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When Mary Ann Bevan was born in 1874, she was a beautiful, healthy baby. Nobody knew anything was amiss. Mary Ann grew up in Kent, England with her seven brothers and sisters. She later became a nurse and worked in London and dreamed of having a big family. In her late 20s, the beautiful nurse married Thomas Bevan and had four children. It was an ordinary life but it was a happy life. Until tragedy struck. Shortly after she got married, aged just 32, Mary Ann started developing symptoms of acromegaly. The disorder causes abnormal growth of the hands, feet, and face, due to the overproduction of the growth hormone in the pituitary gland. We can only speculate as to the horror the beautiful young woman experienced when she realized what was happening to her. There was no cure for the disorder at the time. Mary Ann’s sole comfort, her husband who stood by her side and supported her and their children, died after 11 years of marriage. “The circus owner told a newspaper that while they wanted to find the ugliest woman possible, they still wanted her to look pleasant. Even a century ago, women were held to impossible beauty standards.” The family was left destitute with no means to support themselves. Few people would hire the widow, put off by her appearance. The Ugliest Woman in the World But then, an ad was placed in a newspaper Mary Ann read. It sounded a bit outlandish, but desperation drove the young mother to pursue the opportunity. “Wanted: Ugliest woman. Nothing repulsive, maimed or disfigured. Good pay guaranteed, and long engagement for successful applicant. Send recent photograph.” Apprehensive, she submitted a photo. It turned out to be a job for a freak show, owned by Claude Bartram. The circus owner told a newspaper that while they wanted to find the ugliest woman possible, they still wanted her to look ‘pleasant’. An oxymoron, if there ever was one. Mary Ann was deemed pleasant looking, if ugly by their standards. She had large features but reminded the show Bartram of a friendly giant. He later said in an interview: “She was not repulsive at all. She had the kind of face one usually finds in a giant, a powerful, masculine jaw, prominent cheek-bones, nose and forehead, but she was unblemished, healthy and strong. “She told me she did not like the idea of placing herself on exhibition, she was shy and did not want to be separated from her children. “I told her she would earn £10 per week for a year, travelling expenses and all the money from the sale of picture postcards of herself, so she could provide for the education of her children. “She wavered but finally agreed.” Mary Ann was booked for the show. Mary Ann was so successful in England, she was offered the opportunity to move to the US and tour with P.T. Barnum, the famous circus maestro who inspired the Hugh Jackman The Greatest Showman movie. She left England in 1920.Life separated her from her children after all. But in the space of two years, she made £20,000 — the equivalent to £500,000 nowadays. She was able to send her children to boarding school and wrote to them often. There are rumors she developed a drinking problem in her later years. She stayed in the US for the remainder of her life, working with the freak show. She died aged 59, and was buried in England.