Although she was born into poverty, an advantageous marriage to a wealthy merchant made her one of the richest women in New York at the time of her death.

[2] Both Phebe Bowen and the widow Ingraham were arrested in 1785 "for keeping a disorderly house", and Jumel and her sister were again thrown in the workhouse.

[4] After her mother's and step-father's deaths, the 23 or 24 year old Jumel moved to New York, and changed her name to Eliza Brown.

[6] Jumel's sister later joined her in New York, changing her name to Maria Bowne, and marrying a William Jones in 1805.

In 1808, Maria (Polly) gave birth to a daughter who she named Eliza Jumel Jones in honor of her sister.

[12] In 1810, Stephen and Jumel moved to what became known as the Morris-Jumel Mansion in northern Manhattan, turning the home into their summer villa.

Stephen saw his fortunes decline during a series of economic depressions, leading to the collapse of his merchant trade in Paris.

[citation needed] Stephen Jumel died in 1832 (age 67) when he accidentally fell off a hay wagon onto his pitchfork.

[15] Fourteen months after his death, the 58-year-old Eliza Jumel married the 76-year-old former United States Vice President Aaron Burr.

[17] In her last significant travels, Jumel accompanied her two adopted grandchildren on a Grand Tour of Europe in 1856, during which time a large, life-size oil portrait of the three was executed by Alcide Ercole.

As symptoms of dementia took their toll on Jumel's memory and behavior, stories about her eccentricity spread through New York and Saratoga Springs.