By Mary Carter
Eagle Times Correspondent
CLAREMONT, N.H. — In an 1878 letter to the daughter of Claremont’s Paran Stevens, the following words were penned by none other than Albert Edward, Prince of Wales:
“I hoped that Arthur would find favor in your eyes … I cannot tell you how much I rejoice that he is to be your future husband.”
Establishing the means for a high school in his hometown of Claremont, Paran Stevens was a self-made man through his management and ownership of upscale American hotels. Following the death of his first wife, Stevens married Marietta Reed, a woman 25 years his junior. Their New York residence, a marble crafted mansion around the corner from Stevens’ renowned Fifth Avenue Hotel, towered over the entirety of two city blocks.
“The grocer’s daughter,” as Mrs. Stevens was labeled in whispers by Manhattan’s wealthy, desired nothing but the best for her daughter Mary “Minnie” Fiske and son, Henry Leiden. Henry became enamored with, and engaged to, novelist Edith Wharton, but his mother put a swift end to it.
Wharton later returned the gesture by immortalizing Mrs. Stevens as the crass, social-climbing Mrs. Struthers in her Pulitzer Prize winning novel, “The Age of Innocence.” Leiden never married and died young.
Mrs. Stevens felt that daughter Minnie deserved to triumph in the European marriage market. Through her father’s hotel associations, Minnie was introduced to the Prince of Wales. Bertie, as he was known to his friends, immediately welcomed Minnie into his social set. The much photographed Miss Stevens was an instant success, becoming what was known at that time as a “Professional Beauty.”
Minnie’s initial romantic conquests included three lords and a French nobleman. However, it was soon discovered that Minnie’s mother had exaggerated Minnie’s fortune fourfold. The titled Europeans shied away.
A dear friend of the prince, a ‘gentleman soldier’ by the name of Arthur Paget, had asked for Minnie’s hand, and was rejected. Minnie, deciding that marriage to a man without a title was better than no marriage at all, accepted Arthur’s second proposal.
They were wed in the summer of 1878. The bride wore a sapphire and diamond bracelet gifted by the Prince and Princess of Wales. The groom received a prenuptial agreement from the Stevens providing him with an annual allowance of $20,000, which would be worth more than $600,000 a year today. Minnie’s mother promptly returned to New York convinced that her daughter could have done better.
With the aid of Minnie’s money, The Pagets threw lavish parties at their London home. Bertie and his entourage were frequent guests. Minnie also organized several charitable events, doing her part by selling “American cocktails.” The Pagets were honored when Bertie and his wife became godparents to their first born child.
The Pagets often vacationed with Bertie in the French Riviera, the prince moving his yacht about wherever needed. Back home in England, at the 1897 Devonshire Ball, Minnie appeared as Cleopatra in a jewel-encrusted costume at a cost of what would be $200,000 today.
It was reported that guests “gasped with wonder and astonishment” at her arrival.
American newspapers touted that Minnie had spent $10 million in her “pursuit of social distinction.” It was claimed that she carried “almost more social power in her right hand than any other untitled woman in London.”
Such opinions were forced to change when, in 1906, Minnie’s husband was promoted to Lieutenant General and Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. By 1907, Minnie, and perhaps more so her then-deceased mother, had their wish. The daughter of Claremont, New Hampshire’s Paran Stevens was officially hailed as Lady Paget.
With her settled inheritance, Minnie purchased a country estate known as Warren House, just 10 miles outside central London. Bertie, now king, was a constant visitor until his death in 1910. Minnie died during the influenza pandemic of 1919. Aside from mentioning her many social successes, Minnie Stevens Paget was praised for raising over one million pounds to provide homes for soldiers blinded in World War I.
As your daily newspaper, we are committed to providing you with important local news coverage for Sullivan County and the surrounding areas.