The following is a list of works about the spouses of presidents of the United States. While this list is mainly about presidential spouses, administrations with a bachelor or widowed president have a section on the individual (usually a family member) that filled the role of First Lady. The list includes books and journal articles written in English after c. 1900 as well as primary sources written by the individual themselves.
The books included here were selected because they were either published by an academic press or major nationally known publisher or were reviewed in mainstream academic journals.[a] These works are generally intended for an adult audience; works specifically intended for a youth or children are not included.
Several presidents were unmarried for all or part of their administration.
Thomas Jefferson, Andrew Jackson, Chester A. Arthur, and Martin Van Buren were widowed prior to becoming president and remained unmarried during their administration; in these cases, family members acted in the place of First Lady and White House host.
James Buchanan was a life long bachelor and never married.
Grover Cleveland entered the White House as a bachelor, but married while in office.
Because this list also serves as a bibliography of first ladies, in these cases, when someone regularly filled the role of White House hostess and informal first lady while the president was unmarried, an entry is provided.
General works
Books
Abrams, J. E. (2018). First Ladies of the Republic: Martha Washington, Abigail Adams, Dolley Madison, and the Creation of an Iconic American Role. New York: NYU Press.[1]
Anthony, C. S. (1991). First Ladies: The Saga of the Presidents' Wives and Their Power (2 vols.). New York: William Morrow and Co.
Beasley, M. H. (2005). First ladies and the Press: The Unfinished Partnership for the Media Age. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press.[2]
Black, A. M. (2019). The First Ladies of the United States of America. Washington D.C.: White House Historical Association.
Brower, K. A. (2015). The Residence: Inside the Private World of The White House. New York: HarperCollins.
——. (2017). First Women: The Grace and Power of America's Modern First Ladies. New York: HarperCollins.
Burns, L. M. (2008). First Ladies and the Fourth Estate: Press Framing of Presidential Wives. DeKalb, IL: Northern Illinois University Press.[3][4]
Caroli, B. (2010). First Ladies: From Martha Washington to Michelle Obama. New York: Oxford University Press.[5]
Gullan, H. I. (2001). Faith of our Mothers: The Stories of Presidential Mothers from Mary Washington to Barbara Bush. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans.[b][6]
Hendricks, N. (2015). America's First Ladies: A Historical Encyclopedia and Primary Document Collection. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
Marton, K. (2001). Hidden Power: Presidential Marriages That Shaped Our History. New York: Pantheon.
Schwartz, M. J. (2017). Ties That Bound: Founding First Ladies and Slaves. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.[7][8]
Sibley, K. A. S. (2016). A Companion to First Ladies, (Wiley Blackwell Companions to American History). Chichester, MA: Wiley Blackwell.[c]
Swain, S. (2016). First Ladies: Presidential Historians on the Lives of 45 Iconic American Women. New York: PublicAffairs.
Truman, M. (1999). First Ladies. New York: Random House.
Watson, R. P. (2004). Life in the White House: A Social History of the First Family and the President's House. Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.
Wead, D. (2004). All The Presidents' Children: Triumph And Tragedy In The Lives Of America's First Families. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.[d]
Martha Washington, née Dandridge; (born June 2, 1731 – died May 22, 1802); (in position April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797); The wife of George Washington.
Books
Berkin, C. (2009). Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America's Independence. New York: Vintage Books.[9][10]
Brady, P. (2014). Martha Washington: An American Life. New York: Penguin Books.[11][12]
Bryan, H. (2002). Martha Washington: First Lady of Liberty. New York: Wiley.[13][14]
Chadwick, B. (2007). The General & Mrs. Washington: The Untold Story of a Marriage and a Revolution. Naperville, Ill: Sourcebooks.
Fraser, F. (2015). The Washingtons: George and Martha. "Join'd by Friendship, Crown'd by Love". New York: Knopf.
Norton, M. B. (1980). Liberty's Daughters: The Revolutionary Experience of American Women, 1750–1800. Glenview: Scott, Foresman & Co.[15][16]
Biographies of George Washington with significant information about Martha Washington
Chernow, R. (2010). Washington: A life. New York: Penguin Press.[17]
Flexner, J. T. (1965). George Washington (4 vols.). Boston: Little, Brown and Company.
Journal articles
Watson, R. (2000). Remembering Martha. OAH Magazine of History, 14(2), pp. 54–56.
Primary sources
Fields, J. E. (1994). Worthy Partner: The Papers of Martha Washington. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.[18][19]
Martha Washington letters. Collaborative project of George Washington's Mount Vernon and the Center for History and New Media.
Washington, G. (1997). George Washington: Writings (Library of America Founders Collection) (J. H. Rhodehamel, Ed.).. New York: Penguin Random House.
Akers, C. W. (2007). Abigail Adams: A Revolutionary American Woman (3rd edition). New York: Pearson Longman.[20][21]
Barker-Benfield, G.J. (2010). Abigail and John Adams: The Americanization of Sensibility. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
Ellis, Joseph J. (2010). First Family: Abigail and John Adams. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.
Gelles, E. B. (2009). Abigail and John: Portrait of a Marriage. New York: William Morrow.[22]
——. (2010). Portia: The World of Abigail Adams. Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press.[23][24]
——. (2017). Abigail Adams: A Writing Life. New York: Routledge.[25]
Gullan, H. I. (2001). Faith of our Mothers: The Stories of Presidential Mothers from Mary Washington to Barbara Bush. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans.[b][6]
Holton, W. (2009). Abigail Adams: A Life. New York: Free Press.[e][27][28]
Kaminski, J. P. (Ed.). (2009). The Quotable Abigail Adams. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press.
Keller, R. S. (1994). Patriotism and the Female Sex: Abigail Adams and the American Revolution. Brooklyn, N.Y: Carlson.[29]
Levin, P. L. (2001). Abigail Adams: A Biography. New York: St. Martin's Press.[30]
Nagel, P. C. (1987). The Adams Women: Abigail and Louisa Adams, Their Sisters and Daughters. New York: Oxford University Press.[31]
Norton, M. B. (1980). Liberty's Daughters: The Revolutionary Experience of American Women, 1750–1800. Glenview: Scott, Foresman & Co.[15][16]
Whitney, J. (2013). Abigail Adams. London: Harrap.[32][33]
Withey, L. (1981). Dearest Friend: A Life of Abigail Adams. New York: Atria Simon & Schuster.[34][35]
Biographies of John Adams with significant information about Abigal Adams
McCullough, D. G. (2001). John Adams. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Shields, D. S., & Fredrika J. T. (2015). The Court of Abigail Adams. Journal of the Early Republic35(2), pp. 227–235.
Primary sources
* Adams, J. (1997). John Adams: Writings (2 vols.) (Library of America Founders Collection) (G. S. Wood, Ed.). New York: Penguin Random House.
Adams, J., Cappon, L. J. (2012). The Adams-Jefferson Letters: The Complete Correspondence Between Thomas Jefferson and Abigail and John Adams. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press.
Adams, J., Adams, A., & Shuffelton, F. (Ed.). (2004). The letters of John and Abigail Adams. New York: Penguin Books.
Martha Jefferson, née Wayles; (born October 19 or 30, 1748 – died September 6, 1782); (in position: never); The wife of Thomas Jefferson. Martha Jefferson died before her husband assumed the presidency, so she never served as first lady. Since she died young (age 33) comparatively little is written about her independent of biographies of Thomas Jefferson.[f] Her daughter Martha served as informal first lady (see below).
Books
Holowchak, M. (2018). Jefferson and Women. Charlottesville, VA: Thomas Jefferson Heritage Society.
Hyland, W. G. (2014). Martha Jefferson: An intimate life with Thomas Jefferson. Lanham, MD: Rowman Littlefield.
Kukla, J. (2008). Mr. Jefferson's Women. New York: Vintage Books.[36][37]
Malone, D. (1993). Jefferson the Virginian. Boston: Little, Brown and Company. (Original work published 1948).[38]
William G. Hyland (1993). Jr. Martha Jefferson: An Intimate Life with Thomas Jefferson[39]
Fiction books
Kelly Joyce Neff. (1997) Dear Companion: The Inner Life of Martha Jefferson
Other
Watson, R. P., & Yon, R. M. (2002). The Unknown Presidential Wife: Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson. Ripton, VT: Jefferson Legacy Foundation.
Martha Jefferson Randolph
Martha Jefferson Randolph, née Jefferson; (born September 27, 1772 – died October 10, 1836); (in role: March 4, 1801 – March 4, 1809); She was the eldest daughter of Thomas Jefferson and his wife Martha Wayles Skelton Jefferson. By the time Jefferson was President, she was his only surviving child with his wife. Since Jefferson never remarried, she served as needed in her mother's place as White House hostess and informal first lady during Jefferson's administration.[g]
Books
Kierner, C. A. (2012). Martha Jefferson Randolph, Daughter of Monticello: Her Life and Times. Chapel Hill, NC: University of North Carolina Press.[40][41]
Wead, D. (2004). All The Presidents' Children: Triumph And Tragedy In The Lives Of America's First Families. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
Sibley, K. A. S. (2016). A Companion to First Ladies, (Wiley Blackwell Companions to American History). Chichester, MA: Wiley Blackwell.
Dolley Madison, née Payne; (born May 20, 1768 – died July 12, 1849; (in position: March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817); The wife of James Madison. There is a variety of ways her first name is spelled; depending on the era of writing a different form of her first name may be used. Dollie, appears to have been her given name at birth.[42] Her birth was registered with the New Garden Friends Meeting as Dolley and her will of 1841 uses Dolly.[43]
Books
Allgor, C. (2000). Parlor Politics: In Which the Ladies of Washington Help Build a City and a Government. Charlottesville: University Press of Virginia.[44][45][46]
Allgor, C. (2006). A Perfect Union: Dolley Madison and the Creation of the American Nation. New York: Henry Holt & Co.[47]
Allgor, C. (2012). Dolley Madison: The Problem of National Unity. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.[48][49]
Côté, R. N. (2005). Strength and Honor: The Life of Dolley Madison. Mt. Pleasant, SC: Corinthian Books.[50][51]
Howard, H. (2012). Mr. and Mrs. Madison's War: America's First Couple and the Second War of Independence. New York: Bloomsbury.
Cutts, L. B. (1970). Memoirs and Letters of Dolly Madison. Boston: Houghton Mifflin.
Madison, J. (1995). James Madison: Writings (Library of America Founders Collection) (J. N. Rakvoe, Ed.).. New York: Penguin Random House.
Mattern, D. B., & Shulman, H. C. (2003). The Selected Letters of Dolley Payne Madison. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press.
Biographies of James Madison with significant information about Dolley Madison
Brookhiser, R. (2013). James Madison. New York: Basic Books.[52]
Elizabeth Monroe
Elizabeth Jane Monroe, née Kortright; (born June 30, 1768 – died September 23, 1830); (in position: March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825); The wife of James Monroe.
Books
Ammon, H. (2008). James Monroe: The Quest for National Identity. Newtown, CT: American Political Biography Press.[h][53]
McGrath, T. (2020). James Monroe: A Life. New York: Penguin Random House.[i][54]
Louisa Adams
Louisa Adams, née Johnson; (born February 12, 1775 – died May 15, 1852); (in position March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829); The wife of John Quincy Adams. The mother of Charles Francis Adams (1807—1886). The first First Lady to be born outside of the United States or the American colonies.
Books
Nagel, P. (1987). The Adams Women: Abigail and Louisa Adams, Their Sisters and Daughters Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.[55][56]
O'Brien, M. (2010). Mrs. Adams in Winter: A Journey in the Last Days of Napoleon. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.[57]
Thomas, L. (2016). Louisa: The Extraordinary Life of Mrs. Adams. New York: Penguin Press.[58]
Adams, J. Q. (2017). John Quincy Adams: Writings (2 vols.) (Library of America Founders Collection) (D. Waldstreicher, Ed.).. New York: Penguin Random House.
Adams, L. C., et al. (2013). The Adams Papers. Diary and Autobiographical Writings of Louisa Catherine Adams. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press.
Hogan, M. A., Lane, L. (2014). A Traveled First Lady: Writings of Louisa Catherine Adams. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press. ISBN978-0674048010.[59]
Biographies of John Quincy Adams with significant information about Louisa Adams
Nagel, P. C. (2012). John Quincy Adams: A Public Life, A Private Life. New York: Knopf.[j][60]
Rachel Jackson
Rachel Jackson, née Donelson; June 15, 1767 – December 22, 1828; The wife of Andrew Jackson. The aunt of Emily Donelson (1807—1836). Rachel Jackson died just after Jackson's election but before his inauguration as President; she never served as First Lady. The role was assumed by her niece, Emily Donelson until 1834 and from then by Sarah Yorke Jackson, Jackson's daughter-in-law. She was the final first lady to be born before the Declaration of Independence.[k]
Biographies of Andrew Jackson with significant content on Rachel Jackson
Brands, H. W. (2005). Andrew Jackson: His Life and Times. New York: Knopf.
Cheathem, M. R. (2007). Old Hickory's Nephew: The political and private struggles of Andrew Jackson Donelson. Baton Rouge, LA: Louisiana State University Press. ISBN978-0807132388.
Remini, R. V. (1977/1981). Andrew Jackson and the Course of American Empire (Vols. 1–2). New York: Harper & Row.[l]
Sibley, K. A. S. (2016). A Companion to First Ladies, (Wiley Blackwell Companions to American History). Chichester, MA: Wiley Blackwell.
Spence, R. D. (2017). Andrew Jackson Donelson: Jacksonian and Unionist. Nashville: Vanderbilt University Press. ISBN978-0826521637.[m]
Emily Donelson
Emily Donelson, née none; (born June 1, 1807 – died December 19, 1836); (in position March 4, 1829 – November 26, 1834); The niece of Andrew Jackson. She served as acting First Lady and White House host in the place of her mother, Rachel Jackson.[n]
Books
Burke, P. W. (1941). Emily Donelson of Tennessee (2 vols.). Richmond, VA: Garrett and Massie.[61][62][63]
Sibley, K. A. S. (2016). A Companion to First Ladies, (Wiley Blackwell Companions to American History). Chichester, MA: Wiley Blackwell.
Wead, D. (2004). All The Presidents' Children: Triumph And Tragedy In The Lives Of America's First Families. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
Sarah Yorke Jackson
Sarah Jackson, née Yorke; (born July 16, 1803 – died August 23, 1887); (in position November 26, 1834 – March 4, 1837); The daughter-in-law of Andrew Jackson; she served as White House hostess and acting First Lady in the place of her mother in law.
Relatively little has been written about Sarah York Jackson. For information about her, see the Bibliography of Andrew Jackson.
Hannah Van Buren
Hannah Van Buren, née Hoes; (born March 8, 1783 – died February 5, 1819); The wife of Martin Van Buren. She died before Van Buren was elected President, so never held the position of First Lady. Acting as First Lady and White House host in her place was her daughter in law, Sarah Van Buren. Because she died at age 35 before Martin Van Buren became widely known, very little is known about her.[n]
Books
Black, A. M. (2019). The First Ladies of the United States of America. Washington D.C.: White House Historical Association.
Sibley, K. A. S. (2016). A Companion to First Ladies, (Wiley Blackwell Companions to American History). Chichester, MA: Wiley Blackwell.
Sarah Angelica Van Buren, née Singleton; February 13, 1818 – December 29, 1877; The daughter in law of Martin Van Buren. She was married to the President's son, Abraham Van Buren and served as acting First Lady and White House host in the place of her mother in law, Hannah Van Buren.[n]
Books
Sibley, K. A. S. (2016). A Companion to First Ladies, (Wiley Blackwell Companions to American History). Chichester, MA: Wiley Blackwell.
Wead, D. (2004). All The Presidents' Children: Triumph And Tragedy In The Lives Of America's First Families. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
Anna Tuthill Harrison, née Symmes; July 25, 1775 – February 25, 1864; The wife of William Henry Harrison and grandmother of Benjamin Harrison. Since Harrison died less than a month into his term in office, she is the individual who spent the shortest time as First Lady. She was too ill to travel from Ohio to Washington, D.C., when her husband became President, so Jane Irwin Harrison, Harrison's daughter-in-law, served as White House hostess during his short time in office.[n]
Letitia Christian Tyler, née Christian; November 12, 1790 – September 10, 1842; The wife of John Tyler. When John Tyler became the first vice president to ascend to the presidency, Letitia Tyler became First Lady. She was the first of three people to die while in the position.
Relatively little has been written about Letitia Tyler. For information about her, see the Bibliography of John Tyler
Priscilla Tyler
Priscilla Cooper Tyler, née Cooper; June 14, 1816 – December 29, 1889; The daughter in law of John Tyler. She was married to the President's son, Robert Tyler and served as acting First Lady and White House host after the death of her mother in law, Letitia Tyler, from September, 1842 – March, 1844.[n]
Relatively little has been written about Priscilla Tyler. For information about her, see the Bibliography of John Tyler.
Letitia Semple
Letitia "Letty" Christian Semple, née Tyler; May 11, 1821 – December 28, 1907; The daughter of John Tyler. She served as acting First Lady and White House host from March, 1844 – June 26, 1844, after her sister in law, Priscilla Tyler left the White House. She was succeeded in the position by Tyler's second wife Julia.[n]
Relatively little has been written about Letitia Semple. For information about her, see the Bibliography of John Tyler.
Julia Tyler
Julia Gardiner Tyler, née Gardiner; May 4, 1820 – July 10, 1889; The daughter in law of Martin Van Buren. She was the second wife of John Tyler. She served the second shortest period of time as First Lady after Anna Harrison, from June 26, 1844, to March 4, 1845.
Relatively little has been written about Margaret Taylor. For information about her, see the Bibliography of Zachary Taylor.
Abigail Fillmore
Abigail Fillmore, née Powers; March 13, 1798 – March 30, 1853; She was the wife of Millard Fillmore. She was the final first lady to be born in the eighteenth century.
Biographies of Millard Fillmore with significant information on Abigail Fillmore
Rayback, Robert J. (2015). Millard Fillmore: Biography of a President. Newtown, CT: American Political Biography Press.
Scarry, R. J. (2001). Millard Fillmore. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Co.
Harriet Rebecca Lane Johnston, née Lane; May 9, 1830 – July 3, 1903; She was the niece of James Buchanan. Buchanan was never married and Harriet Lane acted as First Lady during his presidency.
Relatively little has been written about Harriet Lane. For information about her, see the Bibliography of James Buchanan.
Baker, J. H. (1987). Mary Todd Lincoln: A Biography. New York: W.W. Norton & Company.[65][66][67]
Clinton, C. (2010). Mrs. Lincoln: A Life. New York Harper Perennial.
Ellison, B. B. (2014). The True Mary Todd Lincoln: A Biography. Jefferson, NC: McFarland & Company.[68]
Emerson, J., & Brust, J. S. (2014). The Madness of Mary Lincoln. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press.[69][70][71]
McDermott, S. P. (2015). Mary Lincoln: Southern Girl, Northern Woman. New York: Routledge.
Neely, M. E., & McMurtry, R. G. (2014). The Insanity File: The Case of Mary Todd Lincoln. Carbondale, IL: Southern Illinois University Press.[72]
Randall, R. P. (1953). Mary Lincoln: Biography of a Marriage. Boston: Little, Brown and Co.[73][74]
Simmons, D. L. (1970). A Rose for Mrs. Lincoln: A Biography of Mary Todd Lincoln. Boston: Beacon.[75]
Williams, F. J. (2012). The Mary Lincoln Enigma: Historians on America's most controversial First Lady. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press.[76]
Nell Arthur, née Herndon; August 30, 1837 – January 12, 1880; She was the wife of Chester A. Arthur, but died two years before he became President, so never assumed the position.
Mary Arthur McElroy, née Arthur; July 5, 1841— January 8, 1917; She was the sister of Chester A. Arthur; she assumed the role of acting First Lady in the place of Arthur's deceased wife.
Frances Clara Cleveland Preston, née Folsom; date – date; She was the wife of Grover Cleveland. She was the youngest person (age 21) to fill the position of First Lady and is one of two who remarried after the deaths of their Presidential husbands and one of two First Ladies to marry a sitting President.
Relatively little has been written about Frances Cleveland. For information about her, see the Bibliography of Grover Cleveland.
Rose Cleveland
Rose Elizabeth Cleveland, née Name; date – date; She was the sister of Grover Cleveland. Since Cleveland entered the White House unmarried, Rose Cleveland served as acting First Lady and White House host until her brother married fourteen months into his first term. She is the only LGBTQ individual to serve in the position of First Lady and White House hostess.
Mary Harrison McKee, née Harrison; April 3, 1858 – October 28, 1930; She was the daughter of Benjamin Harrison. She assumed the role of acting First Lady after the death of her mother.
Anthony, C. S. (2013). Ida McKinley: The Turn-of-the-Century First Lady through War, Assassination, and Secret Disability. Kent, OH: The Kent State University Press.[77]
Taft, W. H., & Gould, L. L. (2011). My dearest Nellie: The letters of William Howard Taft to Helen Herron Taft, 1909-1912. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.
Ellen Louise Axson Wilson, née Axson; May 15, 1860 – August 6, 1914; She was the first wife of Woodrow Wilson. She died in 1914 and was succeeded as First Lady (acting) by her daughter, Margaret.
Biographies of Woodrow Wilson with significant information about Ellen Axson Wilson
Berg, A. S. (2013). Wilson. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Bragdon, Henry W. (1967). Woodrow Wilson: the Academic Years. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press.
Cooper, John Milton Jr. (2009). Woodrow Wilson. New York: Knopf Doubleday
Link, A. S. (1947–1965), Wilson (5 vols.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Mulder, John H. (1978). Woodrow Wilson: The Years of Preparation. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Margaret Woodrow Wilson, née Wilson; April 16, 1886 – February 12, 1944; She was the daughter of Woodrow Wilson and filled in for her mother Ellen as acting First Lady until her father remarried in 1915.
Relatively little has been written about Margaret Woodrow Wilson. For information about her, see the Bibliography of Woodrow Wilson.
Anthony, Carl Sferranza (1998). Florence Harding: The First Lady, The Jazz Age, and the Death of America's Most Scandalous President. New York: W. Morrow & Company.
Sibley, Katherine A. S. (2009). First Lady Florence Harding: Behind the Tragedy and Controversy. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[84][85]
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, née Roosevelt; (born October 11, 1884 – died November 7, 1962); (in position March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945); She was the wife of Franklin Roosevelt. Because her husband was the longest serving President, Eleanor Roosevelt is the longest serving First Lady.
Elizabeth Virginia Truman, née Wallace; (born February 13, 1885 – died October 18, 1982); (in position April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953 ); She was the wife of Harry S. Truman.
Books
Sale, S. L. (2010). Bess Wallace Truman: Harry's White House "boss". Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[91]
Truman, M. (2014). Bess Truman. Newbury CT: New Word City.[92]
Primary sources
Truman, H. S., & Ferrell, R. H. (1997). Off the Record: The Private Papers of Harry S. Truman. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.[93][94]
Truman, H. S., Truman, B. W., & Ferrell, R. H. (1998). Dear Bess: The Letters from Harry to Bess Truman, 1910-1959. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.[95]
Levantrosser, W. F. (1986). Harry S. Truman: The Man from Independence. New York: Greenwood Press.[96]
McCullough, D. (1992). Truman. New York: Simon & Schuster.[97]
Truman, H. S., & Ferrell, R. H. (2002). The Autobiography of Harry S. Truman. Columbia: University of Missouri Press.[98][99]
Mamie Eisenhower
Mamie Geneva Eisenhower, née Doud; (born November 14, 1896 – died November 1, 1979); (in position January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961); She was the wife of Dwight Eisenhower. She was the last First Lady to be born in the nineteenth century.
Books
Eisenhower, S. (1997). Mrs. Ike: Memories and reflections on the life of Mamie Eisenhower. Albany, NY: Ferrous Books.[100]
Holt, M. I. (2007). Mamie Doud Eisenhower: The General's First Lady. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[101][102]
Brennan, M. C. (2011). Pat Nixon: Embattled First Lady. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[108]
Eisenhower, J. N. (1986). Pat Nixon: The Untold Story. New York: Simon & Schuster.
David, L. (1978). The Lonely Lady of San Clemente: The Story of Pat Nixon. New York: Berkley Publishing.
Swift, W. (2014). Pat and Dick: The Nixons, An Intimate Portrait of a Marriage. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Biographies of Richard Nixon with significant information about Pat Nixon
Farrell, J. A. (2017). Richard Nixon: The Life. New York: Doubleday.
Thomas, E. (2016). Being Nixon: A Man Divided. New York: Random House.
Betty Ford
Elizabeth Anne Ford, née Bloomer, formerly Warren; (born April 8, 1918 – died July 8, 2011); (in position August 9, 1974 – January 20, 1977); She was the wife of Gerald R. Ford.
Books
McCubbin, L. (2019). Betty Ford: First Lady, Women's Advocate, Survivor, Trailblazer. New York :Gallery Books.
Greene, J. R. (2019). Betty Ford: Candor and Courage in the White House. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[109]
Biographies of Gerald Ford with significant information about Betty Ford
Cannon, J., & Cannon, S. (2014). Gerald R. Ford: An Honorable Life. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
Rosalynn Carter
Eleanor Rosalynn Carter, née Smith; (born August 18, 1927 – died November 19, 2023); (in position January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981); She was the wife of Jimmy Carter.
Books
Godbold, E. S. (2010). Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter: The Georgia Years, 1924-1974. New York: Oxford University Press.[110]
Kaufman, S. (2007). Rosalynn Carter: Equal Partner in the White House. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[111][112]
Carter, J. (2015). A Full Life: Reflections at Ninety. New York: Simon & Schuster.
Carter, R. (1994). First Lady from Plains. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press.[113]
Biographies of Jimmy Carter with significant information about Rosalynn Carter
Balmer, R. (2014). Redeemer: The Life of Jimmy Carter. New York: Basic Books.[114]
Eizenstat, S., & Albright, M. K. (2020). President Carter: The White House Years. New York: St. Martin's Press.
Nancy Reagan
Nancy Davis Reagan, née Robbins, later Davis (adoption); (born July 6, 1921 – died March 6, 2016); (in position January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989); She was the wife of Ronald Reagan.
Books
Benze, James G. (2005). Nancy Reagan: On the White House Stage. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[115]
Deaver, M. K. (2004). Nancy: A Portrait of My Years with Nancy Reagan. New York: William Morrow.
Leamer, L. (1983). Make-Believe: The Story of Nancy and Ronald Reagan. New York: HarperCollins.[116]
Loizeau, P. M. (2004). Nancy Reagan: The Woman Behind the Man. Hauppauge, NY: Nova Publishers.
Loizeau, P. M. (2005). Nancy Reagan in Perspective. Hauppauge, NY: Nova Publishers.
Schifando, P., & Joseph, J. (2007). Entertaining at the White House with Nancy Reagan. New York: William Morrow.
Wertheimer, M. M. (2004). Nancy Reagan in Perspective. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.
Reagan, N., & Libby, B. (1980). Nancy: The Autobiography of America's First Lady. New York: HarperCollins.
Reagan, N., & Novak, W. (1989). My Turn: The Memoirs of Nancy Reagan. New York: Random House.
Reagan, N., & Reagan, R. (2002). I Love You, Ronnie: The Letters of Ronald Reagan to Nancy Reagan. New York: Random House.
Biographies of Ronald Reagan with significant information about Nancy Reagan
Cannon, Lou (2003). Governor Reagan: His Rise to Power. New York: Public Affairs.[117]
Cannon, L. (2008). President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime. New York: PublicAffairs.
Barbara Bush
Barbara Pierce Bush, née Pierce; (born June 8, 1925 – died April 17, 2018); (in position January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993); She was the wife of George H. W. Bush. She is one of two individuals to be both a wife and mother of a President.
Books
Gullan, H. I. (2001). Faith of our Mothers: The Stories of Presidential Mothers from Mary Washington to Barbara Bush. Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans.[b][6]
Kelley, K. (2005). The Family: The Real Story of the Bush Dynasty. New York: Anchor Books.[118]
Killian, P. (2003). Barbara Bush: Matriarch of a Dynasty. New York: St. Martin's Press.
Myra, G. G. (2018). Barbara Bush: Presidential Matriarch. Lawrence, KS: University Press of Kansas.[119]
Page, S. (2019). The Matriarch: Barbara Bush and the Making of an American Dynasty. New York: Twelve.
Radcliffe, D. (1990). Simply Barbara Bush: A Portrait of America's Candid First Lady. New York: Warner Books.[120]
Bush, B. (1994). Barbara Bush: A Memoir. New York: Scribner.
Bush, B. (2004). Reflections: Life After the White House. New York: Scribner.
Biographies of George H. W. Bush with significant information about Barbara Bush
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton, née Rodham; October 26, 1947; She is the wife of Bill Clinton. After her time as First Lady, she became a United States Senator and later Secretary of State. She is the only First Lady to have held national office. She became the first woman to run for President on a major party ticket and the first First Lady to run for President in 2016.
Melania Trump, née Knavs, born Melanija Knavs; April 26, 1970; She is the wife of Donald Trump. She is the second first lady, after Louisa Adams, born outside the United States.
Books
Journal articles
Primary sources
Biographies of with significant information about Melania Trump
^Where exceptions to inclusion criteria exist, the reason will be explained in a footnote.
^ abcThis contains information on Abigail Adams, Barabra Bush. Unfortunately it does not contain information about Anna Harrison.
^760pp. This is the most extensive general work on the First Ladies and the best source for information about lesser known First Ladies.
^This book is include both for the information it contains about Presidential spouses and because several Presidential children stood in as acting First Lady and White House host in the place of a deceased spouse.
^While most biographies of Jefferson contain some information about his personal life, the biographies listed here contain substantial information about his personal life and details about his wife.
^Since this list also serves as a bibliography of first ladies, this entry is included.
^A biography of James Madison, contains basic information about Elizabeth Monroe's relationship with James, but nothing about her independent of him.
^A personal as well as political biography of James Monroe that contains significant information about Elizabeth Monroe.
^A personal and political biography of John Quincy Adams that contains significant information about Louisa Adams.
^All biographies of Andrew Jackson mention Rachel and will focus on the circumstances of her first marriage and the aftermath. The biographies below go into more detail than this single aspect of her life.
^Contains a significant amount of information about Rachel Jackson and the Donelson family.
^Andrew Jackson Donelson was the nephew of Rachel Jackson. She and Andrew adopted him at a young age and raised him. This book has information about Rachel from the period of his upbringing.
^ abcdefAlthough she did not live to become First Lady, many general works about First Ladies contain information about her.
^Includes Mary Todd's letters during her confinement at the sanitorium in Bellevue and those following her 1876 release.
^Contains a great deal of information about both Julia Grant and the Dent family.
^Conger, Vivian Bruce; Schwartz, Marie Jenkins (2018). "Reviewed work: Ties That Bound: Founding First Ladies and Slaves, SchwartzMarie Jenkins". The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography. 126 (4): 467–468. JSTOR26538019.
^Gundersen, J. R. (2006). "Revolutionary Mothers: Women in the Struggle for America's Independence". Journal of American History. 93: 191. doi:10.2307/4486090. JSTOR4486090.
^Sheldon, Richard N. (1994). "Reviewed work: "Worthy Partner": The Papers of Martha Washington, Joseph E. Fields". Washington History. 6 (2): 88–89. JSTOR40073420.
^Gelles, Edith; Keller, Rosemary (1996). "Patriotism and the Female Sex: Abigail Adams and the American Revolution". The Journal of American History. 82 (4): 1559. doi:10.2307/2945338. JSTOR2945338.
^Beard, Mary R. (1948). "Reviewed work: Abigail Adams, Janet Whitney". The Mississippi Valley Historical Review. 34 (4): 680–681. doi:10.2307/1902479. JSTOR1902479.
^McDonald, Christine Coalwell (2014). "Reviewed work: Martha Jefferson Randolph, Daughter of Monticello: Her Life and Times, Cynthia A. Kierner". Journal of the Early Republic. 34 (2): 290–292. doi:10.1353/jer.2014.0033. JSTOR24486695. S2CID145449040.
^Lasser, Carol (2013). "Reviewed work: Martha Jefferson Randolph, Daughter of Monticello: Her Life and Times, Cynthia A. Kierner". The North Carolina Historical Review. 90 (2): 220–221. JSTOR23523929.
^Allgor, 415–16; Richard N. Cote, Strength and Honor: the Life of Dolly Madison (Mount Pleasant, S.C.: Corinthian Books, 2005), 36–37
^Papers of Notable Virginia Families, Special Collections, University of Virginia Library, Charlottesville Virginia, United States.
^Hackett, Mary A. (2006). "Reviewed work: A Perfect Union: Dolley Madison and the Creation of the American Nation, Catherine Allgor". The Virginia Quarterly Review. 82 (4): 267. JSTOR26444637.
^Thornton, Tamara Plakins; Thomas, Louisa (2017). "Reviewed work: Louisa: The Extraordinary Life of MRS. Adams, THOMASLOUISA". Early American Literature. 52 (3): 834–838. doi:10.1353/eal.2017.0078. JSTOR90014945. S2CID165837723.
^Monkman, Betty C. (2015). "Reviewed work: Louisa Catherine: The Other MRS. Adams, Margery M. Heffron; A Traveled First Lady: Writings of Louisa Catherine Adams, Margaret A. Hogan, C. James Taylor". The New England Quarterly. 88 (1): 172–174. doi:10.1162/TNEQ_r_00446. JSTOR24718213.
^Toland (2015). "Review: The True Mary Todd Lincoln: A Biography". Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society. 108 (3–4): 415. doi:10.5406/jillistathistsoc.108.3-4.0415.
^Baker, Jean (2008). "Reviewed work: The Madness of Mary Lincoln, Jason Emerson". Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association. 29 (2): 80–83. JSTOR20149136.
^McDermott, Stacy Pratt (2015). "Reviewed work: The Mary Lincoln Enigma: Historians on America's Most Controversial First Lady, Frank J. Williams, Michael Burkhimer". Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association. 36 (1): 70–73. JSTOR26290247.
^Laura Van Assendelft (2014). "Review: Ida McKinley: The Turn-of-the-Century First Lady". Indiana Magazine of History. 110 (4): 398. doi:10.5378/indimagahist.110.4.0398.
^Chessman, G. Wallace (1981). "Reviewed work: Edith Kermit Roosevelt: Portrait of a First Lady, Sylvia Jukes Morris". The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society. 79 (4): 396–398. JSTOR23379650.
^Beasley, Maurine H. (1995). "Reviewed work: Lou Henry Hoover: Essays on a Busy Life., Dale C. Mayer". The Journal of American History. 81 (4): 1792–1793. doi:10.2307/2081804. JSTOR2081804.
^Bucy, Carole Stanford (2008). "Reviewed work: Mamie Doud Eisenhower: The General's First Lady, Marilyn Irvin Holt; Rosalynn Carter: Equal Partner in the White House, Scott Kaufman". The Register of the Kentucky Historical Society. 106 (1): 145–149. JSTOR23387222.