Mary Lee Fitzhugh Custis

Mary Lee "Molly" Fitzhugh Custis was born on April 22, 1788, at Chatham Manor in what is now Stafford County, Virginia. She was the daughter of William Fitzhugh, who served as a delegate to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia, and Ann Bolling Randolph Fitzhugh.

On July 7, 1804, Molly Fitzhugh married George Washington Parke Custis. He was an orator, playwright, and writer, and the grandson of Martha Custis Washington through her first marriage to Daniel Parke Custis. With this union, Molly Custis became part of prominent Virginia family networks that facilitated social and religious revival efforts in the early 19th century. The couple resided at Arlington House, an estate covering approximately 1,100 acres located in Alexandria County, present-day Arlington County, Virginia.

The marriage produced four children, though only one, Mary Anna Randolph Custis, survived to adulthood. Mary Anna was married to Robert E. Lee, the Confederate general. Molly Custis's familial connections extended to her brother, William Henry Fitzhugh, who supported his niece and her children by allowing them to reside at Ravensworth in Fairfax County, Virginia. In 1824, William Henry Fitzhugh advocated for Robert E. Lee's appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, writing to the Secretary of War, John C. Calhoun.

Molly Custis was involved in supporting religious and social causes. She participated in efforts to revive the Episcopal Church in Northern Virginia during the early 19th century, especially influencing her cousin, Bishop William Meade. She promoted Sunday schools and supported the work of the American Colonization Society, aligning with the religious sentiments of the Second Great Awakening, which emphasized emotional spiritual surrender and a rejection of transient worldly pleasures.

In the early 1820s, Custis was part of a coalition of women advocating for the abolition of slavery. She followed the teachings of the Second Great Awakening, which emphasized personal religious experience and moral reform.

Molly Custis died at Arlington on April 23, 1853, one day after her 65th birthday. She was buried on the estate. Her husband, George Washington Parke Custis, survived her by four years, dying in 1857. After her death, Arlington House and its grounds were inherited by their daughter, Mary Anna Custis Lee, who was married to Robert E. Lee.

References for this biography include a death notice and tribute published in the Alexandria Gazette in May 1853, and biographies of the Custis and Lee families available through the National Park Service.