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Dolley Madison
Dolley (Payne) Todd Madison (1768–1849) lived through three wars, knew eleven presidents, and was a gracious and influential personality in the
political landscape of Washington for fifty years.
Born while her Virginia parents were temporarily in North
Carolina, Dolley Payne was raised at Scotchtown near Ashland,
Virginia. Her parents were Quakers, and in 1783 the family moved
to Philadelphia where Dolley later married John Todd, Jr. Her
husband and infant son both died during a yellow fever epidemic
in 1793, and Dolley and her other son, John Payne, barely
survived.
A year later Aaron Burr introduced her to James Madison,
whom she soon married. Dolley, seventeen years younger than her
husband, outgoing and socially skilled, was a contrast and a
complement to James, a brilliant yet reserved statesman who
valued his wife's abilities as a host. Her abilities enhanced
her husband's popularity, and one of his opponents once lamented,
"I was beaten by Mr. and Mrs. Madison. I might have had a better chance
had I faced Mr. Madison alone."
The Madisons lived at his Orange County estate, Montpelier,
until President Thomas Jefferson appointed James as his Secretary
of State in 1801. As the wife of the ranking Cabinet official,
Dolley served as the unofficial First Lady for the widowed
Jefferson. Her genuine graciousness and political tact made her
a popular, if unconventional, figure on the Washington scene during her husband's two administrations.
Despite her Quaker upbringing, Dolley played cards, dipped snuff, and enjoyed the
latest fashions. And she ensured her place in history textbooks
by rescuing important state papers and a portrait of George
Washington when the British set fire to the White House during
the War of 1812.
This portrait was done in 1817 at the end of her tenure as First Lady.
Image rights owned by the Virginia Historical Society. Do not use without permission.
Rights and reproductions
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