Caroline Harrison
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Caroline Harrison
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| In office March 4, 1889 – October 25, 1892 |
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| Preceded by | Frances Cleveland |
| Succeeded by | Frances Cleveland |
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| Born | October 1, 1832 Oxford, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | October 25, 1892 (aged 60) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Spouse | Benjamin Harrison |
| Children | Russell Benjamin Harrison Mary Scott Harrison McKee |
| Religion | Presbyterian |
Caroline Lavinia Scott Harrison (October 1, 1832 – October 25, 1892), wife of Benjamin Harrison, was First Lady of the United States from 1889 until her death. She was the first First Lady to be born in October.
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[edit] Early Life
"Carrie" Scott was born in Oxford, Ohio, the second daughter of the Reverend Dr. John W. Scott, a Presbyterian minister and educator, and Mary Potts Neal-Scott. Her father was professor of chemistry and physics at Farmers' College while Benjamin "Ben" Harrison was a student there. Through Dr. Scott, Ben and Carrie met in 1848. He was 14, she was 15.
[edit] Romance and Marriage
While Harrison attended Miami University in Oxford, Carrie was a student at the Oxford Female Institute, a school founded by her father. Over the next two years, Harrison spent so many evenings with her that he became known on campus as the "pious moonlight dude." By the time he graduated in 1852, they had become secretly engaged. They decided to postpone the wedding while he studied law in Cincinnati and she finished school at Oxford and taught music.
Harrison, aged 20, married Scott, aged 21, on October 20, 1853, at the home of the bride in Oxford. At her request, the wedding, performed by her father, was small and simple. The newlyweds honeymooned at North Bend, Ohio and settled in Indianapolis, Indiana. After early years of struggle while he established a law practice in Indianapolis, they enjoyed a happy family life interrupted only by the Civil War.
While General Harrison became a man of note in his profession, Carrie Harrison not only cared for their children, but also gave active service to the First Presbyterian Church and to an orphans' home, and extended hospitality to her many friends. Church views to the contrary, she saw no harm in private dancing lessons for her daughter--she liked dancing herself. Blessed with considerable artistic talent, she was an accomplished pianist; she especially enjoyed painting for recreation.
[edit] Children
The Harrisons had a son and a daughter:
- Russell Benjamin Harrison (1854-1936) - engineer, soldier, lawyer, state legislator. Born in Oxford, Ohio, he graduated with degree in mechanical engineering from Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, in 1877, and after brief employment with an Indianapolis gas company, was appointed assistant assayer at the U.S. Mint in New Orleans and later assayer at Helena, Montana. In 1884, he married May Saunders, daughter of Senator Alvin Saunders of Nebraska. A man of varied interests, he also raised livestock and published the "Helena Daily Journal". He served as private secretary to his father during Harrison's term as president. Subsequently he was president of a streetcar company in Terre Haute, Indiana. During the the Spanish-American War, he rose from major to lieutenant colonel of U.S. volunteers. At its conclusion, he prematurely hoisted the American flag over Morro Castle, Cuba, in violation of the surrender terms and thereby drew an official reprimand. He nevertheless was appointed inspector general for Santiago Territory and provost martial for Puerto Rico. Discharged from the army in 1900, he became a lawyer and served as Mexico's legal representative in the U.S. for many years. He also served in both houses of the Indiana state legislature.
- Mary "Mamie" Scott Harrison-McKee (1858-1930). Born in Indianapolis, she in 1884 married J. Robert McKee, later a founder and vice president of General Electric Company. She was assistant hostess at the White House during the Harrison administration.
[edit] First Lady of the United States
During the administration the Harrisons' daughter, Mary Harrison McKee, her two children, and other relatives lived at the White House. The First Lady tried in vain to have the overcrowded mansion enlarged and managed to assure an extensive renovation with up-to-date improvements. As First Lady, Mrs. Harrison secured $35,000 in appropriatations from Congress to renovate the White House. She purged the mansion of its growing rodent and insect population, laid new floors, installed new plumbing, painted and wallpapered, and added more bathrooms. In 1891 she installed electricity but was so frightened of it that she refused to handle the switches; instead, she left the lights on all night until the engineer came in to turn them off in the morning.
In 1889 she put up the first Christmas tree in the White House. She also introduced the custom of using orchids as the official floral decoration at state receptions. A talented artist herself, she conducted china-painting classes in the White House. She served as the first president-general of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She worked for local charities as well.
With other ladies of progressive views, she helped raise funds for the Johns Hopkins University Medical School on condition that it admit women. In 1890 helped found the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution and served as its first President General. She took a special interest in the history of the White House, and the mature dignity with which she carried out her duties may overshadow the fun-loving nature that had charmed "Ben" Harrison when they met as teenagers.The centennial of President Washington's inauguration heightened the nation's interest in its heroic past, and in 1890 Caroline Scott Harrison lent her prestige as First Lady to the founding of the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She served as its first President General.
[edit] Illness and Death
Mrs. Harrison was noted for her elegant White House receptions and dinners. In the winter of 1891-1892, however, she began to battle tuberculosis. At first, Mrs. Harrison tried to continue to fulfill her social obligations; but after her condition worsened, she traveled to spend the summer of 1892 in the Adirondack Mountains, in what had become an increasingly forlorn attempt to beat down the disease. After her condition became terminal, she and the President returned to the White House, where she died on October 25, 1892. After preliminary services in the East Room, she was returned home for a final funeral at her church in Indianapolis.
When the period of official mourning ended, Mrs. McKee acted as hostess for her father in the last months of his term. In 1896 Benjamin Harrison married his late wife's widowed niece and former secretary, Mary Scott Lord Dimmick.
[edit] References
- Original text based on White House biography
[edit] External links
| Honorary titles | ||
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| Preceded by Frances Cleveland |
First Lady of the United States 1889–1892 |
Succeeded by Mary Harrison McKee |
