Eliza Johnson
(née McCardle; October 4, 1810 – January 15, 1876) was the first lady of the
United States from 1865 to 1869 as the wife of President Andrew Johnson.
Johnson was relatively inactive as first lady, and she stayed out of public
attention for the duration of her husband's presidency. She was the youngest
first lady to wed, doing so at the age of 16.
Johnson significantly contributed to her husband's early
career, providing him with an education and encouraging him to strengthen his
oratory skills and seek office. Johnson did not participate in the social
aspects of politics, however, remaining at home while her husband took office.
During the American Civil War, she was forced from her home for her family's
Unionist loyalties. She was affected by tuberculosis throughout much of her
life, and what activity she did choose to undertake was limited due to her
health.
Johnson was briefly the second lady of the United States
before becoming the first lady, as her husband was Vice President of the United
States until the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. After becoming the first
lady, Johnson delegated the role's social duties to her daughter Martha Johnson
Patterson. Though she only made two public appearances during her tenure as
first lady, Johnson was a strong influence on her husband, and he would consult
her regularly for advice. Johnson returned to her home of Greeneville,
Tennessee with her family after leaving the White House, living a quiet
retirement. She died six months after her husband and was buried beside him.
Early life and
marriage
Eliza McCardle was born in Greeneville, Tennessee on October
4, 1810. She was the only child of John McCardle, a shoemaker, and Sarah
Phillips. The family moved to Warrensburg, Tennessee while McCardle was young,
but they returned to Greeneville following her father's death. McCardle was
raised by her widowed mother, who financially supported her by weaving and
taught her to read and write. McCardle attended school and received a basic
education. She is believed to have attended the Rhea Academy in Greenville.
McCardle met Andrew Johnson when his family moved to
Greeneville in September 1826. She is said to have first seen him while talking
amongst her friends, who began to tease her when she expressed her interest in
the tailor's apprentice. McCardle and Johnson began courting almost
immediately. The Johnsons left the city later that year, and the couple
exchanged letters under he returned in 1827. They married on May 17, 1827.
Mordecai Lincoln, the cousin once removed of Abraham Lincoln, presided over the
nuptials. McCardle was 16-years-old, making her the youngest to marry of all
the first ladies of the United States. After marrying, the couple moved into a
two room house, where one of the rooms served as a tailor shop.
Eliza Johnson provided her husband much of his formal
education, though a common myth suggests that she even taught him to read and
write. They had five children together: Martha in 1828, Charles in 1830, Mary
in 1832, Robert in 1834, and Frank in 1852. Once they began having children,
much of Johnson's time was spent tending to the household while her husband operated
his tailor shop. In 1831, they purchased a larger home as well as a separate
facility for the shop. They moved to a larger home again in 1851.
Politician's wife
Antebellum years
With Johnson's encouragement, her husband sought political
office. She played a large role in his early political career, assisting him in
his education and his oratory skill. As he attained higher political offices,
Johnson avoided the social role associated with a politician's wife, instead
tending to their home. By this point, the household included eight or nine
slaves. It is unknown how Johnson felt about owning slaves. As Johnson's children came of age, she enjoyed
seeing her daughters seek husbands and start families of their own. At the same
time, her two older sons became a cause of stress as they were affected by
alcoholism.
While at home, Johnson was responsible for managing the
family's finances, including their many investments. Though she did not
accompany her husband when he traveled for his work, she supported him,
providing encouragement and helping him with his speeches. She suffered from
tuberculosis, causing her to become infirm. Her health improved and worsened in
turn over the following years, but she never fully recovered. She eventually
traveled to Washington, D.C. in 1860 with her sons, staying until the American
Civil War began the following year.
American Civil War
During the war, Johnson became an advocate for Unionists
that lived in the Confederate States of America. She was forced to move after
the Confederate States Army occupied the region. The Johnson home was captured
by Confederate forces, and she was forced to move to her daughter Mary's farm.
While initially ordered to vacate the entire region within 36 hours in May
1862, she replied "I cannot comply with
the requirement", and she was granted an additional five months.
Johnson eventually made the three week journey to Nashville,
Tennessee, during which she was harassed and threatened for being the wife of a
Unionist senator. The journey severely affected her health, but upon arriving
in Nashville she reunited with her husband, who she had not seen in almost a year.
She later traveled north, passing through Confederate lines without escort,
going to Ohio and Indiana to visit her children. She returned to Nashville in
May 1863. The Johnsons' eldest son, Charles, was killed later that year after
being thrown from his horse. She had little reprieve in Nashville, rarely
seeing her husband, especially after he began campaigning in the 1864
presidential election. Johnson's husband was sworn in as the Vice President of
the United States in March 1865.
First Lady of the
United States
Johnson traveled to Washington with her surviving children,
her son-in-law David T. Patterson, and her grandchildren. They arrived on August
6, 1865. After arriving, she chose a room on the second floor directly
opposite the president's office. Johnson was not able to serve effectively as
first lady due to her poor health, and she remained largely confined to her
bedroom, leaving the social chores to her daughter Martha. Though she disliked
being the president's wife, she enjoyed the fact that her entire family all
lived together.
Johnson would receive her husband's guests at the White
House, but she appeared publicly as first lady on only two occasions: a
celebration for Queen Emma of Hawaii in 1866 and a children's ball for the
president's sixtieth birthday in 1868. In both instances, she remained seated
while receiving guests. She also received many letters from the public while
she was the first lady, often asking for political favors or access to the
president. Her correspondences were managed by daughter and the White House
staff. Though she was not active publicly, Johnson was able to regularly engage
in activities with her family with some assistance.
While living in the White House, Johnson spent her time
sewing, knitting, and reading. Each day, she would roam the White House
residence, checking on her husband and the staff or spending time with her
grandchildren. She was close to the staff, treating both the white and black
servants "as members of the
household". Johnson took up causes of her own, including a financial
contribution to orphanages in Baltimore, Maryland and Charleston, South
Carolina. She also managed to travel while she was first lady, visiting nearby
cities such as Boston, New York, and Philadelphia in 1867.
Johnson did not have an active role in the politics of her
husband's administration, though she gave him full support during his
presidency, including during his impeachment. She took an interest in the proceedings,
and the president would visit her each morning for her advice. She held a
strong influence over the president, and he regularly considered her advice.
She regularly monitored newspaper coverage of the presidency, clipping stories
that she felt deserved the president's attention. She sorted them each day,
showing him positive stories each night and then negative stories the following
morning.
Johnson assisted the president with his speeches as she did
in his previous political positions, and she worked to prevent the outbursts
caused by his temper. She feared for her husband's safety during his
presidency, as the assassination of Abraham Lincoln was still in recent memory.
In one letter, her daughter Martha described her as "almost deranged" with worry that her husband would be
assassinated as well. Despite her illness, she would still tend to her husband
in certain areas, selecting his wardrobe for him and ensuring he was satisfied
with the food provided for him. Johnson disliked living in the White House,
and she was glad when her husband's term ended.
Later life and death
The Johnsons returned to Greenville after leaving the White
House in March 1869. Their son Robert took his own life the following month.
Johnson lived a quieter life after ending her tenure as first lady, often
spending her time with her children and grandchildren. She enjoyed a level of
independence, sometimes traveling without her husband. Her health declined by
the time her husband was elected to the United States Senate in 1875, and she
moved in with her daughter Mary. She was widowed shortly afterward on July 31,
1875. Johnson's poor health and her grief prevented her from attending the
funeral. She died on January 15, 1876. Her death occurred six months after
that of her husband, and she was buried beside him.
Legacy
Johnson was one of the least active first ladies, playing
little role in the political or social aspects of the White House. Her
influence was that of an educator and adviser to her husband. She did not
meaningfully change the position of first lady during her tenure. Historians
generally describe Johnson as unassuming and unable to fulfill the role of
first lady, but also as a capable intellectual partner for her husband. Though
her husband's reputation declined considerably over the following century,
Johnson's reputation as first lady remained largely unchanged. Johnson's
personal papers have been lost, in large part due to the Civil War. Most
primary documents associated with her are among her husband's papers. In the
1982 Siena College Research Institute poll of historians, Johnson was ranked as
the 21st of 42 first ladies.
Johnson returned to the practice common among 19th century
first ladies in which she allowed a younger surrogate to perform much of her
duties, reestablishing the practice after the highly public tenure of her predecessor
Mary Todd Lincoln. She would be the last first lady to invoke illness in this
fashion until Ida Saxton McKinley much later. Johnson may have avoided public
attention specifically because of the intense criticism levied at her
predecessor and the potential for similar criticism given her husband's
controversial presidency. She may also have feared that she lacked the social
talents required of a hostess. By the end of her tenure, she was described as "almost a myth" due to her limited
public contact.
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