Wi: ppMary Lincoln gets killed on the fateful day instead of the president.

Johnnybravo

Banned
Who would succeed her as de facto First Lady (or gentleman)? Note: I'm imagining this would take place in an alternate world where William Harrison doesn't become president like in a previous post of mine so the zero year curse wouldn't exist.
 

jahenders

Banned
Who would succeed her as de facto First Lady (or gentleman)? Note: I'm imagining this would take place in an alternate world where William Harrison doesn't become president like in a previous post of mine so the zero year curse wouldn't exist.

If I'm following you correctly ...

If Lincoln survives the execution attempt, he follows through with reconstruction more as he'd planned that as Johnson executed it (IOTL). However, Lincoln might be somewhat less charitable with his wife dead at the hands of Southern loyalists and might be somewhat harsher than he would otherwise have been. In any case, reconstruction would be considerably better than under Johnson and civil rights for blacks would be somewhat advanced.

Since Johnson won't become VP, the next President might well be Grant, with Julia Grant as first lady.
 
you were close. I meant Mary's replacement as First Lady while Lincoln was still in office.

Whoever he marries , if he remarries in office at all. Most likely no one. First Lady is just a word for the President's wife. If there is no wife there is no First Lady.
 

Johnnybravo

Banned
Okay, so the First Lady is also a hostess of the United States. In previous cases where presidents wives have died or were already dead there'd be other female relatives of the president acting as hostess. Who do you think the replacement host would be?
 
There has been a bachelor president already. Well, it was Buchanan but I don't see why there should be a need for a person to be the "hostess" for the country. It's not like foreign dignitaries met the US President a lot in those times.
 

Johnnybravo

Banned
Buccanan's term did have his niece serving as official First Lady. there were other presidents who were widowed in office and had other female relatives take over hostess duties, but they weren't official First Ladies (some wives are even officially First Ladies even though they were dead when the husbands took on presidential duties for the 1st time), and could be considered acting ones. Is it possible that they can have a search for Abe's closest living female relative if his son wasn't married, and if unsuccessful Robert Lincoln would be Americas first first gentleman (even if it was de facto and not official)?
 

jahenders

Banned
Okay, so the First Lady is also a hostess of the United States. In previous cases where presidents wives have died or were already dead there'd be other female relatives of the president acting as hostess. Who do you think the replacement host would be?

I kind of doubt he'd remarry in office.

Assuming he doesn't he may use a combination of VP Johnson's wife Eliza and some key ladies of Washington.
 
Could I make the suggestion of 19 year old, Mary Eunice Harlan, who was not only the daughter of Republican Senator, James Harlan from Iowa, but also the fiancee of Robert Todd Lincoln?

Both Mary and Abraham, had like the girl and had given him their blessing to marry Mary.

The other choice would be Mary Todd's sister Elizabeth Porter Edwards.
 
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