UXL Encyclopedia of World Biography. ", Former Gov. Mrs. Eisenhower became chatelaine of a 14room villa at MarneslaCoquette, near Paris, and learned quickly how to entertain hundreds of people at a time. [25] Rumors of Ike's alleged affair with Kay Summersby reemerged in the 1970s, though Mamie continued to say that she did not believe them. When entertaining, she prioritized comfort and popular taste over prestige. She also entertained European royalty, but on a more formal basis, and was entertained in turn. The couple set up housekeepingin two rooms at Fort Sam Houston, Tex., managing on the young officer's $150amonth pay. [25] Ike's military success and his subsequent memoirs provided the couple with financial stability after the war. They were published in 1978 under the title "Letters to Mamie. Although Mrs. Eisenhower remained silent on these matters, her family did not. She wore a pink gown to her husband's inauguration, which set fashion trends, and the prominence of White House gatherings and diplomatic functions led to " Mamie pink " becoming a staple of wallpaper, bathroom fixtures and . It was the first home they had ever owned. Their first son, Doud Dwight "Icky" Eisenhower, was born on September 24, 1917. For the eight years of the Eisenhower presidency Mamie Eisenhower represented the public ideal of the American wife: exuding quiet strength, finding satisfaction in domestic duties, supporting her husband unhesitatingly. The first son Doud Dwight or Icky, who was born in 1917, died of scarlet fever in 1921. [24] Eisenhower was in constant worry of her husband's safety while he led the war effort in Europe, and she was regularly accosted by reporters, causing her to lose 20 pounds during the war. [7], Mamie had three sisters: her older sister Eleanor Carlson Doud, and her two younger sisters Eda Mae Doud and Mabel Frances "Mike" Doud. He signed them "Ike" or "Your Ike. [7] She maintained distance from the press, avoiding interviews and having her secretary Mary Jane McCaffree address reporters in her stead. 2019Encyclopedia.com | All rights reserved. Afterward, she regularly tended to him, limiting his work schedule, managing his diet, and taking his mail. Mamie Eisenhower, the wife of President Dwight D. "Ike" Eisenhower (18901969), represented what was to 1950s America the ideal American wife: She displayed quiet strength, found satisfaction in domestic duties, and supported her husband without hesitation. "Mamie Doud Eisenhower [1] She had to grow accustomed to fear and loneliness during periods of separation while her husband was traveling for the army, and Ike once told her that his duty would "always come first". She is buried beside her husband in a small chapel on the grounds of the Eisenhower Library in Abilene, Kansas. She was always helpful and ready to do anything. Her style was known as the "Mamie Look"; it involved a full-skirted dress, pink gloves, charm bracelets, pearls, little hats, purses, and bobbed, banged hair. Mamie Eisenhower, the widow of Dwight D. Eisenhower, 34th President of the United States, died peacefully in her sleep early yesterday at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington. Her father retired from business, and Mamie and her three sisters grew up in a large house in Denver. When the couple entered the White House, Mamie quickly took charge of the domestic staff, who dubbed her "Hostess in Chief." New York: Putnam, 1981. She was used to life with the close and well-respected Doud family; being Mrs. Eisenhower meant less money and a smaller circle of friends. She suffered a stroke on September 25, 1979, and resided in the hospital until her death on November 1. Ike had initially given her a miniature of his West Point class ring as was custom. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. At the end of World War II (193945) Dwight was a national hero, and for Mamie this meant an adjustment to dealing with newfound fame as well as the opportunity to meet important world leaders. Mamie and Dwight Eisenhower were married for 52 years until his death in March 1969. The former Anne Eisenhower, now divorced from Fernando EchavarriaUribe, lives with their daughter. [10] She maligned the attention associated with the role, insisting that her husband was the public figure of the family and generally refusing to take on duties outside of the White House. [15] The Eisenhowers regularly entertained wherever they lived, and their home came to be known as "Club Eisenhower". History does not long entrust the care of freedom to the weak or the timid. Summing up her marriage, Mamie Eisenhower wrote in 1970: We had our disappointments and our troubles, some of them devastating, yet between us there was a deep understanding, a feeling of contentment in each other's company.. I knew it wasn't so. Indeed, few First Ladies seemed to better reflect the general role, priorities and values of most middle-aged middle class American women during . [11], Despite her reservations about public life, Eisenhower did enjoy her role as a hostess. The Douds were visiting relatives in San Antonio when Mamie and Second Lieut. She and her husband observed a division of labor ("Ike took care of the officeI ran the house") although the president valued his wife's insights into political personalities of the time. As her husband was dying, legislation was passed for Eisenhower that guaranteed lifetime Secret Service protection for presidential widows. All Rights Reserved. He suffered two heart attacks that year and four in 1968 and died of congestive heart failure on March 28,1969. 23 Feb. 2023 . Mamie Eisenhower, ne Marie Geneva Doud, (born Nov. 14, 1896, Boone, Iowa, U.S.died Nov. 1, 1979, Washington, D.C.), American first lady (1953-61), the wife of Dwight ("Ike") Eisenhower, 34th president of the United States and supreme commander of the Allied forces in western Europe during World War II. ." Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography. Married at the age of 19, Mamie Geneva Doud Eisenhower was the wife of the 34th President, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and a very popular First Lady of the United States from 1953 to 1961. [2] Mamie also had medical concerns of her own; among others, she was uneasy on her feet due to Mnire's disease, an inner-ear disorder that affects equilibrium, which fed rumors that she had a drinking problem. https://www.whitehouse.gov/about-the-white-house/first-families/mamie-geneva-doud-eisenhower/?utm_source=link, Office of the United States Trade Representative. [1] In 1928, she encouraged her husband to take a position in Paris instead of a position in the War Department. She lived at the Wardman Park Hotel and worked with other Army wives at the Red Cross canteen in Washington, D.C. During this time, she wrote to her husband nearly every day and worried about him. Dwight D. Eisenhower posed with his bride, the former Mamie Geneva Doud, for this formal wedding portrait on July 1, 1916. When Mamie Eisenhower was later questioned as to why she would do such a thing, the former first lady simply stated, "Because she never asked. Humility must always be the portion of any man who receives acclaim earned in the blood of his followers and the sacrifices of his friends. "If I had listened to Mamie two or three times, I might not have had the opportunities to serve the country that I have had the fortune to have," he said. "Mamie Doud Eisenhower [11] She also had a room set aside upstairs in the White House where he could practice his painting in solitude. Kenneth Moore, live in Georgia. As first ladies often are, she was expected to serve as a role model for the American wife. Her influence on the Eisenhower administration was reserved, respecting a strict division between her husband's public life and their home life. When Mamie's older sister Eleanor developed a heart condition, doctors suggested that spending the winter in a warmer place might help her recover. Their first child, a boy named Doud Dwight, was born in 1917, but died of scarlet fever in 1921. READ MORE: 10 Things You. Biography and associated logos are trademarks of A+E Networksprotected in the US and other countries around the globe. Mamie Eisenhower continued to live on the farm, devoting her time to family and friends before her death on November 1, 1979. [38] After returning to the United States, she continued to live full-time on the farm until she took an apartment in Washington, D.C. as her health declined in the late 1970s. [11] When their house in Gettysburg was completed in 1955, they celebrated by throwing a housewarming party for the White House staff. "That is the American way," she explained, "When people call you that and smile, you are complimented.". After accepting the German surrender in 1945, General Eisenhower became the Army Chief of Staff. He quoted Ike's last words to his wife, "I've always loved my wife. In 1961 the Eisenhowers returned to Gettysburg for eight years of contented retirement together. Although she and her husband had deeded the Gettysburg estate to the Government as the Eisenhower National Historic Site in 1967, and she was to have moved out six months after her husband's death, arrangements were made for Mrs. Eisenhower to use the home until her own death. I was forced to match his spirit of personal sacrifice as best I could. David Eisenhower, named for his grandfather, is married to the former Julie Nixon. In 1974, as the Watergate scandal was breaking around the Nixon presidency, Mrs. Eisenhower saw that Patricia Nixon, the president's wife, was growing more and more tense. When Ike was appointed as aide to General Douglas MacArthur in 1929, the family moved to Washington, D.C., and "Club Eisenhower" became a popular social hub for the city's elite. Mamie was 82 years old at the time of death. Death State: Washington, D.C. Death Country: United States, Article Title: Mamie Eisenhower Biography, Author: Biography.com Editors, Website Name: The Biography.com website, Url: https://www.biography.com/history-culture/mamie-eisenhower, Publisher: A&E; Television Networks, Last Updated: November 2, 2021, Original Published Date: April 2, 2014. Another granddaughter, Susan Eisenhower, recently divorced Alexander Bradshaw, and she lives with their two children, Caroline and Laura, and her new husband, John Mahon, in Syracuse, N.Y. For Mamie Eisenhower, being a military wife was hard at first. The fourth grandchild, Mary Jean, is also divorced, and she and her second husband, Army Capt. It was the same motto, with a prayer beneath, that she had nailed up 28 times during 53 years of married life that took her from the two room apartment of a young Army lieutenant's bride to residency in the Executive Mansion. [3][4] She grew up in Cedar Rapids, Iowa; Colorado Springs, Colorado; Denver, Colorado; and the Doud winter home in San Antonio, Texas. She also saw to inviting Black women to the White House, including Marian Anderson and the National Council of Negro Women. Mamie's father bought a winter home in San Antonio, Texas. [53] In the 2014 survey, Eisenhower and her husband were also ranked 14th out of 39 first couples in terms of being a "power couple". The first, Doud Dwight, died at the age of three in Lieutenant Eisenhower's arms, a victim of scarlet fever. Mrs. Eisenhower sat out the war in the Wardman Park Hotel in Washington. Mamie would go on to celebrate both Valentine's Day and Saint Patrick's Day as the anniversary of their engagement. [7], Eisenhower wore a Nettie Rosenstein gown to the 1953 inaugural balls, a pink peau de soie gown embroidered with more than 2,000 rhinestones. Sinnott, Susan. Not long after his daughter's birth on Nov. 14, 1896, in Boone, Iowa, Mr. Doud began moving his family around. [44] Places bearing the name Mamie Eisenhower include a park in Denver in 1957[45] and a library in the Denver suburb of Broomfield, Colorado in 1963. [1] Apprehension of American entry into World War I accelerated their plans to wed, and they were married at the Doud family's home in Denver on July 1, 1916. Public life, Eisenhower did enjoy her role as a role model for the American wife helpful ready... Public life and their home came to be known as `` Club Eisenhower '' or `` Your Ike diet and! Also divorced, and mamie and Dwight Eisenhower were married for 52 years until death. Life, Eisenhower did enjoy her role as a hostess had ever.. To mamie before the start of online publication in 1996, named for his grandfather, is divorced. Of congestive heart failure on March 28,1969 D. Eisenhower posed with his bride the! 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