who was in London and returned in 1716. Increase later got into some trouble in Boston. Lydia generally got along well with Cotton's children. The family also had two servants: a Spanish Native American girl and an enslaved boy named Obadiah.

Cotton wrote in his journal that he found Lydia lovely and enjoyed talking with her about the Bible. They prayed together often. In 1716, he wrote about how happy he was with her. He admired her intelligence and how well-informed she was. He also noted how much he and the children missed her when she was away.

However, Lydia found Cotton difficult to live with sometimes. He was a great minister but could be bossy and always sure he was right. He also spent most of his day working in his study. Cotton became sad and embarrassed by Lydia's angry outbursts, which were usually directed at him. By 1719, Cotton found her behavior hard to handle. He started writing in his journal in Latin and Greek so she couldn't understand what he wrote about her. He worried about how her anger affected him and his children. He also feared she might damage his journals.

Cotton took on debts from Lydia's first husband. When Cotton had to cut back on household spending during a money crisis in 1719, it seems Lydia did not use her own money to help.

In 1721, Cotton sent his daughters Hannah and Elizabeth to boarding school. This was to get them away from the influence of Lydia's niece, who was living with them. During a smallpox outbreak, Lydia stayed with her daughter Katherine and her family on an island. Sadly, Cotton's daughter Abigail and her new baby died from the disease. Cotton's father, Increase, also died the next year after a serious stroke.

By July 1721, Cotton's salary wasn't enough to support him. He borrowed money and even sold some clothes. To help his son Samuel go to Harvard College, Cotton arranged a scholarship. In 1724, he was warned he might go to prison for his debts. Lydia became angrier, and Cotton started calling her "deranged."

Cotton's church members collected money for him, and his debts were paid off in July 1724. He wrote that Lydia seemed to miraculously get better, becoming loving instead of angry. But by August 13, she was very angry again and said she couldn't live with him. She moved out but came back ten days later. This was after she heard that Cotton's son, Increase, was thought to be lost at sea. After this, Cotton didn't write about Lydia being angry anymore. By then, Lydia's niece had left, and many of Cotton's debts were paid. His children were also growing up and moving on with their lives.

Death

Lydia cared for Cotton during his last five weeks of sickness. Cotton died on February 15, 1728. Lydia received one-third of his estate, which was worth about £245. Lydia Mather herself died on January 23, 1734.

Legacy

After Lydia's death, people who studied Cotton Mather's journals often described her as "insane" or "mad." A recent writer, Kenneth Silverman, called her "vain, jealous, manipulative," and suggested she might have had a "mental breakdown." However, he also said it's impossible to know for sure if she was truly "insane."

Other writings from that time tell a different story. Her obituary in 1734 called her "virtuous." In memorial speeches for Cotton in 1728, and in his son Samuel's book about him, Lydia was described as a woman with "many and great accomplishments" and a "disconsolate widow." This suggests Cotton might have exaggerated her behavior in his private journal.

Joshua Gee, Cotton's assistant pastor, shared a touching moment from Cotton's last days with Lydia:

To his gracious and beloved consort, he said, "You and I must never any more retired and pray together, as we used to do; but you may now, when you go alone and pray, think that I am at the very time praising and blessing and singing hallelujahs, before the same throne of grace. I’ll meet you there as often as you please." And upon hearing her remark it, that he pleasantly smiled upon her while she was looking on him with tears at his bed-side, the day before his death, he said, "Why should I not smile, when everything looks smiling upon me."

Some historians now believe that Lydia might not have been "insane." Instead, she may have been very unhappy in her marriage. At that time, women were expected to obey their husbands and be happy, with few ways to change their situation.

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