{"value"=>"<p>Mary Pearsall Field (1865-1946) was the daughter of William Hazard Field and Augusta Currie Bradhurst Field. She was called \"Mamie\" and \"May\" by friends and family. Her nieces and nephews called her \"Marraine.\"</p> <p>As a young woman, Mary studied singing in America and Europe and was said to have a beautiful soprano voice. She wanted to pursue a career as a singer, but her mother would not allow it. After her father's death in 1888, Mary was her mother's constant companion, with a the exception of a few vacations taken separately. Mary was very popular and had a great number of friends and admirers, including one who proposed marriage. She accepted his proposal, but her mother refused her permission to marry. Despite this, Mary maintained a lifelong friendship with her suitor, Gurdon Maynard. She also cultivated the acquaintance of many artists and musicians.</p> <p>Mary filled her days with visiting and entertaining friends and family in America and Europe. She was an avid reader, attended lectures and classes, visited museums, and made copious notes on the many things she learned throughout her life. She was also a compulsive clipper of newspaper articles and often included them in letters to family.</p> <p>After Augusta's death in 1919, Mary's life proceeded in much the same way. She continued to travel and spent a great deal of time at Westfield, the family's farm in Mohegan Lake, N.Y., entertaining friends and family. Later in life, she moved to an apartment in the Plaza Hotel, where she was attended by a nurse.</p>"}