Hannah Van Buren and Angelica Singleton Van Buren

• Angelica Singleton Van Buren
• Born: February 13, 1816
• Birthplace: Sumter County, South Carolina
• Died: December 28, 1878
• Place of death: New York, New York

• Hannah Hoes Van Buren
• Born: March 8, 1783
• Birthplace: Kinderhook, New York
• Died: February 5, 1819
• Place of death: Albany, New York

President:Martin Van Buren 1837-1841

Overview

Hannah Van Buren, the wife of President Martin Van Buren, did not live to take the position of First Lady. Hannah died eighteen years before her husband was elected to the presidency. Martin Van Buren did not remarry, entering office without a spouse. President Van Buren’s daughter-in-law, Angelica Singleton Van Buren, acted as hostess in the Van Buren White House. Angelica was the wife of Abraham Van Buren, Hannah and Martin’s eldest son.

Early Life

Hannah Hoes was born and grew up on the banks of the Hudson River. Her family was of Dutch descent. Hannah was born a few months after her future husband, Martin Van Buren, who grew up in the same community. The Van Burens were also of Dutch descent, and the Hoeses and Van Burens had a history of intermarriage. Hannah was the granddaughter of Martin’s mother’s brother, and Hannah’s brother courted one of Martin’s sisters at the same time that Hannah and Martin were courting.

Relatively little is known about the life of Hannah Van Buren. Her family owned land and farmed in the village of Kinderhook in Columbia County, New York, some thirty miles from Albany. Hannah’s ancestors came to the American colonies from the Netherlands, and the first Hoes was born in the Kinderhook region as early as 1630. Hannah attended the same village school as Martin Van Buren. In the late 1700’s, the education of girls did not go beyond the local school. Daughters usually remained close to home, as Hannah did.

Martin became interested in the law, and he worked as a clerk to a local attorney before going to work at the age of nineteen for a noted New York law office. Within two years, Martin was licensed to practice law and returned to Kinderhook as a lawyer.

Marriage and Family

Hannah has been described as the sweetheart of Martin Van Buren’s youth. A portrait of her from around the time of her marriage suggests that she was an attractive young woman. The couple waited until Martin had established himself as a lawyer before they married in February of 1807, when Hannah was twenty-four years old. The couple made their home in Kinderhook, where their son Abraham was born in late 1807. Martin’s position as a lawyer took the couple to live in Hudson, where he was appointed as an attorney for the county.

In Hudson, Hannah and Martin had three more children. Their sons John and Martin were born in 1810 and 1812, respectively. A boy born after 1812 died in infancy. In 1816, Martin became the attorney for the state of New York. The family moved to the state capital, Albany, where Hannah and Martin’s fifth and final son was born in January of 1819. In Albany, the Van Buren household was composed of Hannah, Martin, their four surviving sons, Martin’s law partner, and three apprentice lawyers. Letters from the time indicate that family relatives were frequent visitors to the household.

Hannah was religious throughout her life, following her family’s loyalty to the Dutch Reformed religion. In the absence of a Dutch Reformed Church in Hudson or Albany, Hannah joined Presbyterian churches that were most closely associated with the Dutch Reformed faith. Hannah became a parishioner of the Reverend John Chester, who first became pastor of her church in Hudson. Chester moved to a church in Albany prior to the Van Burens’ move, and Hannah again joined his church. Chester encouraged members of his congregation to help the less fortunate, and he began a Sunday school to teach poor children to read. Chester was progressive for his time, and many women in his church were unsupportive of his efforts. Hannah Van Buren, however, was among those who supported the pastor.

In 1818 Hannah became ill. The Albany winters of 1818 and 1819 were particularly cold and wet, and this may have contributed to Hannah’s poor health. She did not leave her house after September of 1818, and the birth of her last child in January, 1819, further weakened her. Hannah died a few weeks later, on February 5, 1819. She was buried in the cemetery at the Reverend Chester’s Presbyterian Church.

Relatively little is known about the relationship between Hannah and Martin Van Buren. Hannah died many years before Martin became president, and his autobiography does not mention Hannah. At that time in history, it was considered an insult to refer publicly to a lady. Van Buren’s autobiography reflects this, and it focuses on public affairs and politics alone. Biographies of Martin Van Buren reveal little of Hannah beyond her marriage and early death.

Presidency and First Ladyship

Martin Van Buren entered the White House a widower with four unmarried sons. The little that is known of Hannah suggests that she may not have enjoyed being the wife of a president and that the Van Buren White House may have been different if she had lived to be First Lady. Hannah’s obituary describes her as “modest and unassuming, possessing the most engaging simplicity of manners, her heart was the residence of every kind affection, and glowed with the sympathy for the wants . . . of others.” It goes on to say that she had “no love of show, . . . no ambitious desires,” and “no pride of ostentation.” The public likely desired some amount of ostentation on the part of the First Lady, however, and the woman who served as hostess in the White House during the Van Buren administration was very different from Hannah.

Shortly after Van Buren’s inauguration in 1837, former First Lady Dolley Madison brought Angelica Singleton, her young and attractive cousin from South Carolina, to dinner at the White House. Soon thereafter, the twenty-one-year-old Angelica was married to President Van Buren’s eldest son, Abraham. Angelica came from a wealthy family, and she had attended a prestigious school in Philadelphia. President Van Buren became very fond of Angelica, and he was happy to have her act as lady of the White House. At the same time, Angelica’s husband, Abraham, served as the president’s private secretary.

The first event at which Angelica played hostess was the New Year’s open house of 1839. The Boston Globe account of the event describes Angelica as “a lady of rare accomplishments . . . vivacious in her conversation,” and “universally admired.” Angelica enjoyed public life and sought the guidance of her cousin Dolley Madison, who had considerable experience in Washington social life and as First Lady. Hannah, who had come from a less privileged background and who did not seek public attention, would likely have been less comfortable assuming the role of First Lady. Angelica, however, was very happy in her position as lady of the White House. She and Abraham lost a daughter who was born at the Executive Mansion, but they later had other children.

Legacy

Acting in the role of First Lady, Angelica Singleton Van Buren helped to establish the place of the First Lady in U.S. history. She was very popular with the press and the public, making a positive impression both as hostess in the White House and in representing the Van Buren administration abroad. Angelica and Abraham took a honeymoon trip to Europe after she had taken on the responsibilities of First Lady, making her the first sitting hostess of the President’s House to travel in Europe. In 1842 the first engraving of all of the presidents’ wives or hostesses, from Martha Washington to Angelica Singleton Van Buren, was produced. Angelica’s tenure as lady of the White House demonstrated that someone other than a president’s wife could successfully serve in the role of First Lady.

Bibliography

Anthony, Carl Sferrazza. First Ladies: The Saga of the Presidents’ Wives and Their Power. Vol. 1. New York: William Morrow, 1990. Details important events and the impact of presidential wives throughout U.S. history.

Boller, Paul F. Presidential Wives: An Anecdotal History. 2d ed. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. Includes a brief account of what is known about the life of Hannah Van Buren.

Holloway, Laura Carter. The Ladies of the White House: Or, In the Home of the Presidents. Reprint. New York: AMS Press, 1976. Describes the lives of Hannah Hoes Van Buren and Angelica Singleton Van Buren, focusing on Angelica’s time as hostess in the Van Buren White House.

Lynch, Denis Tilden. An Epoch and a Man: Martin Van Buren and His Times. 1929. Reprint. New York: Kennikat Press, 1971. Includes a brief account of the life of Hannah Van Buren.

Whitton, Mary Ormsbee. First First Ladies, 1789-1865: A Study of the Wives of the Early Presidents. New York: Hastings House, 1948. Includes details of the married life and family background of Hannah Hoes Van Buren.

Widmer, Ted. Martin Van Buren. New York: Henry Holt, 2005. Although a biography of Martin Van Buren, the book nonetheless provides insight into the life and times of Hannah Van Buren and of Angelica Singleton Van Buren.