Why is the presidents wife called the first lady?

Answer 1

First Lady is a term used in the United States to describe the wife of an elected male head of state. It originated in 1849, when United States President Zachary Taylor called Dolley Madison "First Lady" at her state funeral while reciting a eulogy written by himself. Occasionally another woman will fill the duties of First Lady, if the President's wife is unwilling, unable, or if the President is a widower or bachelor.

Answer 2

This is actually a complicated question. There are some internet myths about it, but here are the facts I have been able to verify: In the early days of the United States, there was no generally accepted title for the wife of the President; in fact, she was rarely written about by the press. One of the earliest uses of the term "first lady" was applied to Martha Washington, wife of President George Washington. In an 1843 newspaper article that appeared in the Boston Courier, the author, "Mrs. Sigourney," discussing how Mrs. Washington had not changed even after her husband George became president, wrote that "The first lady of the nation still preserved the habits of early life. Indulging in no indolence, she left the pillow at dawn, and after breakfast, retired to her chamber for an hour for the study of the scriptures and devotion" ("Martha Washington," Boston Courier, 12 June 1843, p. 4). Interestingly, Mrs. Washington was the only president's wife to be given a title derived from British royalty-- even after independence, the American public referred to her as "Lady Washington." Other than that one use of "first lady," I can find no other times when it was applied to her.

In fact, the term "first lady" was still not in common use in the newspapers or magazines of the early to mid-1800s. Some internet sources say that in 1849, United States President Zachary Taylor called Dolley Madison "First Lady" at her state funeral while reciting a eulogy written by himself. But no copy of that eulogy has been found, nor did the newspapers of her time refer to her that way; so the story may be more myth than fact, even if it is widely quoted.

It appears that Harriet Lane, the niece of bachelor President James Buchanan was the first woman to be called First Lady while actually serving in that position. The phrase appeared in Frank Leslie's Illustrated Monthly in 1860, when he wrote, "The Lady of the White House, and by courtesy, the First Lady of the Land." Once Harriet Lane was called First Lady, the term was applied retrospectively to her predecessors by magazine writers of the 1880s and 1890s. It should be noted that during this time, the press used the term "first lady of the land" or "first lady of the republic" rather than the shorter version "first lady." By the late 1800s, the terminology was far more common, and by the early 1900s, we can find numerous articles about presidents' wives past and present, and authors referred to them all as "first lady," even if that's not what they were called in their lifetime.

The first wife of a U.S. president to be referred to as "First Lady" was Lucy Webb Hayes. No wife of a president was given that title before 1877. Before Mrs. Hayes, The "First Lady" was always the spouse of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Those who serve on the Supreme Court have a lifetime appointment. The Presidency was then, and still is, simply a "temporary job".

Writers of etiquette books, and those in Washington society, were horrified in 1877 when newspaper journalist Mary C. Ames referred to Lucy Webb Hayes as "the First Lady of the Land". Prior to Ms. Ames pilfering the "First Lady" title for her article, no references to wives of the President were anything but just that, the wife of the President. Aside from the fact that Washingtonian etiquette prescribed the social duties involved in being a First Lady at that time, and the Supreme Court Justices wives took their duties very seriously.

Answer 3

Lucy Webb Hayes was probably the first of the President's wives to be given that title while she lived in the White House. Writers of etiquette books, and those in Washington society, were horrified in 1877 when journalist Mary C. Ames referred to Lucy Webb Hayes as "the First Lady of the Land". Prior to Ms. Ames pilfering the "First Lady" title for her article, no references to wives of the President were anything but just that; The wife of the President. The First Lady (an honorary title, by the way) was always the spouse of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, until a reporter decided to mix things up a bit.

According to legend, Dolley Madison was referred to as "First Lady" in 1849 at her funeral in a eulogy delivered by President Zachary Taylor. However, no written record of this eulogy exists. Sometime after 1849, the title began being used in Washington, D.C., social circles. The earliest known written evidence of the title is from the November 3, 1863, diary entry of William Howard Russell, in which he referred to gossip about "the First Lady in the Land," referring to Mary Todd Lincoln. The title first gained nationwide recognition in 1877, when newspaper journalist Mary C. Ames referred to Lucy Webb Hayes as "the First Lady of the Land" while reporting on the inauguration of Rutherford B. Hayes.

Answer 4

Actually, the term "First Lady" did not really come into popular use till the early 1900s, even though it was used occasionally before that. In 1843, a writer used it to refer to Martha Washington (wife of George Washington) as the "first lady of the nation." This is the earliest reference to this phrase that we can find. The term "first lady of the land" was used in 1860 to refer to Harriet Lane, the niece of president James Buchanan (he was unmarried at the time, so his niece served in the ceremonial role), and again in 1877 to refer to Lucy Webb Hayes, wife of President Rutherford Hayes.