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| Affiliation | Democratic-Republican |
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1816-01-01 |
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| Name | Dolley Payne Todd Madison |
| Address |
, Virginia , United States |
| Email | None |
| Website | None |
| Born |
May 20, 1768
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| Died | July 12, 1849
(81 years)
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| Contributor | Thomas Walker |
| Last Modifed | Chronicler
Aug 29, 2021 11:55am |
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| Info | Dorothy "Dolley" Madison was the wife of James Madison, the fourth president of the United States. She is known as the woman who turned the new nation's capital at Washington, D. C. from a dull swamp into a high-society social scene. Aaron Burr introduced the young widow to Madison, who was 17 years her senior, and Dolley married Madison in 1794. During the presidency of the widowed Thomas Jefferson, Dolley served as the official White House hostess while her husband served as Secretary of State. Madison won the presidency in 1808 and Dolley created the role of First Lady as social hostess and trend-setter, furnishing the president's quarters for the first time and hosting weekly parties of politicians and citizens. In 1814 British soldiers invaded Washington D. C. and overran the capital while President Madison was out of town. Before the soldiers burned the president's house, Dolley was able to salvage wagonloads of valuables, including Gilbert Stuart's now-famous portrait of George Washington; her courage under fire made her a national hero. When Madison left office the couple retired to Montpelier, their plantation in Virginia. After Madison's death in 1836, Dolley moved back to Washington and recaptured her role as the premier Washington hostess.
For half a century she was the most important woman in the social circles of America. To this day she remains one of the best known and best loved ladies of the White House--though often referred to, mistakenly, as Dorothy or Dorothea.
She always called herself Dolley, and by that name the New Garden Monthly Meeting of the Society of Friends, in Piedmont, North Carolina, recorded her birth to John and Mary Coles Payne, settlers from Virginia. In 1769 John Payne took his family back to his home colony, and in 1783 he moved them to Philadelphia, city of the Quakers. Dolley grew up in the strict discipline of the Society, but nothing muted her happy personality and her warm heart.
John Todd, Jr., a lawyer, exchanged marriage vows with Dolley in 1790. Just three years later he died in a yellow-fever epidemic, leaving his wife with a small son.
By this time Philadelphia had become the capital city. With her charm and her laughing blue eyes, fair skin, and black curls, the young widow attracted distinguished attention. Before long Dolley was reporting to her best friend that "the great little Madison has asked...to see me this evening."
Although Representative James Madison of Virginia was 17 years her senior, and Episcopalian in background, they were married in September 1794. The marriage, though childless, was notably happy; "our hearts understand each other," she assured him. He could even be patient with Dolley's son, Payne, who mishandled his own affairs--and, eventually, mismanaged Madison's estate.
Discarding the somber Quaker dress after her second marriage, Dolley chose the finest of fashions. Margaret Bayard Smith, chronicler of early Washington social life, wrote: "She looked a Queen...It would be absolutely impossible for any one to behave with more perfect propriety than she did."
Blessed with a desire to please and a willingness to be pleased, Dolley made her home the center of society when Madison began, in 1801, his eight years as Jefferson's Secretary of State. She assisted at the White House when the President asked her help in receiving ladies, and presided at the first inaugural ball in Washington when her husband became Chief Executive in 1809.
Dolley's social graces made her famous. Her political acumen, prized by her husband, is less renowned, though her gracious tact smoothed many a quarrel. Hostile statesmen, difficult envoys from Spain or Tunisia, warrior chiefs from the west, flustered youngsters--she always welcomed everyone. Forced to flee from the White House by a British army during the War of 1812, she returned to find the mansion in ruins. Undaunted by temporary quarters, she entertained as skillfully as ever.
At their plantation Montpelier in Virginia, the Madisons lived in pleasant retirement until he died in 1836. She returned to the capital in the autumn of 1837, and friends found tactful ways to supplement her diminished income. She remained in Washington until her death in 1849, honored and loved by all. The delightful personality of this unusual woman is a cherished part of her country's history.
First Appeared on a United States Postage Stamp in 1980.
Vote totals for elections in which was nominated for the Hall of Fame for Great Americans (1900-1965): 1905-16, 1910-23, 1915-13, 1920-8.
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