Mary Frances Heaton (1801-1878) was an Englishwoman who was committed to an

insane asylum The lunatic asylum (or insane asylum) was an early precursor of the modern psychiatric hospital. The fall of the lunatic asylum and its eventual replacement by modern psychiatric hospitals explains the rise of organized, institutional psychiatry ...

in 1837 for insulting an

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

vicar and was never released. She was born into an affluent family in

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

then in the

West Riding of Yorkshire The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county County of York, West Riding (the area under the control of West Riding County Council), abbreviated County ...

. Her father was made

bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debt ...

when she was 11. She became a music teacher, living and working in London; but returned to Doncaster to care for her dying father. After his death, she resumed teaching, in Doncaster. One of her pupils was the daughter of Rev. John Sharpe,

vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

St George's Minster, Doncaster Doncaster Minster, formally the Minster and Parish Church of St George, is the Anglican minster church of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. It is a grade I listed building and was designed by architect designer George Gilbert Scott. The church ...

. He failed to pay for the twice-weekly lessons she had given in 1834 and 1835; and she interrupted one of his sermons, calling him "a whited sepulchre, a thief, a villain, a liar and a hypocrite". She was taken to court, where the tribunal judged her to be "a lunatic insane and dangerous idiot", and committed her to the West Riding Pauper Lunatic Asylum in

Wakefield Wakefield is a cathedral city in West Yorkshire, England located on the River Calder. The city had a population of 99,251 in the 2011 census.https://www.nomisweb.co.uk/census/2011/ks101ew Census 2011 table KS101EW Usual resident population, ...

, then in the West Riding. During her incarceration, she was subjected to a variety of what are now considered

pseudo-scientific Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable claim ...

treatments, including electric shocks to the pelvis,

purgative Laxatives, purgatives, or aperients are substances that loosen stools and increase bowel movements. They are used to treat and prevent constipation. Laxatives vary as to how they work and the side effects they may have. Certain stimulant, lubri ...

s, and the ingestion of mercury. Her medical records describe her at various times as wild, flighty, excitable, ungovernable, extravagant, violent and abusive. Over time, her mental and physical health deteriorated. After a failed escape attempt in 1843 and with her spirit broken, she became docile and, according to local historian Sarah Cobham, "took to quietly embroidering her story

sampler Sampler may refer to: * Sampler (signal), a digital signal processing device that converts a continuous signal to a discrete signal * Sampler (needlework), a handstitched piece of embroidery used to demonstrate skill in needlework * Sampler (surna ...

s] as a way of preserving her memories". Only a few of her samplers survive; she gave many away as gifts. Towards the end of her life, she was transferred to another asylum in what is now South Yorkshire; she died, and was buried in a pauper's grave. In 2020, a

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...

was installed in Wakefield to commemorate the injustice she had suffered.

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heaton, Mary Frances 1801 births People from Doncaster 1878 deaths People detained in psychiatric hospitals 19th-century English women 19th-century English people