Mary Norris Dickinson facts for kids
Mary "Polly" Norris Dickinson (born July 17, 1740, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – died July 23, 1803, in Wilmington, Delaware) was a smart and influential woman in early America. She owned and managed large estates and had one of the biggest libraries in the American colonies. Mary was also involved in important political discussions of her time. She was present during events leading up to the Constitutional Convention. She married John Dickinson, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States who helped write the Constitution. Mary and John gave many of their books to the first college founded in the new United States. This college, first called "John and Mary's College," is now known as Dickinson College.
Contents
Early Life and Influence
Mary "Polly" Norris was born on July 17, 1740, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her parents were Isaac and Sarah Norris. The Norris family were Quakers, also known as the Religious Society of Friends. Her family included important people who had different ideas about British rule. Some were loyal to the British Crown but wanted peaceful protests. Others supported American independence. Her cousin, Hannah Griffitts, was a Quaker poet who lived with Mary for a time. Hannah believed in peaceful protest but not independence.
Mary's Education and Wealth
Mary was very well-educated for her time. She owned one of the largest libraries in the colonies. It had about 1,500 books! She also owned a lot of land and property, including the Fair Hill estate near Philadelphia. After her parents passed away when she was 26, Mary managed the estate. She did this by herself or with her sister Sally for several years. When she married at age 30, Mary had a lot of personal wealth. It was worth between £50,000 and £80,000. This would be about $7.8 million to $12.4 million today!
Political Discussions and Connections
Mary Norris was part of many important conversations. She wrote letters with other influential people of her time. These included Milcah Martha Moore, Hannah Griffitts, Samuel Fothergill, Patrick Henry, Susanna Wright, and Benjamin Franklin. These letters showed her involvement in the political and economic ideas of the colonial era.
Marriage to John Dickinson
On July 19, 1770, Mary Norris married John Dickinson. She was 30 years old. Both Mary and John were raised as Quakers. However, they chose to have a civil ceremony instead of a Quaker one. This was because they disagreed with some Quaker rules, like not being allowed to defend oneself if attacked. This decision caused some debate within her family. Mary and John had five children, but only two daughters lived to adulthood: Sarah "Sally" Norris Dickinson and Maria Mary Dickinson.
John Dickinson's Role in America's Founding
John Dickinson was one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. He did not sign the United States Declaration of Independence. He and the people he represented in Pennsylvania believed it would lead to violence. They preferred peaceful protest. They also felt the colonies were not ready to govern themselves. However, John Dickinson was chosen to lead the committee that wrote the Articles of Confederation. This was an early plan for how the new states would work together. He and others wrote it using the idea of "person" instead of "man."
Later, John Dickinson joined the Pennsylvania Militia as a private. He then became a brigadier general in the Continental Army. While he was serving, Mary Norris continued to manage their property. Along with James Madison, John Dickinson also helped write the first draft of the Constitution of the United States. He later represented Delaware and signed the Constitution for that state.
Mary and John shared many similar ideas about society, politics, and money. They often talked about these important topics. John Adams, another Founding Father, once expressed his frustration with John Dickinson. Adams was upset that Dickinson wouldn't sign the Declaration of Independence. Adams, who believed women should be less important than men, reportedly said after dinner at the Dickinsons, "if I should have had such a wife . . . ., I should have shot myself." This shows how strongly Mary influenced John and their discussions.
Even though women couldn't openly make political or economic decisions in places like the Constitutional Convention, they had influence. In the Quaker Meeting, women were seen as equal to men. Quakers believed "in souls there is no sex." In the Delaware Valley, where many Quakers lived, women had more influence than in other colonies. They even had voting rights sometimes, though this often required owning property. However, Coverture laws sometimes prevented married women from meeting these property requirements. Women also worked in businesses and were very creative, like Betsy Ross. But for married women, coverture laws could affect their recognition and pay.
In the Delaware Valley culture, men were often nurturing fathers. Later in his life, John Dickinson wrote a lot about the importance of educating young people. He believed it was vital for the new nation to be healthy and stable.
Fair Hill Estate
Mary and John Dickinson lived at the Fair Hill estate when they were in Philadelphia. John had built another house in Philadelphia before, but they chose Fair Hill. During the American Revolutionary War, British maps showed Fair Hill as belonging to "the patriot Dickinson." Sadly, the British Army burned the main house to the ground during the Battle of Germantown. Luckily, the library survived because of its thick walls and being separate from the main house.
After Mary's marriage, the ownership of Fair Hill became a bit confusing in historical records. Some records suggest that Mary and John used their combined wealth to improve Fair Hill. They lived there for many years at Mary's request.
John and Mary's College
In 1784, Mary Norris Dickinson and John Dickinson made a very generous gift. They gave many of their combined library books and some land in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, to the first university founded in the new United States. This college was originally named "John and Mary's College" by its founder, Benjamin Rush, in their honor. It was later renamed Dickinson College.
Death
Mary Norris Dickinson passed away in Wilmington, Delaware, on July 23, 1803.
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Mary Norris Dickinson
