Mary Willing Clymer

Mary Willing Clymer (1770–1852) was a noted Philadelphia, Pennsylvania socialite during the time when that city was the capital of the United States. Her portrait by Gilbert Stuart, which was painted in 1797, hangs in Independence National Historical Park on long-term loan.

Life

She was born Mary Willing in 1770. Her parents were Thomas Willing and Anne McCall. Her father had been Mayor of Philadelphia in 1763 and later a justice. He went on to become the president of the Bank of North America and First Bank of the United States after the American Revolution.

Mary wed Henry Clymer on July 9, 1794 and the couple had eight children. Henry was the son of George Clymer (1739–1813), who signed both the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. She sat for a portrait by Gilbert Stuart in 1797. The portrait's caption notes that she was, "one of Philadelphia's premier social figures during the era when the city was the nation's capital".

She is buried at Friends Burying Ground in Mercer County, Trenton, New Jersey along with her husband.