[3] She was born at 66 Phillips St. in Beacon Hill in the home of Lewis Hayden, who was a Black abolitionist and master of Boston's Underground Railroad.

One lecture that was especially popular was "The Mantle of the Church Covereth a Multitude of Humbugs," which poked fun at pious hypocrisy.

[8] Sales had been flagging when Lewis joined the Advocate, and her popular society column, They-Say, is credited with saving the paper.

[5][9] Monroe Alpheus Majors wrote of Lewis's work in 1893, "Her pen, as the sword, is ever drawn in defense of her race, and those who have had the honor of crossing weapons with her generally retire from the combat feeling that they have been vigorously fought.

[6] In 1894, Lewis was living on Myrtle Street in Beacon Hill and was considered one of the two "most brilliant and progressive young colored women in Boston."