Jane Lewson (née Vaughan) (c. 1700? – 28 May 1816), commonly known as Lady Lewson, was an "eccentric woman" who claimed to be a

supercentenarian A supercentenarian, sometimes hyphenated as super-centenarian, is a person who is 110 or older. This age is achieved by about one in 1,000 centenarians. Supercentenarians typically live a life free of significant age-related diseases until short ...

Legend

Lewson claimed to be born in 1700, during the reign of

William III William III or William the Third may refer to: Kings * William III of Sicily () * William III of England and Ireland or William III of Orange or William II of Scotland (1650–1702) * William III of the Netherlands and Luxembourg (1817–1890) N ...

and

Mary II Mary II (30 April 1662 – 28 December 1694) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England, List of Scottish monarchs, Scotland, and Monarchy of Ireland, Ireland with her husband, King William III and II, from 1689 until her death in 1694. Sh ...

of England, Scotland, and Ireland, in

Essex Street Essex Street is a north–south street on the Lower East Side of the New York City borough of Manhattan. North of Houston Street, the street becomes Avenue A, which goes north to 14th Street. South of Canal Street it becomes Rutgers Street, ...

Strand, London The Strand (commonly referred to with a leading "The", but formally without) is a major street in the City of Westminster, Central London. The street, which is part of London's West End Theatre, West End theatreland, runs just over from Tra ...

. Early in life she married a wealthy merchant, who died when she was 26, leaving her with one daughter. When her daughter married, she supposedly rejected several suitors and spent the rest of her years as an "eccentric" widow living in Coldbath Square in

Clerkenwell Clerkenwell ( ) is an area of central London, England. Clerkenwell was an Civil Parish#Ancient parishes, ancient parish from the medieval period onwards, and now forms the south-western part of the London Borough of Islington. The St James's C ...

, London. She rarely left her home despite her considerable wealth and would not allow visitors. Lewson became well known during her era for the fact that, until her death at the purported age of 116, she continued to wear the fashions of the reign of

George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George of Beltan (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dolgoruk ...

(1714 to 1727) and used a gold-headed cane, and hence she became known as Lady Lewson because of her fashion style. It was also reported that she "cut two new teeth" at the age of 87, despite having never lost one of her former set. Lewson was known for her extreme

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic (supernatural), magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly app ...

and fear of getting a cold, which led her to only use one teacup, prohibiting the use of water in her home and smearing herself with pigs fat instead of washing. She would never have her windows washed in case they were broken and let in germs. By the time of her death, it was said they had become so grimy they no longer let in light. Towards the end of her life, Lewson allegedly kept no servant and lived with two old lap dogs and a cat for companionship. She died in Coldbath Square, Clerkenwell, London. on 28 May 1816 and was buried on 3 June 1816 in

Bunhill Fields Bunhill Fields is a former burial ground in central London, in the London Borough of Islington, just north of the City of London. What remains is about in extent and the bulk of the site is a public garden maintained by the City of London Cor ...

Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

, London.

Legacy

It is speculated that Lewson was probably one of several people who furnished

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

with the model for his eccentric spinster Miss Havisham in the novel ''

Great Expectations ''Great Expectations'' is the thirteenth novel by English author Charles Dickens and his penultimate completed novel. The novel is a bildungsroman and depicts the education of an orphan nicknamed Pip. It is Dickens' second novel, after ''Dav ...

''. Her claims of a ninety year residence in Coldbath Square are not supported by Rate Books, which record her as living there from approximately 1770.

References

1816 deaths Longevity claims People from London {{Authority control Burials at Bunhill Fields