Caroline Harrison
Caroline Lavinia Harrison (née Scott; October 1, 1832 – October 25, 1892) was an American music teacher and the first lady of the United States from 1889 until her death. She was married to President Benjamin Harrison, and she was the second first lady to die while serving in the role.
Caroline Harrison
Mary Harrison McKee (acting)
Office established
Mary Virginia Ellet Cabell (Vice President presiding)
October 25, 1892 (aged 60)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
- John Witherspoon Scott (father)
The daughter of a college professor, Harrison was well-educated, and she expressed interest in art, music, and literature throughout her life. She married Benjamin Harrison in 1853 and taught music while he engaged in a legal and political career. She was heavily involved in the community, working at her church, participating in charity work, and managing local institutions such as an orphanage and a women's club. During the Civil War, she contributed to the war effort through women's volunteer groups. When her husband was nominated for the presidency, she was a hostess as her home became the center of a front porch campaign.
As first lady, Harrison took little interest in her duties as hostess and dedicated much of her time to charity work. She was in favor of women's rights, and she co-founded the Daughters of the American Revolution, serving as its first President General. Harrison engaged in a major undertaking to renovate the White House, having much of its interior and utilities entirely redone. These renovations included the addition of electricity, though the family declined to use it for fear of electrocution. Her plans for the White House would later influence the construction of the East Wing and the West Wing. She also took inventory of furnishings and other possessions kept in the White House, beginning the practice of White House historical preservation.
Civil War and senator's wife[edit]
Harrison experienced periods of loneliness and depression as her husband began his political career, for he was often away and their marriage was neglected. This was exacerbated by the onset of the Civil War, at which time both Caroline and Benjamin sought to help in the war effort.[5]: 153 Caroline joined volunteer groups such as the Ladies Patriotic Association and the Ladies Sanitary Committee. When visiting her husband at the soldiers' camp, she would mend uniforms and perform other chores, and when at home in Indianapolis, she would tend to wounded soldiers.[1]: 149 She continued her education after the war, taking literature and art classes.[5]: 153–154 Her pursuit of literature led her to establish the Impromptu Club, a local literary discussion group,[8]: 188 while her pursuit of art became such that she began featuring her work in art exhibitions.[5]: 153–154 She also took a position on the board of lady managers of the Garfield Hospital.[1]: 150 Harrison faced several serious health problems in the 1880s: she took a severe fall on the ice, underwent surgery in 1883, and became seriously ill in 1886.[1]: 150 In 1874, the Harrisons oversaw the construction of a sixteen-room house. It was finished in 1875, and gave Caroline experience in planning a home that would prove valuable when she became first lady years later.[12]
Benjamin continued to pursue politics after the war. He ran an unsuccessful campaign to be the Governor of Indiana in 1876, and he was elected to the United States Senate in 1880.[8]: 188 After his election, Caroline oversaw the family's move to a rented suite in Washington, D.C.[13]: 108–109 She served as an advisor in his political career and assisted him in his political campaigns.[5]: 154 Her work as a family hostess grew significantly when her husband was chosen as the Republican candidate for the 1888 presidential election. He ran a front porch campaign as was common at the time, bringing thousands of people through their home. She also became a public figure in her own right, and she was used in the campaign to contrast with the popular incumbent first lady Frances Cleveland. The campaign was stressful for Harrison, and she expressed a hope to find privacy in the White House. Her husband was elected president, and was sworn in on March 4, 1889.[5]: 154 [8]: 188–189