Tag Archives: First Ladies

The Tragic Death of Bennie Pierce

The Pierce Parents When Franklin Pierce (1804-1869) married Jane Means Appleton (1806-63) in 1834, he was nearly thirty, a fine age for a man to marry. Mature, and financially solid enough in trade or profession to provide for a wife. … Continue reading

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Frances Cleveland: Saturday

Frances Folsom Cleveland was only 21 when she became First Lady. The Young FLOTUS-To-Be Frances Folsom (1864-1947) was the total antithesis of her husband, sitting President Grover Cleveland. She was young (he was 49), slim and trim (he weighed in … Continue reading

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Martha Washington’s Speckled Apron 

Mistress Custis, Mistress Washington Martha Dandridge (1731-1802) was not born to wealth per se. She was born, very much like George Washington, to a family of gentry. Her father, John Dandridge, owned several hundred acres. This entitled him to a … Continue reading

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Herbert and Lou Hoover: Flexible Planning

Most people’s weddings are a big deal. Bert and Lou: The Non-Courtship Herbert Hoover (1874-1964) and Lou Henry (1874-1941) met at Stanford University shortly after its doors were open. They were both studying geology, he for an engineering career, and … Continue reading

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The Sagamore Hill-Hyde Park Relations: Part 1

Family Ties. The Common Bond Claes Maartenszen van Rosenvelt came to New Amsterdam around 1640, about the time Peter Stuyvesant was its governor. He was not a wealthy man. He did not come for religious freedom. He did not come … Continue reading

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Ellen Herndon: Mrs. Chester Alan Arthur

Chester Alan Arthur was a recent widower when he was elected VP in 1880. The Private Arthurs No one was more surprised than Chester Alan Arthur when he was nominated for (and elected) Vice President in 1880. Had she lived, … Continue reading

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The FDRs: Home for the Holidays

After the First War When Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt married in 1905, it was a love match. Despite differences in their personalities and natures (he was outgoing, she was introverted), they truly cared deeply for each other, and found more … Continue reading

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Bess Truman: Waiting for Harry

The Old Soldier Harry Truman was 33, well past the age for a man to be a volunteer soldier, unless, of course, the country is in severe danger. In 1917, when the US entered the Great War, as it was … Continue reading

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Lou Henry Hoover and Women’s Athletics

The Western Woman Despite her birth and early girlhood in Iowa, Lou Henry (1874-1944) spent most of her growing-up years in California when it was still considered the “Wild West.”   Her father, Charles Henry, was a middle class banker, … Continue reading

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Burying Mary Lincoln

Everybody knows about Lincoln’s assassination and the huge funeral journey back to Springfield. But what about when Mary died? Mary Lincoln, Widow Mary Todd Lincoln (1818-1882) became a widow when she was 45, and survived her husband by seventeen years. … Continue reading

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