List of First Lady of the United States firsts explained

This list lists achievements and distinctions of various first ladies of the United States. It includes distinctions achieved in their earlier life and post-first lady service.

There have been forty-two official first ladies and forty-five first ladyships. This discrepancy exists because some presidents remarried while in office and some were not married so had no official first lady.

Also note that first ladies not recognized by the National First Ladies' Library listing include Martha Jefferson Randolph, Emily Donelson, Sarah Yorke Jackson, Angelica Van Buren, Priscilla Tyler, Mary McElroy, Rose Cleveland, Mary McKee, and Margaret Woodrow Wilson.

Martha Washington

See main article: Martha Washington.

• First first lady.^[1]
• First first lady to be born in Virginia.^[2]
• First first lady to have been born in the 18th century.^[2]
• First first lady to have had children when she became first lady.^[2]
• First first lady to outlive her children.^[2]
• First first lady to outlive her husband.^[2]
• First first lady to be older than her husband.^[2]
• First first lady (and first American woman) to appear on a U.S. postage stamp.^[3]

Abigail Adams

See main article: Abigail Adams.

• First first lady to be born in Massachusetts.^[4]
• First first lady to serve as Second Lady and First Lady on the same day.^[5]
• First first lady to live in the White House.^[6]
• First first lady to have biological children with a husband who was a President. ^[7]
• First first lady to be the mother of another President (John Quincy Adams). ^[8]

Martha Jefferson Randolph

See main article: Martha Jefferson Randolph.

Dolley Madison

See main article: Dolley Madison.

• First first lady to be born in North Carolina.^[9]
• First first lady to have a parrot as a pet at the White House.^[10]
• First first lady given an honorary seat on the floor of Congress.^[11]
• First first lady to respond to a telegraph message.^[11]
• First first lady to be taller than the President.^[12]

Louisa Adams

See main article: Louisa Adams.

• First first lady born outside of the United States; she was born in England.^[13]
• First first lady to have both houses of the United States Congress adjourn in mourning on the day of her funeral.^[14]

Sarah Yorke Jackson

See main article: Sarah Yorke Jackson.

Anna Harrison

See main article: Anna Harrison.

• First first lady to be born in New Jersey.^[15]
• First first lady to be widowed while holding the title.^[16]
• First first lady to be granted by law a pension as a president's widow.^[17]
• First first lady to be the grandmother of a president.

Letitia Tyler

See main article: Letitia Tyler.

• First first lady to die in the White House.^[18]

Julia Tyler

See main article: Julia Tyler.

• First first lady to marry a president who was already in office at the time of the wedding.^[19]

Sarah Polk

See main article: Sarah Polk.

Abigail Fillmore

• First first lady to hold a job while married (she was a teacher).^[20]
• First first lady to establish a permanent White House library.^[21]

Harriet Lane

See main article: Harriet Lane.

Mary Todd Lincoln

• First first lady to hold séances in the White House.^[22]

Julia Grant

See main article: Julia Grant.

• First first lady to be born in Missouri.^[23]
• First first lady recorded on film.^[24]
• First first lady to write her memoirs (The Personal Memoirs of Julia Dent Grant).^[9]

Lucy Hayes

See main article: Lucy Hayes.

• First first lady to be born in Ohio.^[25]
• First first lady to earn a college degree.^[26]
• First first lady to ban all alcoholic beverages from the White House.^[11]
• First first lady to host an Easter Egg roll on the White House lawn.

Frances Cleveland

See main article: Frances Cleveland.

• First first lady to marry in the White House.^[27]

Caroline Harrison

See main article: Caroline Harrison.

• First first lady to use electricity.^[11]
• First first lady to raise a Christmas tree in the White House.^[28]
• First first lady to have written a speech she delivered herself.^[28]

Edith Roosevelt

See main article: Edith Roosevelt.

• First first lady to be born in Connecticut.^[29]
• First first lady to travel abroad while in office.^[30]

Helen Taft

See main article: Helen Taft.

• First first lady to own and drive a car.^[11]
• First first lady to ride in her husband's inaugural parade.^[11]
• First first lady to support women's suffrage.^[11]
• First first lady to publish her memoirs.^[11]
• First first lady to smoke cigarettes.^[11]
• First first lady to successfully lobby for safety standards in federal workplaces.^[11]
• First first lady to plant the first cherry tree saplings that are along Washington, D.C.'s Tidal Basin.^[31]
• First first lady to be buried in Arlington National Cemetery.^[31]
• First sitting first lady to turn 50.^[32]

Edith Wilson

See main article: Edith Wilson.

• First first lady to unofficially assume presidential functions.

Florence Harding

See main article: Florence Harding.

• First first lady to vote.^[11]
• First first lady to fly in an airplane.^[11]
• First first lady to operate a movie camera.^[11]
• First first lady to own a radio.^[11]
• First first lady to invite movie stars to the White House.^[11]

Grace Coolidge

See main article: Grace Coolidge.

• First first lady to born in Vermont.^[33]
• First first lady to earn a four-year undergraduate degree.^[34]
• First first lady to speak in sound newsreels.^[11]

Lou Hoover

See main article: Lou Hoover.

• First first lady to be born in Iowa.^[35]
• First first lady to make regular nationwide radio broadcasts.^[36]

Eleanor Roosevelt

See main article: Eleanor Roosevelt.

• First first lady to hold regular press conferences.^[11]
• First first lady to write a daily newspaper column and to write a monthly magazine column.^[11]
• First first lady to host a weekly radio show.^[11]
• First first lady to fly in an airplane while first lady; she flew with Amelia Earhart in April 1933.^[37]
• First first lady to speak at a national party convention (1940).^[38]
• First first lady to be depicted as part of a presidential memorial (the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial).^[39]
• First first lady (and only) to serve in the role for 12 years (1933–1945); to date.^[40]

Mamie Eisenhower

See main article: Mamie Eisenhower.

• First first lady to initiate Halloween decorations to be put up in the White House.^[41]

Jacqueline Kennedy

See main article: Jacqueline Kennedy.

• First first lady to hire a press secretary.^[11]
• First first lady to hire a White House curator.^[11]
• First first lady to win an Emmy Award.^[27]
• First first lady to select a theme for the White House Christmas Tree.^[42]

Lady Bird Johnson

• First first lady to be born in Texas.^[43]

Pat Nixon

See main article: Pat Nixon.

• First first lady to be born in Nevada.^[44]
• First first lady to enter a combat zone.^[45]
• First first lady to travel to Africa,^[46] the People's Republic of China, and the Soviet Union.^[47]
• First first Lady to model trousers in a national magazine.^[48]
• First first lady to address a Republican National Convention (in 1972).^[49]

Betty Ford

• First first lady to be born in Illinois.^[50]
• First first lady to have a successful battle against dependency on drugs and alcohol, and openly talk about it.^[50]

Rosalynn Carter

• First first lady to keep her own office in the East Wing.^{[11] [51]}
• First first lady to have a VCR in the White House.^{[11] [51]}
• First first lady to have been married for 77 years.^[52]

Nancy Reagan

• First first lady invited to address the United Nations General Assembly.^[53]
• First first lady married to a divorcé.^[54]
• First first lady to attend a British royal wedding.^{[55] [56]}

Barbara Bush

• First first lady to live to see a son become president.
• First first lady to have lived at both Number One Observatory Circle and the White House.^{[57] [58]}
• First first lady to hire an African-American as her press secretary.^[59]
• First first lady to throw out a ball to open the baseball season.^[59]
• First first lady to write a memoir from her dog's perspective.^[11]
• First first lady to have been married for 73 years.^[60]

Hillary Clinton

See main article: Hillary Clinton.

• First first lady to earn a postgraduate degree.^[61]
• First first lady to have her own professional career up to the time of entering the White House.^[61]
• First first lady to wear trousers in an official first lady portrait.^[62]
• First first lady with an office in the West Wing.^[63]
• First first lady to win a Grammy Award.^[64]
• First first lady to be subpoenaed to testify before a federal grand jury.^[65]
• First first lady to run for and to win elected office (for senator from New York in 2000).^[66]
• First first lady to march in an LGBT pride parade (2000).^[67]
• First first lady to run for president (election in 2008).^{[11] [68]}
• First first lady to be nominated for president by a major U.S. political party (specifically, the Democratic Party, in 2016).^{[69] [66]}
• First first lady to serve as Chancellor at Queen's University Belfast (began 5-year term in January 2020).^{[70] [71]}
• First first lady to be an electoral college elector (election in 2020).^[72]

Laura Bush

• First first lady to give birth to twins.^{[11] [73] [74]}
• First first lady to substitute for the president in the president's weekly radio address.^{[11] [75]}
• First first lady to have a mother-in-law who was also a first lady while in office.

Michelle Obama

See main article: Michelle Obama.

• First African American first lady.^[76]
• First first lady to attend an Ivy League university for her undergraduate degree. She majored in sociology and minored in African-American studies at Princeton University.^{[77] [78] [79]}
• First first lady to announce the winner of an Oscar (Best Picture which went to Argo).^[80]
• First first lady to host the Girl Scouts campout at the White House.^[81]

Melania Trump

See main article: Melania Trump.

• First first lady not to have been born a citizen of the United States or in what would later become the United States. She was naturalized in 2006.^{[82] [83] [84]}
• First first lady to be fluent in a Slavic language.^[85]
• First first lady to fly in a V-22 Osprey aircraft.^[86]

Jill Biden

See main article: Jill Biden.

• First first lady to have a research doctorate.^[87]
• First first lady to be an Italian American.^[88]
• First first lady to bring a rescue dog (Major) to the White House.^[89]
• First first lady to hold a paying job outside the White House while her husband was president.^{[90] [91]}
• First first lady to attend a British coronation.^[92]
• First first lady to meet with two British monarchs while in office (Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III).^[93]
• First sitting first lady to reach the age of 70.^[94]
• First first lady to have a stepchild convicted in a criminal trial while in office.^[95]

See also

• Bibliography of United States presidential spouses and first ladies
• List of United States presidential firsts

References

• Book: Kilian, Pamela. Barbara Bush: Matriarch of a Dynasty. 2002. St. Martin's Griffin. 978-0312319700.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Martha Washington Biography :: National First Ladies' Library . Firstladies.org . July 7, 2015.
2. Mount Vernon Ladies' Association. (2020). "Ten Facts about Martha Washington" Retrieved November 15, 2020.
3. Historian. May 2020. "Women Subjects on United States Postage Stamps" United States Postal Service. Retrieved January 24, 2021.
4. History.com editors. (October 27, 2019)."Abigail Adams" Retrieved November 14, 2020.
5. The White House. "Abigail Smith Adams" Retrieved January 10, 2021.
6. Web site: The 44 first ladies of the United States of America | Deseret News . M.deseretnews.com . May 14, 2015 . July 7, 2015.
7. name="Political Lists p. 60">Book of Political Lists, p. 60
8. https://www.politico.com/story/2018/04/17/barbara-bush-george-obituary-first-lady-221779
9. Web site: Dolley Madison, North Carolina's Legendary First Lady. July 30, 2020.
10. Presidential Pet Museum. "James Madison – Dolley’s Parrot" Retrieved January 30, 2021.
11. Web site: Little-known facts about our First Ladies . Firstladies.org . 2015-07-07 . 2015-07-14 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150714000059/http://www.firstladies.org/facinatingfacts.aspx . live .
12. Web site: First Lady Biography: Dolley Madison. July 30, 2020.
13. Web site: Louisa Adams Biography :: National First Ladies' Library . Firstladies.org . July 7, 2015.
14. Web site: Louisa Adams - First Ladies . HISTORY.com . April 16, 2016.
15. [Betty Boyd Caroli|Caroli, B.]
16. Web site: Anna Tuthill Symmes Harrison . whitehouse.gov . July 7, 2015.
17. Web site: William Henry Harrison . www.history.com.
18. Web site: Letitia Christian Tyler. The White House.
19. Web site: Julia Tyler Biography :: National First Ladies' Library. www.firstladies.org.
20. Web site: Abigail Fillmore Biography :: National First Ladies' Library. www.firstladies.org.
21. John Y. Cole "Fillmore’s Foundation" Library of Congress. Retrieved 2 Feb. 2021.
22. News: Melania Trump isn't the only incoming First Lady to break the norm; here are 8 more who defied White House traditions . Sarkar . Asmita . November 21, 2016 . . en . December 16, 2016.
23. [Betty Boyd Caroli|Caroli, B.]
24. Web site: Julia Grant Biography :: National First Ladies' Library . Firstladies.org . July 7, 2015.
25. The White House. (n.d.)."Lucy Ware Webb Hayes" Retrieved November 15, 2020.
26. Web site: Lucy Hayes Biography :: National First Ladies' Library . Firstladies.org . July 7, 2015.
27. Web site: First Ladies — History.com Video. History.com. July 8, 2015. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20150709124256/http://www.history.com/videos/first-ladies#first-ladies. July 9, 2015.
28. Web site: First Lady - Caroline Harrison C-SPAN First Ladies: Influence & Image. June 10, 2020. firstladies.c-span.org.
29. Britannica. (September 26, 2020). "Edith Roosevelt" Retrieved November 15, 2020.
30. Book: Watson, Robert P.. Life in the White House: A Social History of the First Family and the President's House. February 1, 2012. SUNY Press. 9780791485071. en.
31. "Prominent Women" Arlington National Cemetery. Retrieved November 14, 2020.
32. https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/03/politics/jill-biden-70th-birthday-rehoboth-beach/index.html Bidens celebrate first lady’s birthday at her favorite place
33. Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation, Inc. "Grace Coolidge Overview" Retrieved November 15, 2020.
34. Web site: Grace Coolidge Biography :: National First Ladies' Library. www.firstladies.org. May 18, 2015.
35. The White House. (n.d.)."Lou Henry Hoover" Retrieved November 15, 2020.
36. Web site: Lou Henry Hoover . whitehouse.gov . July 7, 2015.
37. Nelson, Brooke (December 18, 2020). "45 Facts You Never Knew About America's First Ladies"Reader's Digest. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
38. [Doris Kearns Goodwin|Goodwin, Doris Kearns]
39. Web site: The White House / The National Archives. Clinton2.nara.gov. October 5, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20110927165924/http://clinton2.nara.gov/WH/New/html/fdr.html. September 27, 2011. dead.
40. The White House. "Anna Eleanor Roosevelt" Retrieved 2 January 2021.
41. Web site: What Halloween Was Like the Year You Were Born . October 12, 2016. . September 29, 2016. Country Living.
42. "Jacqueline Kennedy Refines the Season", White House Historical Association, accessed February 25, 2023.
43. The White House. (n.d.)."Claudia Alta Taylor "Lady Bird" Johnson" Retrieved November 15, 2020.
44. The White House. (n.d.)."Patricia Ryan Nixon" Retrieved November 15, 2020.
45. Web site: First Lady Biography: Pat Nixon. August 15, 2007. 2005. The National First Ladies Library.
46. Anthony, Carl Sferrazza (1991). First Ladies: The Saga of the Presidents' Wives and Their Power; 1961–1990 (Volume II). New York: William Morrow and Co., p. 196
47. Web site: News Detail . Nixonfoundation.net . July 7, 2015.
48. Web site: The First Lady a Nation Never Knew: Pat Nixon in Private Taped Phone Calls & 100 Pictures on Her Centennial . Carl Anthony Online . March 16, 2012 . March 15, 2018.
49. News: The First Lady a Nation Never Knew: Pat Nixon in Private Taped Phone Calls & 100 Pictures on Her Centennial. Carl Anthony Online. March 16, 2012. April 9, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20181117013849/https://carlanthonyonline.com/2012/03/16/the-first-lady-a-nation-never-knew-pat-nixon-in-private-taped-phone-calls-100-pictures-on-her-centennial/. November 17, 2018. dead.
50. The White House. "Elizabeth Anne Bloomer Ford" Retrieved January 10, 2021.
51. Web site: Digital. Tegna. 2023-11-19. Rosalynn Carter, former US first lady, dead at 96. 2023-11-19. WCNC-TV. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20231120211613/https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/nation-world/rosalynn-carter-dies-former-us-first-lady/507-1e7c3fb7-9ec5-40ee-b885-b626e4143228. November 20, 2023.
52. Web site: Chamlee. Virginia. 2023-07-07. Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Celebrate 77th Anniversary in Same Small Town as Their 1946 Wedding. 2023-07-07. People. en.
53. Web site: First Lady Biography: Nancy Reagan. June 2, 2007. National First Ladies Library. May 9, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20120509085730/http://www.firstladies.org/biographies/firstladies.aspx?biography=41. dead.
54. Web site: National Constitution Center. 10 interesting facts on Ronald Reagan's birthday. National Constitution Center. July 12, 2013. February 6, 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20141011213636/http://blog.constitutioncenter.org/2013/02/10-interesting-facts-on-president-ronald-reagans-birthday/. October 11, 2014. dead.
55. News: My Turn: The Memoirs of Nancy Reagan. Nancy. Reagan. William. Novak. Nancy Reagan. William Novak. Random House. New York City. 1989. 0-8129-9211-3.
56. News: The Triumph of Nancy Reagan. Tumulty. Kathleen. Karen Tumulty. Simon & Schuster. New York City. 2021. 9781501165207.
57. Web site: The Vice President's Residence . WhiteHouse.gov . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20091021225638/http://www.whitehouse.gov/about/vp_residence/ . October 21, 2009.
58. Web site: Groppe. Maureen. Second Lady Karen Pence lights up garden to honor George H.W. Bush. USA Today. November 28, 2023. live . https://web.archive.org/web/20231128230812/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2018/12/04/george-h-w-bush-honored-vice-presidential-residence/2209781002/ . November 28, 2023.
59. Web site: Barbara Bush Biography :: National First Ladies' Library. Firstladies.org. March 16, 2023 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230316171258/http://www.firstladies.org/biographies/firstladies.aspx?biography=42 . March 16, 2023.
60. News: Delk . Josh . George H.W. Bush and wife celebrate 73 years of marriage . January 6, 2018 . . July 21, 2023. live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230729232505/https://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/367772-george-hw-bush-and-wife-celebrate-73-years-of-marriage/ . July 29, 2023.
61. Web site: Hillary Rodham Clinton. PBS. December 2, 2014. December 28, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20141228125947/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/biography/clinton-hillary/. dead. Clinton had the first postgraduate degree through regular study and scholarly work. Eleanor Roosevelt had been previously awarded a postgraduate honorary degree. Clinton's successor Laura Bush became the second First Lady with a postgraduate degree.
62. Web site: Betsi Fores . Flashback: Top 7 Hillary Rodham Clinton pant suits | Rare . Rare.us . June 19, 2013 . July 30, 2014.
63. News: Hillary Clinton's History as First Lady: Powerful, but Not Always Deft. Peter. Baker. Amy. Chozick. The New York Times . December 5, 2014.
64. Book: Encyclopedia of Women in American Politics. Greenwood Publishing Group. 1999. 978-1-57356-131-0. 40–. Jeffrey D. Schultz.
65. News: Once Upon a Time in Arkansas: Rose Law Firm Billing Records . . October 7, 1997.
66. Web site: First first lady to win elected office . Guinness World Records . July 7, 2015.
67. Web site: Why Hillary's experience argument actually does check out — Medium. Medium.com. Nate White. June 28, 2016. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20160821202223/https://medium.com/%40natewhite11/why-hillary-s-experience-argument-actually-does-check-out-64cc9a439442#.swdfuutqn. August 21, 2016.
68. News: McGregor . Jena . Is Hillary Clinton's challenge that she's been set up for failure, or for success? . The Washington Post . November 28, 2015.
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71. Meredith, Robbie (January 2, 2020). "Hillary Clinton appointed chancellor of Queen's University, Belfast". BBC News. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
72. News: Hillary Clinton says she is an Electoral College elector in New York . . October 28, 2020.
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77. Web site: Michelle Obama. whitehouse.gov. en. January 2, 2015.
78. News: January 22, 2008 . The woman behind Obama . Rossi, Rosalind . . January 20, 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080215230648/http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/221458%2CCST-NWS-mich21.article . February 15, 2008 . dead .
79. Web site: May 18, 2008 . Academic Departments & Programs . The Trustees of Princeton University . 2008.
80. Web site: Michelle Obama surprises Oscars by presenting Best Picture award. February 25, 2013. February 24, 2013. Reuters.
81. Julian Hughes. July 1, 2015. "Obamas host first ever campout for Girl Scouts at the White House" CBS News. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
82. Web site: America, meet your new first lady. CNN. Diamond. Jeremy. November 10, 2016. November 20, 2016.
83. News: Melania to be 1st foreign-born First Lady since 1820s. November 9, 2016. The Hindu. November 9, 2016.
84. Web site: US election: Trump children - who is the new first family?. November 9, 2016. BBC News. November 9, 2016.
85. News: Puente. Maria. What kind of first lady will Melania Trump be?. April 4, 2017. USA Today. November 9, 2016.
86. Web site: Melania Trump makes first lady history with ride in Osprey aircraft. The Associated Press. December 16, 2018. Military Times. en-US. December 27, 2018.
87. Web site: Jill Biden will be historic first lady: Just call her 'Professor FLOTUS'. USA Today. December 17, 2020. Maria . Puente. November 10, 2020.
88. ISDA Staff (November 7, 2020). "Jill Biden Set to Become the First Italian American First Lady" Italian Sons & Daughters of America. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
89. Martichoux, Alix. November 7, 2020. "Joe Biden will bring first rescue dog to the White House" ABC7. Retrieved January 20, 2021.
90. News: First professor: Jill Biden to make history as a first lady with a day job . Nicole . Gaudiano . . November 12, 2020 . November 14, 2020 . December 23, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201223210419/https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/12/jill-biden-first-lady-professor-436363 . live .
91. News: Jill Biden is hitting the ground running – in all directions . Kate . Bennett . . February 20, 2021 . March 8, 2021.
92. Web site: Jill Biden: Charles' coronation was 'just amazing to see'. The Associated Press. May 6, 2023. NBC News. 2023-05-07. https://web.archive.org/web/20230601155625/https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/jill-biden-charles-coronation-was-just-amazing-see-rcna83205. June 1, 2023.
93. News: Henni . Janine . King Charles Welcomes President Joe Biden to Windsor Castle for First Formal Meeting of Royal Reign . 28 November 2023 . People.
94. Web site: Is Jill Biden the Oldest Sitting First Lady? . Dan. Evon . June 3, 2023 . June 16, 2023.
95. News: Hunter Biden found guilty on federal gun charges. Betsy Woodruff. Swan. Josh. Gerstein. Politico. June 11, 2024. June 11, 2024.