Dolley Madison

Dolley Madison (née Payne) was born on May 20, 1768, in New Garden, Guilford County, North Carolina. She was the daughter of Mary Coles and John Payne Jr. Her family resided in a log cabin in North Carolina and later moved to Virginia, settling on a farm outside Scotchtown. Madison was the third child in her family, which included three sisters—Lucy, Anna, and Mary—and four brothers—Walter, William Temple, Isaac, and John.

Her family adhered to Quaker beliefs, and her father, John Payne Jr., was a pacifist who did not participate in the American Revolutionary War. The family practiced and promoted manumission, freeing their enslaved people, though Virginia law did not permit this until 1782. In 1765, the Payne family joined the Cedar Creek Quaker Meeting.

In early 1769, the family returned temporarily to Virginia from North Carolina but moved again within four years, eventually settling on a 176-acre farm near Scotchtown. Madison's early education was influenced by her Quaker upbringing, which was considered to be more comprehensive than the average for girls at the time.

In 1783, Madison's family moved to Philadelphia, where her father attempted a starch manufacturing business that failed in 1789, resulting in financial hardship and eventual expulsion from the Quaker community. Her father died in 1792, leaving Madison widowed at age 24.

Madison married John Todd, a Philadelphia lawyer, on January 7, 1790. They had two sons: John Payne Todd, born February 29, 1792, and William Temple Todd, born July 4, 1793. Their marriage was described as loving and supportive. In 1793, Madison experienced the yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia, which claimed her husband, her son William, her parents-in-law, and her father-in-law. The epidemic, along with the deaths of immediate family members, profoundly affected her.

After her husband's death, Madison faced financial difficulties. She sued her brother-in-law over funds owed to her, with legal assistance from Aaron Burr, who had previously stayed at her mother's boarding house. Burr was appointed guardian of her surviving son, Payne.

In 1794, Madison met James Madison, introduced by Aaron Burr. She was then known as Dolley Todd, and their courtship was swift; they married on September 15, 1794. The couple moved to Philadelphia, where James Madison was serving in the U.S. House of Representatives. After eight years in Congress, Madison retired and relocated with his family to Montpelier, his Virginia plantation.

In 1800, James Madison was elected president, and the family moved to Washington, D.C. During this period, Dolley Madison helped furnish the White House and served as an unofficial hostess during Thomas Jefferson’s presidency. Following James Madison’s election as the fourth President of the United States in 1808, she officially became the White House hostess, a role that established the position of the First Lady of the United States.

Throughout her lifetime, Dolley Madison played a significant role in American social and diplomatic life, notably hosting bipartisan social functions and participating in the shaping of the First Lady's traditional responsibilities. She was involved in the preservation of important artifacts, including George Washington's portrait, which she reportedly saved from the White House when it was set on fire by British forces in 1814.

After James Madison’s presidency, Dolley Madison experienced periods of economic hardship. Her son John Todd’s alcoholism and mismanagement of their Montpelier estate contributed to her financial difficulties. To pay off debts, she sold parts of her estate, including enslaved people and her late husband's papers.

Surveys of historians since 1982 have consistently ranked Dolley Madison among the most highly regarded First Ladies for her influence and contributions to her husband’s presidency and her role in establishing the public image of the First Lady. She died on July 12, 1849.