Mary Lewelling was the wife of John Lewellng, the leader of the Gourd Patch Conspiracy. When her husband was found guilty of high treason for his involvement in the plot and sentenced to death, Mary Lewelling made her own petition (which did not survive) asking Governor Richard Caswell to pardon her husband. Then accompanied by Nathan Mayo, a close neighbor and one the plot's intended victims, she travelled to Hillsborough to plead her case before the governor personally. As a result, Caswell pardoned her husband, making her petition the first successful request for clemency in the state of North Carolina. Her husband continued to live until 1794, and Mary survived him.