Mystery Tomb of Betty Stiven

Tobago is the smaller island of the twin republic of Trinidad & Tobago, and not without its own unique wonders and secrets. One of the old mysteries of Plymouth is the tomb of Betty Stiven, who died in the 18th century. On her tomb is inscribed the strange epitaph:

Beneath these walls are deposited the body of Mrs. Betty Stiven and her child. She was the beloved wife of Alex B Stiven. To the end of his days will deplore her death, which happened upon the 25th November 1783 in the 23rd year of her age. What was remarkable of her, she was a mother without knowing it, and a wife without letting her husband know it except by her kind indulgence to him.

Locals have many theories about what transpired between the husband and wife, most of which involve the concealment of a sexual relationship with a Black woman that he enslaved. Some of the stories, though, are too big to believe: that Betty gave birth to four children while unconscious, whose existence was then concealed from her. Also, the story relies on the idea that once a man takes a woman’s virginity, he becomes her husband, even without a ceremony. Another contradictory story claims Betty fell in love with a man and got him drunk enough to marry her without his consent, but proceeded to indulge his every whim. After getting pregnant, she got sick and gave birth in an unconscious state.

While none of these theories have ever been validated, there continues to be much hypothesizing.