FLOTUS: First Ladies of the United States

Sarah Singleton Van Buren

Sarah Angelica Van Buren (néeSingleton; February 13, 1818 – December 29, 1877) was an Americanheiress and the daughter-in-law of the eighth president of the UnitedStates, Martin Van Buren. She was married to the President's son,Abraham Van Buren II. She assumed the post of a first lady because thepresident's wife, Hannah Van Buren, had died and he never remarried.She is the youngest woman ever to act as the White House hostess,assuming the role at the age of 18.

Early life

Sarah Angelica Singleton was born inWedgefield, South Carolina, on February 13, 1818. She was the fourthof six children born to Richard Singleton and his wife, RebeccaTravis Coles.

Angelica was educated at the ColumbiaFemale Academy in South Carolina and Madame Grelaud's French Schoolin Philadelphia for five years. She was a popular student at MadameGrelaud's and the school gave her the opportunity to meet a morediverse group of people.

Marriage

In 1838, Angelica visited Washington,DC, with her sister. Former First Lady Dolley Madison, a cousin ofAngelica's mother Rebecca Travis Coles, decided to play matchmakerand introduced the Singleton girls to President Martin Van Buren'sbachelor sons. Eight months later, Angelica Singleton married AbrahamVan Buren on November 27, 1838, on his 31st birthday in Wedgefield.The marriage strengthened President Van Buren's ties to the OldSouth.

Following the wedding, Van Burenassumed the duties of hostess at the White House with great success.

In early 1839, the couple took anextended trip through England (where her aunt, Sally Coles Stevenson,and uncle, Andrew Stevenson, who was U.S. Minister in the U.K., lived)and other European countries. The trip was a massive success and whenVan Buren returned to Washington, she hoped to bring some Europeanstyle to the White House. Angelica and other honored female guestsbegan standing on a dais in the Blue Room to greet guests at thebeginning of White House functions. Although the French Ambassadorenjoyed the reception, the Americans did not. The dais was soon removed.

In March 1840, Angelica gave birth tothe couple's first child, a daughter named Rebecca; the child died afew months later. After leaving the White House, the couple had foursons; the survivors were:

Singleton Van Buren (1841–1885)

Martin Van Buren II (1844–1885)

Travis Coles Van Buren (1848–1889)

Acting First Lady

Van Buren served as White House hostessafter the death of her mother-in-law. She was effectively the actingfirst lady of the United States.

In the 1982 Siena College ResearchInstitute asking historians to assess American first ladies, VanBuren, and several other "acting" first ladies wereincluded. The first ladies survey, which has been conductedperiodically since ranks first ladies according to a cumulativescore on the independent criteria of their background, value to thecountry, intelligence, courage, accomplishments, integrity,leadership, being their own women, public image, and value to thepresident. In the 1982 survey, out of 42 first ladies and "acting"first ladies, Van Buren was assessed as the 36th most highly regardedamong historians. Acting first ladies such as Van Buren have beenexcluded from subsequent iterations of this survey.

Post-Van Buren presidency

After Martin Van Buren was defeated forre-election in 1840, Angelica and her husband lived at the Van Burenhome of Lindenwald, in Kinderhook, New York, wintering at her familyhome, Melrose House, in South Carolina. From 1848 until her death,she lived in New York City. Martin Van Buren died of asthma on July24, 1862, at his home in Kinderhook, New York. He was 79 years old.

https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/valerie-harvey/episodes/FLOTUS-Sarah-Angelica-Van-Buren-e28fsha