The Loves of Jefferson Davis
Sarah Taylor and Varina Howell
Romantic But Sad Interlude
While Jefferson Davis was still in Wisconsin with the military, in 1833, he met and fell in love with Sarah Taylor, also referred to by some sources as Sarah Knox. She was the daughter of his commander, Colonel Zachary Taylor who would later gain the presidency.
As the colonel did not approve of the match, Davis resigned his commission in June 1835. Sarah went to an aunt in Kentucky, and there the two were married. Davis' older brother, Joseph, helped him establish a plantation, called Brierfield, on land in Mississippi. There, Jefferson began a new life as a delta cotton planter. As idyllic as the newlywed's life appeared it was not to last. Within three month's of settling in Mississippi, Sarah Knox Davis contracted malarial fever and died.
Romance Blooms Again
Jefferson Davis' solitary life once again ended when, at the age of thirty-seven, he met nineteen-year-old Varina Howell of Natchez.
Davis Enters Political Life Briefly
The same year, 1845, that Jefferson Davis wed his second wife, Varina Howell, he was elected a representative to Congress. However, the following year the Mexican War broke out and he resigned his office.
Jefferson Davis: continues with Jefferson Davis and Slavery: The Southern Gentleman Planter.
Previous: Jefferson Davis: President of the Confederate States of America.
Recommended Reading:
The Cow or the Buffalo: The West Not Big Enough For Both.
John James Audubon: Artist and Ornithologist.
John Francis Fitzgerald: The Father of President Kennedy.
Sources:
Collier's Encyclopedia, Volume 7, Crowell-Collier Educational Corporation, 1968.
Comptons, The Complete Reference Collection. CD Rom, 1997, The Learning Company, Inc.
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