First Lady Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur
Wife of Chester Alan Arthur, President of the United States
May 18, 2009
This beautiful and talented woman was born on August 30,1837, at Culpeper Court House, Virginia, the only child of Virginia aristocracy. Her father was William Lewis Herndon, US Navy, and her mother was Frances Hansbrough Herndon. The family moved to Washington, D.C. when she was young and it was said the she often played on the steps of the widowed Dolley Madison's house.
Southern Woman
Described as one of the best specimens of the Southern woman, she saw to it that her husband's affairs were always in order. They lived on Lexington Avenue, in New York City, where he was engaged in a law practice. She was extremely happy when Chester was made collector of the port of New York.
A Soprano Singer of Talent
At one time Ellen Arthur was a member of the New York Mendelssohn Glee Club, and she retained a certain amount of celebrity as a singer in various venues in New York City. She had received no formal education, but was, nevertheless, a great help to her husband when he led his law firm and was named collector of the port of New York. It was said of her that she was very ambitious for Chester and would do all she could to help him in his career.
Southern Sympathies
Mrs.Arthur made no bones about her sympathies with the South during the Civil War. Her husband was at that time quartermaster of New York, and he had to get permission for Ellen to visit a cousin who was imprisoned in the North. Apparently he often called her “my little rebel wife,” but this situation did little for him and he was forced to resign.
Death of Ellen Herndon Arthur
The Arthurs had three children; William (1860-1863), Chester (1864-1937) and Ellen (1871-1915). One evening in January of 1880, while Chester Arthur was in Albany, New York, Ellen attended a benefit concert in New York City. She fell ill with pneumonia and before her husband could get back to New York she lost consciousness, never to regain it.
Memorial Window in St. John's Church
Chester Arthur was inaugurated president in 1881 and his youngest sister, Mary Arthur McElroy assumed most of the duties of the White House hostess. Arthur had a memorial window installed in St. John's Episcopal Church on Lafayette Square, and requested that the church lights should be left on all night so he could always see it from the White House. He did not remarry, and died on November 18,1886.
Sources
America's First Ladies by Betty Boyd Caroli Reader's Digest Association Incorporated, 1996
The Smithsonian Book of the First Ladies Edith P.Mayo, General Editor, Henry Holt and Company, 1996
For further reading about First Ladies see Martha Jefferson Martha Washington
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