The month of March commemorates Women’s History and what better way to do this with the 250 anniversary of the Revolutionary War looming on the horizon, than to look at the women in Auburn who come from Revolutionary War patriots. Mary Deborah (Shute) Stone is one of those women. She was born in Hingham, MA in 1854 to Charles and Eliza J. (Wellman). Her mother coming from Lyman, York Maine. Her father was a private in the Civil War. Mary’s siblings were Elizabeth M. who married William Darling, Abbie B., lastly, William A. who married Grace Rice June 20, 1872.

Mary went on to graduate from the Worcester Normal and Training School, in June 1872. She was qualified to teach reading, spelling, writing, drawing, grammar, geography and arithmetic, the Auburn Historical Museum has her diploma. In August 1872 she married William Stone, a farmer in town. Thus she became Mary D. Stone. Mary and William had three boys, Arthur born September 26, 1881 and married Mildred Morrison, Fredrick Nathaniel who was born October 20, 1875 and married Shirley Carr, Everett William born August 1886 and married a Boyce. Mary served one term on the Auburn School Committee from 1895-1897.

Her Great Grandfather was Dr. Daniel Shute (1756-1829) who served with Maj. Gen. Benjamin Lincoln as a physician or surgeon.  According to the Massachusetts Soldiers and Sailors who served in the Revolutionary War: Shute, Daniel. Surgeon’s Mate in hospital department; Continental Army pay accounts for service from July 16, 1778, to Dec. 31, 1780; also, Surgeon, (Col. Henry Jackson’s (4tli) regt.; commissioned April 14, 1782 ; also, list of officers accompanying a recommendation addressed to Gov. Hancock, dated Fair Forest, near West Point, April 20, 1782, signed by N. Rice, Major Commandant, 4th Mass. regt., asking that certain officers be commissioned to fill vacancies in said regiment; said Shute, Mate in general hospital, to be promoted to Surgeon.

 Col Jacksons regiment saw action at Bunker Hill, New York Campaign, Battles of Trenton, Princeton, Saratoga, Monmouth and the Battle of Rhode Island. Dr. Shute’s assignment to West Point was after the Benedict Arnold incident. 

With this in her ancestry, Mary and her sisters Abbie and Elizabeth Darling were able to join the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution and were part of the founding members of the General Ebenezer Learned DAR Chapter of Oxford which is still going strong today. Other Auburn members who joined in 1907 were; Mrs. Eleanor Bigelow, Miss Elizabeth Hewett, and Mrs. Evelyn E. Perry. On June 17, 1907 the first meeting of the chapter was held in Oxford at Mrs. Clara A. Fuller’s home. According to a newspaper account of that meeting the battle of Bunker Hill was observed with a reading description of the battle by Mrs. Stone. The Nov. 11 meeting was held at the Stone Brook Farm home of Mary Stone on Elm St. 

The Mary D. Stone School was finished in 1930 and her sons’, William, Arthur, Everett and Frederick established a trust fund of $2,000 in her name. The interest from the trust to be used to aid education at the school.

This article is provided by the Auburn Historical Society and Museum, 41 South St. and is open free to the public on Tuesday and Saturday 9:30 – 12:30.