For half a century she was the most important woman in the social circles of
America. To this day she remains one of the best known and best loved ladies of
the White House--though often referred to, mistakenly, as Dorothy or Dorothea.

She always called herself Dolley, and by that name the New Garden Monthly
Meeting of the Society of Friends, in Piedmont, North Carolina, recorded her
birth to John and Mary Coles Payne, settlers from Virginia. In 1769 John Payne
took his family back to his home colony, and in 1783 he moved them to
Philadelphia, city of the Quakers. Dolley grew up in the strict discipline of
the Society, but nothing muted her happy personality and her warm heart.

John Todd, Jr., a lawyer, exchanged marriage vows with Dolley in 1790. Just
three years later he died in a yellow-fever epidemic, leaving his wife with a
small son.

By this time Philadelphia had become the capital city. With her charm and her
laughing blue eyes, fair skin, and black curls, the young widow attracted
distinguished attention. Before long Dolley was reporting to her best friend
that "the great little Madison has asked...to see me this evening."

Although Representative James Madison of Virginia was 17 years her senior, and
Episcopalian in background, they were married in September 1794. The marriage,
though childless, was notably happy; "our hearts understand each other," she
assured him. He could even be patient with Dolley's son, Payne, who mishandled
his own affairs--and, eventually, mismanaged Madison's estate.

Discarding the somber Quaker dress after her second marriage, Dolley chose the
finest of fashions. Margaret Bayard Smith, chronicler of early Washington
social life, wrote: "She looked a Queen...It would be absolutely impossible for
any one to behave with more perfect propriety than she did."

Blessed with a desire to please and a willingness to be pleased, Dolley made
her home the center of society when Madison began, in 1801, his eight years as
Jefferson's Secretary of State. She assisted at the White House when the
President asked her help in receiving ladies, and presided at the first
inaugural ball in Washington when her husband became Chief Executive in 1809.

Dolley's social graces made her famous. Her political acumen, prized by her
husband, is less renowned, though her gracious tact smoothed many a quarrel.
Hostile statesmen, difficult envoys from Spain or Tunisia, warrior chiefs from
the west, flustered youngsters--she always welcomed everyone. Forced to flee
from the White House by a British army during the War of 1812, she returned to
find the mansion in ruins. Undaunted by temporary quarters, she entertained as
skillfully as ever.

At their plantation Montpelier in Virginia, the Madisons lived in pleasant
retirement until he died in 1836. She returned to the capital in the autumn of
1837, and friends found tactful ways to supplement her diminished income. She
remained in Washington until her death in 1849, honored and loved by all. The
delightful personality of this unusual woman is a cherished part of her
country's history.