If she continued pastry making, she did so while caring for her eight children. Elizabeth Newport soon moved to western Pennsylvania and married. 8 Her nineteen year old cousin Elizabeth Newport responded with an ad of her own, claiming to be the “Successor to her late Aunt, MARY NEWPORT.” Elizabeth Newport informed customers that she continued the pastry business at 7 Norris Alley, and that “young ladies taught as usual.” 9 The competition between cousins proved short-lived. Twenty-four year old Elizabeth Baker fired the first shot in the “pastry ad wars,” designating herself as “Successor to the late MARY NEWPORT, Pastry Cook,” and informing customers that she had moved from 7 Norris Alley to Walnut Street, between Front and Second Streets. These two women – Elizabeth Newport and Elizabeth Baker – promptly placed ads in the local newspapers, each one claiming to be the successor to Mary Newport. 6 Newport also left sizable sums to two nieces named Elizabeth. 5 She left more of her wealth to her female descendants than her male heirs, passing down each of her homes to young nieces named Mary.
#Newport daily independent plus#
When Newport died in May 1792, her estate totaled an impressive 3,145 pounds plus the value of two homes and their contents. Even though he may have liked her pies, John Mifflin wrote in his journal, “We laughed much at the poor gripus for unfolding her scraping stingy tricks.” 4 Heirs Inherit Wealth I will give you as good mince pies & fat a turkey as you can procure either from Molly Newport or Market Street.” 3 Known for blistering criticism and amusement at the expense of others, Mifflin described one occasion where he felt Newport stayed “upon a slender invitation” to tea at the home of Anna Gibson, where she regaled those present with a story of selling pound cake at a fair. Hannah Thomson, wife of the secretary of Congress Charles Thomson, tried to coax John Mifflin to New York by writing “I wish cousin Isaac and you would come and eat yr Christmas dinner here. Many Philadelphians knew of Mary Newport and considered her baked goods top notch. The order included “6 pyes, 8 puddings, 12 pounds of Lune cake, 12 pounds of jumbles, and 20 pounds of pound cake.” 2 The Norrises, a family of prominent merchants and politicians, placed an order for baked goods for a party in 1784. A few sources refer to Newport’s work in dressmaking and millinery services, but the tax records and census data from the late 1760s to 1790 list Newport as a pastry cook.Īmong Newport’s pastry customers were Philadelphia’s elite. Newport purchased her own home – a two story brick dwelling with two rooms on each floor and an adjoining kitchen – at 7 Norris Alley, between 2nd and Front Streets, in 1762. But, as a feme sole or “woman alone,” Newport had the rights to buy, sell, and will property, bring suit in court, and earn and keep her own wages – opportunities not available to married women who were bound under coverture laws that gave women subordinate legal status during marriage. Newport never married, choosing to remain single in a society with limited opportunities for female education and job training. In 1759, the Philadelphia Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) listed Mary Newport as a member. Very little is known of Newport’s early life, including her date and place of birth. Newport’s support for women continues to the present day through the establishment of a trust that is still active seven generations later. An accomplished baker, Newport not only ran a pastry shop but also instructed young ladies in the art of baking - before and after the Revolutionary War. Mary Newport –champion of industrious women and founder of a baking dynasty – established herself as a successful businesswoman in 18th century Philadelphia.
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