White House History 41 - Various Topics

Please note that the following is a digitized version of White House History, Issue #41, originally released in print form in 2016. Single copies of this issue can be purchased online at Shop.WhiteHouseHistory.org No part of this book may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying,

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Caroline Scott received her diploma (above) from the Oxford Female Institute in I 852 and married the young Benjamin Harrison (seen right at age 21) in I 854. At this time in her life, she worked primarily in watercolor. Her surviving sketches are comprised offlowers, butterflies, and colorful insects.

After graduating from the Oxford Female Institute in 1852 with a degree in language, art, and music, Caroline spent one year teaching music and sewing in Kentucky. Soon after, on October 10, 1853, she married Benjamin Harrison, and in 1854 they moved to Indianapolis, Indiana, to begin a life together. 5 By age 26, Mrs. Harrison was a paragon of domesticity with her two children, Russell Benjamin and Mary Scott, a modest two-story home on Alabama Street, and a life that revolved around her children, church, and charities. Kate Scott Brooks, Mrs. Harrison's niece, recalled that her aunt's inter足 ests lay first in her domestic role as mother and housekeeper and second in her art. 6 Since china 44

WHITE HOUSE HISTORY (Number 41)

painting had not yet been introduced in America, Mrs. Harrison's artistic endeav足 ors during these early years in Indianapolis were confined exclusively to watercolors, which she believed to be the "nicest things in art. " 7 Even amid her busy schedule, she practiced the challenging task of painting with watercolor, and her mastery of this medium became instrumental to her quick under足 standing of china painting when it was introduced to the United States and shortly became the most popu足 lar artistic pursuit among women.

REFLECTIONS

Remembering First Lady Nancy Reagan 1921-2016 STEWART

D .

McLAURIN

PRESIDENT, WHITE HOUSE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION

T

HE WHITE HOUSE HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION JOINS THE NATION IN ITS REMEMBRANCE OF FIRST LADY NANCY REAGAN and the tremen­ dous grace, intelligence, and style she brought to her role as first lady of the United States.

As America's first lady, she lent her support to the Foster Grandparent Program, the subject of her 1982 book, To Love A Child. She also concentrated on the fight against drug and alcohol abuse among young people, and in 1985 held a conference for the first ladies of seventeen countries to focus international attention on this problem.

Mrs. Reagan directed a major renovation of the second and third floors of the White House during her time as first lady, and commissioned a presidential state china service in striking red, gold, and white from Lenox China in Trenton, New Jersey, in 1981.

She used the Executive Mansion to showcase young artistic talent in the PBS television series "In Performance at the White House."

Mrs. Reagan possessed a style and strength that served and honored President Reagan well in the White House. Following his presidency, she was an amazing caregiver of both the president and his legacy, through the work of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Reagan Library.

Every first lady gives of themselves in an unpaid role of service to our country. Mrs. Reagan was an icon in giving and living to the fullest for her husband the president, for the White House itself, and for the greater good of our country.

Mrs. Reagan posed for artist Aaron Shikler in the Red Room for her official White House por­ trait in 198 7. She is dressed in her signature red color, in a flowing gown designed by James Galanos.