Dr. Mary Booth Entwistle was born in England in 1802, very near her husband’s hometown of Entwistle, England. She was the mother of 17 children, 9 sons and 8 daughters. The family moved to Troy in 1853, where her husband maintained an extensive medical practice. She, too, practiced medicine and was known as Troy’s Clairvoyant Physician. Never formally trained or educated as a physician, Mary could almost always cure those who sought her help. Many people at the time were afraid and distrustful of physicians and she used a more natural ways of healing, crafting her own medicine from bark, roots, herbs, seeds and flowers.
Of particular interest is Mary and her husband’s visit to Philadelphia in 1848, during the height of the Asiatic cholera outbreak. Out of fear, many physicians turned away the sick and would not help them. Known as a constant faithful woman, the parish priests sought Mary out to treat his family members. It turned out to be a family of 11 that were ravaged by the disease, and she was able to restore every one of them to health with no fatalities among them. While she was often called a “quack” she went quietly about her work, especially into homes where educated physicians were feared and not welcomed.
Mary’s maiden name was Booth and she was the second cousin to famed stage actor Edwin Booth. He traveled the world stages and was said to be the best theatric Shakespearian actor to ever grace the stage. Edwin was also involved in a heroic incident, saving Robert Lincoln in 1864. Robert, stuck between a train and the platform on an over-crowded train platform, fell between when the train started to move. He was saved from certain death when Edwin grabbed Robert and assisted him to safety. Edwin received a thank you note from our General Ulysses S. Grant, as Robert was currently serving in the Union army on Grant’s staff. It was quite a comfort to Edwin to have that letter from General Grant. This is especially interesting with what happened later between his brother and Mary’s other cousin John Wilkes Booth and Abraham Lincoln.
1802-1880 * Section N