U.S. Presidency & Political Hospitality

The U.S. Presidency & Political Hospitality

 1776 to 1976 

A new presidential exhibit is being assembled and will center on the grand tale of US political hospitality. The exhibit includes artifacts from the Presidents of the Continental Congress, the United States in Congress Assembled (Constitution of 1777) and United States (Constitution of 1787). Their wives, including Sarah Jay (Continental Congress First Lady) and later Lady Christina (United States in Congress Assembled First Lady) who incorporated “royal hospitality traditions” that greatly influenced the Constitution of 1787 First Ladies, will also be featured in this exhibit.

A primary focus of the exhibit will be dedicated to Mary Edith Wilroy's papers who retired to St. Petersburg, Florida in 1975. Mrs. Wilroy was the manager of the Blair House, the President's Guest House, for 15 years and entertained some 225 heads of state. Mary Edith Wilroy began her profession as Blair House Manager on March 2, 1961 only 40 days after John F. Kennedy took the Presidential oath of office. Mrs. Wilroy served her nation in this capacity for 15 years ending her career on July 19, 1975 shortly after hosting Walter Scheel, the President of West Germany.

Mrs. Wilroy's entertaining of notable American citizens, foreign diplomats, and distant dignitaries was the end result of U.S. hospitality evolution that began under John Hancock who was the 1776 President of the Continental Congress of the United States of America. U.S. Hospitality reached new heights under Lady Christina, the noblewoman and wife of President Cyrus Griffin. President Griffin served as the tenth President of the United States under the Articles of Confederation in 1787 and 1788. Unbeknownst to many, Lady Christina laid the foundation for future First Ladies and Presidents for properly entertaining guests of the United States of America.

Upon retirement, Mrs. Wilroy wisely preserved her private papers that include voluminous correspondence, photos, announcements, and invitations on presidential hospitality from 1961 to 1976. The papers are currently housed at the Loyola University Honors Program and are subjects of academic study under the direction of  its Director,   Naomi Yavneh, Ph.D.

Naomi Yavneh, Ph.D. at the Blair House researching US Hospitality

The Congressional Evolution of the United States of America 

Continental Congress of the United Colonies Presidents 

Sept. 5, 1774 to July 1, 1776

Peyton Randolph	September 5, 1774	October 22, 1774
Henry Middleton	October 22, 1774	October 26, 1774
Peyton Randolph	May 20, 1775	May 24, 1775
John Hancock	May 25, 1775	July 1, 1776

Commander-in-Chief United Colonies & States of America

George Washington: June 15, 1775 - December 23, 1783

Continental Congress of the United States Presidents 
July 2, 1776 to February 28, 1781

John Hancock	July 2, 1776	October 29, 1777
Henry Laurens	November 1, 1777	December 9, 1778
John Jay	December 10, 1778	September 28, 1779
Samuel Huntington	September 29, 1779	February 28, 1781

Presidents of the United States in Congress Assembled
March 1, 1781 to March 3, 1789

Samuel Huntington	March 1, 1781	July 6, 1781
Samuel Johnston	July 10, 1781	Declined Office
Thomas McKean	July 10, 1781	November 4, 1781
John Hanson	November 5, 1781	November 3, 1782
Elias Boudinot	November 4, 1782	November 2, 1783
Thomas Mifflin	November 3, 1783	June 3, 1784
Richard Henry Lee	November 30, 1784	November 22, 1785
John Hancock	November 23, 1785	June 5, 1786
Nathaniel Gorham	June 6, 1786	February 1, 1787
Arthur St. Clair	February 2, 1787	January 21, 1788
Cyrus Griffin	January 22, 1788	January 21, 1789

Presidents of the United States of America

D-Democratic Party, F-Federalist Party, I-Independent, R-Republican Party,

R* Republican Party of Jefferson & W-Whig Party 

George Washington (I)	Jefferson Davis (D) - CSA*	Franklin D. Roosevelt (D)
(1789-1797)	1861-1865	(1933-1945)
John Adams (F)	Andrew Johnson (R)	Harry S. Truman (D)
(1797-1801)	(1865-1869)	(1945-1953)
Thomas Jefferson (R*)	Ulysses S. Grant (R)	Dwight D. Eisenhower (R)
(1801-1809)	(1869-1877)	(1953-1961)
James Madison (R*)	Rutherford B. Hayes R	John F. Kennedy (D)
(1809-1817)	(1877-1881)	(1961-1963)
James Monroe (R*)	James A. Garfield (R)	Lyndon B. Johnson (D)
(1817-1825)	(1881 - 1881)	(1963-1969)
John Quincy Adams (R*)	Chester Arthur (R)	Richard M. Nixon (R)
(1825-1829)	(1881-1885)	(1969-1974)
Andrew Jackson (D)	Grover Cleveland (D)	Gerald R. Ford (R)
(1829-1837)	(1885-1889)	(1973-1974)
Martin Van Buren (D)	Benjamin Harrison (R)	James E. Carter, Jr. (D)
(1837-1841)	(1889-1893)	(1977-1981)
William H. Harrison (W)	Grover Cleveland (D)	Ronald W. Reagan (R)
(1841-1841)	(1893-1897)	(1981-1989)
John Tyler (W)	William McKinley (R)	George H. W. Bush (R)
(1841-1845)	(1897-1901)	(1989-1993)
James K. Polk (D)	Theodore Roosevelt (R)	William J. Clinton (D)
(1845-1849)	(1901-1909)	(1993-2001)
Zachary Taylor (W)	William H. Taft (R)	George W. Bush (R)
(1849-1850)	(1909-1913)	(2001-2009)
Millard Fillmore (W)	Wilson Woodrow (D)	Barack H. Obama (D)
(1850-1853)	(1913-1921)	(2009-2017)
Franklin Pierce (D)	Warren G. Harding ®	Donald J. Trump (R)
(1853-1857)	(1921-1923)	(2017-2021)
James Buchanan (D)	Calvin Coolidge (R)	Joseph Biden (D)
(1857-1861)	(1923-1929)	2021-Present
Abraham Lincoln (R)	Herbert C. Hoover (R)	*Confederate States of America
(1861-1865)	(1929-1933)

Chart Comparing Presidential Powers - Click Here

United Colonies and States First Ladies

1774-1788

United Colonies Continental Congress	President	18th Century Term	Age
Elizabeth "Betty" Harrison Randolph (1745-1783)	Peyton Randolph	09/05/74 – 10/22/74	29
Mary Williams Middleton (1741- 1761) Deceased	Henry Middleton	10/22–26/74	n/a
Elizabeth "Betty" Harrison Randolph (1745–1783)	Peyton Randolph	05/20/ 75 - 05/24/75	30
Dorothy Quincy Hancock Scott (1747-1830)	John Hancock	05/25/75 – 07/01/76	28
United States Continental Congress	President	Term	Age
Dorothy Quincy Hancock Scott (1747-1830)	John Hancock	07/02/76 – 10/29/77	29
Eleanor Ball Laurens (1731- 1770) Deceased	Henry Laurens	11/01/77 – 12/09/78	n/a
Sarah Livingston Jay (1756-1802)	John Jay	12/ 10/78 – 09/28/78	21
Martha Huntington (1738/39–1794)	Samuel Huntington	09/29/79 – 02/28/81	41
United States in Congress Assembled	President	Term	Age
Martha Huntington (1738/39–1794)	Samuel Huntington	03/01/81 – 07/06/81	42
Sarah Armitage McKean  (1756-1820)	Thomas McKean	07/10/81 – 11/04/81	25
Jane Contee Hanson (1726-1812)	John Hanson	11/05/81 - 11/03/82	55
Hannah Stockton Boudinot (1736-1808)	Elias Boudinot	11/03/82 - 11/02/83	46
Sarah Morris Mifflin (1747-1790)	Thomas Mifflin	11/03/83 - 11/02/84	36
Anne Gaskins Pinkard Lee (1738-1796)	Richard Henry Lee	11/20/84 - 11/19/85	46
Dorothy Quincy Hancock Scott (1747-1830)	John Hancock	11/23/85 – 06/06/86	38
Rebecca Call Gorham (1744-1812)	Nathaniel Gorham	06/06/86 - 02/01/87	42
Phoebe Bayard St. Clair (1743-1818)	Arthur St. Clair	02/02/87 - 01/21/88	43
Christina Stuart Griffin (1751-1807)	Cyrus Griffin	01/22/88 - 01/29/89	36

Constitution of 1787 First Ladies	President	Term	Age
Martha Washington	George Washington	April 30, 1789 – March 4, 1797	57
Abigail Adams	John Adams	March 4, 1797 – March 4, 1801	52
Martha Wayles Jefferson Deceased	Thomas Jefferson	September 6, 1782  (Aged 33)	n/a
Dolley Madison	James Madison	March 4, 1809 – March 4, 1817	40
Elizabeth Monroe	James Monroe	March 4, 1817 – March 4, 1825	48
Louisa Adams	John Quincy Adams	March 4, 1825 – March 4, 1829	50
Rachel Jackson Deceased	Andrew Jackson	December 22, 1828 (aged 61)	n/a
Hannah Van Buren Deceased	Martin Van Buren	February 5, 1819 (aged 35)	n/a
Anna Harrison	William H. Harrison	March 4, 1841 – April 4, 1841	65
Letitia Tyler	John Tyler	April 4, 1841 – September 10, 1842	50
Julia Tyler	John Tyler	June 26, 1844 – March 4, 1845	23
Sarah Polk	James K. Polk	March 4, 1845 – March 4, 1849	41
Margaret Taylor	Zachary Taylor	March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850	60
Abigail Fillmore	Millard Fillmore	July 9, 1850 – March 4, 1853	52
Jane Means Pierce	Franklin Pierce	March 4, 1853 – March 4, 1857	46
Lifelong Bachelor	James Buchanan	n/a	n/a
Mary Todd Lincoln	Abraham Lincoln	March 4, 1861 – April 15, 1865	42
Varina Davis*	Jefferson Davis*	February 22, 1862 – May 10, 1865
Eliza McCardle Johnson	Andrew Johnson	April 15, 1865 – March 4, 1869	54
Julia Boggs Dent Grant	Ulysses S. Grant	March 4, 1869 – March 4, 1877	43
Lucy Ware Webb Hayes	Rutherford B. Hayes	March 4, 1877 – March 4, 1881	45
Lucretia  Rudolph Garfield	James A. Garfield	March 4, 1881 – September 19, 1881	48
Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur	Chester Arthur	January 12, 1880 (Aged 43)	n/a
Frances Folsom Cleveland	Grover Cleveland	June 2, 1886 – March 4, 1889	21
Caroline  Scott Harrison	Benjamin Harrison	March 4, 1889 – October 25, 1892	56
Frances Folsom Cleveland	Grover Cleveland	June 2, 1886 – March 4, 1889	28
Ida Saxton McKinley	William McKinley	March 4, 1897 – September 14, 1901	49
Edith Kermit Carow Roosevelt	Theodore Roosevelt	September 14, 1901 – March 4, 1909	40
Helen Louise Herron Taft	William H. Taft	March 4, 1909 – March 4, 1913	47
Ellen Axson Wilson	Woodrow Wilson	March 4, 1913 – August 6, 1914	52
Edith Bolling Galt Wilson	Woodrow Wilson	December 18, 1915 – March 4, 1921	43
Florence Mabel King Harding	Warren G. Harding	March 4, 1921 – August 2, 1923	60
Grace Anna Goodhue Coolidge	Calvin Coolidge	August 2, 1923 – March 4, 1929	44
Lou Henry Hoover	Herbert C. Hoover	March 4, 1929 – March 4, 1933	54
Eleanor Roosevelt	Franklin D. Roosevelt	March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945	48
Elizabeth Virginia  "Bess" Truman	Harry S. Truman	April 12, 1945 – January 20, 1953	60
Mamie Geneva Doud Eisenhower	Dwight D. Eisenhower	January 20, 1953 – January 20, 1961	56
Jacqueline Lee Bouvier Kennedy	John F. Kennedy	January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963	31
Claudia Alta Taylor "Lady Bird" Johnson	Lyndon B. Johnson	November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969	50
Thelma Catherine "Pat" Ryan Nixon	Richard M. Nixon	January 20, 1969 – August 9, 1974	56
Elizabeth Ann "Betty" Ford	Gerald R. Ford	August 9, 1974 – January 20, 1977	56
Eleanor Rosalynn Carter	James Earl Carter, Jr.	January 20, 1977 – January 20, 1981	49
Nancy Davis Reagan	Ronald Wilson Reagan	January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989	59
Barbara Pierce Bush	George H. W. Bush	January 20, 1989 – January 20, 1993	63
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton	William Jefferson Clinton	January 20, 1993 – January 20, 2001	45
Laura  Lane Welch Bush	George W. Bush	January 20, 2001 – January 20, 2009	54
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama Melanija Knavs Trump  Jill Tracy Jacobs Biden	Barack H. Obama Donald J. Trump Joseph R. Biden Jr.	January 20, 2009 - January 20, 2017 January 20, 2017 - January 20, 2021  January 20, 2021 - Present	45      46             47

Capitals of the United Colonies and States of America

Philadelphia	Sept. 5, 1774 to Oct. 24, 1774	City Tavern & Carpenter’s Hall
Philadelphia	May 10, 1775 to Dec. 12, 1776	Pennsylvania State House
Baltimore	Dec. 20, 1776 to Feb. 27, 1777	Henry Fite’s House
Philadelphia	March 4, 1777 to Sept. 18, 1777	Pennsylvania State House
Lancaster	September 27, 1777	Lancaster  Court House
York	Sept. 30, 1777 to June 27, 1778	York-town Court House
Philadelphia	July 2, 1778 to June 21, 1783	College Hall - PA State House
Princeton	June 30, 1783 to Nov. 4, 1783	Prospect House - Nassau Hall
Annapolis	Nov. 26, 1783 to Aug. 19, 1784	Maryland, State House
Trenton	Nov. 1, 1784 to Dec. 24, 1784	French Arms Tavern
New York City	Jan. 11, 1785 to Nov. 13, 1788	New York City Hall
New York City	October 6, 1788 to March 3,1789	Walter Livingston House
New York City	March 3,1789 to August 12, 1790	Federal Hall
Philadelphia	Dec. 6,1790 to May 14, 1800	Congress Hall
Washington DC	November 17,1800 to Present	Two US Capitol Buildings

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