If we're honest, those we now consider "famous pipesmokers" did not gain notoriety because of their pipesmoking. They earned acclaim through their writings, or movies, or philosophy, or creative genius, and it just so happened they also smoked a pipe. Without Tom Sawyer and E=mc², Twain and Einstein would merely be two mustachioed pipesmokers with mussed hair, their lives never having garnered fame, and we here at Smokingpipes certainly wouldn't be writing articles about them. To be clear, I'm not advocating that we talk less about these iconic personas' love for pipesmoking, but a distinction must be made that, in their day, they were not "famous pipesmokers." That designation is a much more modern moniker.

However, there was a pipesmoker who, in her day, was famous for her indulgence in pipes and tobacco. Her name was Mary Frith.

Mary Frith, aka "Moll Cutpurse," aka "The Roaring Girl," is considered the first female smoker of England. She gained prominence through the early 17th century, and her aliases are perhaps the best place to start when discussing this one-of-a-kind woman.

"Moll," being a common nickname for Mary in that time period, is harmless enough, though the era also saw it used colloquially as a less-than-endearing term for a young woman of particularly disreputable character, which Frith certainly boasted. Regarding "Cutpurse," the reference is less subtle — Frith was no stranger to London's underworld and was known as a capable pickpocket and reliable fence for the city's ne'er-do-wells. "The Roaring Girl," is a play on the term "roaring boys": ancestors to today's modern "bro" who traipsed raucously through taverns, inviting trouble, and picking fights for sport. Needless to say, Frith was anything but the conventional lady; she epitomized "tomboy" and lived to defy societal norms.

Her life starts as any biography-bordering-on-legend should: circa 1584.

Daughter to a London shoemaker and his wife, Mary's bellicose nature was evident even as a youth. Societal norms and expectations were her enemy, and she sought to usurp them every chance possible. However, her uncle, a minister, was determined to make a lady of her. This only served to stoke her stubbornness, and the tension erupted when her uncle forced Mary onto a boat bound for New England in hopes that a new life in America would reform the young girl. Frith could hardly be forced to do anything at her displeasure, and before the vessel had even left port, she had, quite literally, jumped ship and swam ashore, resolved never again to be in the presence of her uncle.

Societal norms and expectations were her enemy, and she sought to usurp them every chance possible.

Though always contentious in her youth, Mary's antagonism didn't attract public attention until she was arrested for stealing 2 shillings, 11 pence in 1600, when she was in her mid-teens. While the indictment of a precocious pickpocket wasn't anything noteworthy, this particular pickpocket was different: She proudly wore men's clothing in public, swore like a sailor, and was often seen smoking a pipe — a rare hobby for women of that era.

Her image and reputation spread over the years, and in 1610 and 1611 two plays centering on the famed, cross-dressing, pipesmoking woman hit local stages. The first, The Madde Pranckes of Mery Mall of the Bankside, was unfortunately lost over the centuries, but the text of the second, The Roaring Girl, by Thomas Middleton and Thomas Dekker has survived. It gives valuable insight into how early-17th century society perceived and treated one as unconventional and controversial as Moll Cutpurse.

Impressively, while the play certainly draws attention to her below-reproach lifestyle, it also recognizes her for having a sense of virtue. In one particular scene her character rebukes a man for generalizing all women as prostitutes, and though Frith was known to be quite obscene, especially for a lady, she wasn't at all sexually promiscuous.

Mary took full advantage of such public recognition, and she herself soon took to the stage, performing lewd songs on the lute and bantering back and forth with audiences in the Fortune Theatre. And, of course, she dressed as a man for all these acts, per usual. That said, for as shocking and indecent as these performances were, the fact that Frith was permitted to perform and received an audience bespeaks an underlying affordance of freedom and, even, respect from the general public. People disapproved of her antics, dress, habits, and virtually everything she represented, yet there was something intriguing and enviable about her authenticity and disregard for public opinion, drawing people to her.

She proudly wore men's clothing in public, swore like a sailor, and was often seen smoking a pipe — a rare hobby for women of that era.

Though known for her fashion style and pipesmoking, Frith entertained other interests as well. At home she raised parrots and bred mastiffs, the latter being especially dear to her: Each dog received its own bed, complete with sheets and blankets, and Mary herself prepared their food. Regardless, however, this did little to affect her reputation whether positively or negatively — caring for animals doesn't come close to overshadowing cross-dressing and smoking a pipe, so it's for these attributes that Frith was renowned.

Said renown didn't seem to bother Mary, however. In fact, she embraced it unapologetically, only adding to her authenticity. Some weren't convinced though, sure that she merely sought attention, and one such man, a showman named William Banks, tried to expose the charade he assumed she was playing. He bet Frith 20 pounds sterling that she wouldn't ride a horse from Charing Cross to Shoreditch, about a two and a half mile ride, dressed entirely in men's clothing. While Mary was no stranger to donning men's clothes in public, this outlandish proposal was designed to shame the woman in her nonreputable fashion or, if she declined the challenge, to highlight her cowardice. On top of this, the stakes of the bet were extravagant in their own right and the action itself appalling and unforgivable in the society of the day.

A short while later Banks's purse was 20 pounds lighter.

Not one to simply accept a wager, Moll flaunted her confidence and lack of shame, galloping across London with banner in tow and trumpet blasting. Adding insult to injury, the self-assured woman won the bet on the back of the foolish Banks's performing horse, Marocco, who was famous for his ability to walk on two legs, play dead, and follow other clever commands — quite the fitting mount for its female rider, the two unconventional personalities together defying societal standards.

Mary's actions eventually drew enough negative attention that England's famous female pipesmoker was reprimanded for improper dress and unbecoming living. For punishment, she was brought to St. Paul's Cross, an open-air pulpit of considerable historical importance at St. Paul's Cathedral in London, and forced to do penance.

This wasn't Frith's first public penance; in her youth, she had been sentenced to stand in a white sheet at the same famous pulpit during an entire Sunday morning service. The discipline did little to change her ways, though, and the second time proved no different. Mary showed up drunk on wine, and her penance consisted of maudlin tears and insincere apologies.

The stories surrounding her life continued as her pickpocketing evolved into acting as a fence as well as procuring handsome young gentleman for the pleasure of bored, upper-class housewives.

People disapproved of her antics, dress, habits, and virtually everything she represented, yet there was something intriguing and enviable about her authenticity and disregard for public opinion, drawing people to her.

During the English Civil War, legend has it that Moll robbed General Fairfax, shooting the nobleman in the arm. Upon her capture, the notorious Cutpurse avoided prison and the gallows thanks to a 2,000-pound bribe that landed her, instead, in a psychiatric hospital. Frith was later released after having been "cured" of "insanity."

Her legend and notoriety diminished throughout the last decade of her life, and in 1659 Mary "Moll Cutpurse" Frith succumbed to dropsy, the first female smoker of England passing away on July 26 while living on London's Fleet Street.

Like a drawn out game of telephone, the centuries have blurred the lines between fact and fiction in Frith's life, much like how the details surrounding the lives of Jesse James, Davy Crockett, John Henry, Annie Oakley, Paul Bunyan, and others have unfolded into legend. Take that as a disclaimer of sorts, if you will, but I encourage you not to dismiss Mary's story. We as pipesmokers all have a little bit of Frith's rebellious penchant within us.

Unlike previous generations — the decades of Twain and Einstein — pipesmoking has fallen out of vogue in today's world. Pipesmoking has become a rare hobby at best, at worst frowned upon. Many of us have probably experienced the same quizzical looks of passersby as we sit enjoying an evening smoke; we're all familiar with the not-so-subtle, passive aggressive "cough" of non-smokers who happen to catch a whiff of lingering smoke.

We as pipesmokers all have a little bit of Frith's rebellious penchant within us.

However, pipesmokers revel in this differentiation, the uniquely subversive act of rebellion that is smoking a pipe. Not only is it uncommon in today's modern culture, but the very process of smoking a pipe challenges much of what society values. In an age that worships instant gratification, pipesmoking requires prepwork and learned technique; in an age when the latest release is everything, pipesmoking has changed very little in its basic form and essence; in an age when one's life is valued by how busy it is, pipesmoking necessitates pause and stillness.

We, as pipesmokers, are united by a counter-cultural disposition and authentic sense of self-expression that leads us to defy social norms. We may not all be cross-dressing pickpockets (only a select few can claim that boldness), but like Mary Frith, pipesmokers are unapologetic for who they are.

Sources:

• Mary Frith 17th Century Highwaywoman
• Mary Frith
• Mary Frith: The Original Roaring Girl