Mary Todd Lincoln

Mary Todd Lincoln, born on December thirteenth, eighteen eighteen, served as the First Lady of the United States from eighteen sixty-one until the tragic assassination of her husband, President Abraham Lincoln, in eighteen sixty-five. Hailing from a prominent and affluent slave-owning family in Kentucky, Mary never owned slaves herself and eventually became an opponent of slavery. After completing her education at a finishing school in her late teens, she relocated to Springfield, Illinois, where she lived with her married sister, Elizabeth Todd Edwards, the spouse of a congressman.

Before her marriage to Abraham Lincoln, Mary was courted by Stephen A. Douglas, a long-time political rival of her future husband. Throughout Lincoln's presidency, she was a steadfast supporter of his career and political aspirations, playing a crucial role in maintaining national morale during the American Civil War. As the White House social coordinator, she organized extravagant balls and undertook significant redecorating of the White House, which often drew criticism due to the high costs involved.

Mary was present with Abraham when he was assassinated at Ford's Theatre in Washington, D.C., on April fourteenth, eighteen sixty-five. The couple had four sons, but only the eldest, Robert, survived both parents. The loss of her husband and three sons deeply affected her, particularly the sudden death of young Thomas, known as Tad, in eighteen seventy-one, shortly after they had traveled together following Robert's marriage.

Mary Todd Lincoln faced numerous physical and mental health challenges throughout her life, including frequent headaches that worsened after a head injury in eighteen sixty-three. It is believed she suffered from depression or possibly bipolar disorder, leading to a brief institutionalization for psychiatric illness in eighteen seventy-five. Following this period, she spent several years traveling in Europe before returning to her sister's home in Springfield, where she passed away in eighteen eighty-two at the age of sixty-three. She is interred alongside her husband and three younger sons in the Lincoln Tomb, a designated National Historic Landmark.