Caroline Harrison
First Lady of the United States
In office March 4, 1889 – October 25, 1892
Preceded by	Frances Cleveland
Succeeded by	Mary Harrison McKee
Personal details
Born	(1832-10-01)October 1, 1832 Oxford, Ohio, U.S.
Died	October 25, 1892(1892-10-25) (aged 60) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Spouse(s)	Benjamin Harrison
Children	Russell Benjamin Harrison Mary Harrison McKee
Alma mater	Oxford Female Institute
Religion	Presbyterian
Signature

Caroline Lavinia Scott Harrison (October 1, 1832 – October 25, 1892), wife of Benjamin Harrison, was first lady of the United States from 1889 until her death.

Early life[link]

Caroline Scott was born in Oxford, Ohio, the second daughter of the Reverend Dr. John Witherspoon Scott, a Presbyterian minister and professor of science and math at Miami University, and Mary Potts Neal. Although the family was not well-off, Caroline's father made sure that his children were well-educated. Wherever they lived, he always filled the house with books, art, and music. Religion, too, played a large part in his and the family's life.

In 1845, Dr. Scott, along with several other professors, were fired from their positions after a dispute with the university president, George Junkin, over slavery; Scott opposed it, Junkin supported it. After his dismissal, the entire family moved to College Hill, near Cincinnati, where Scott had accepted a job teaching chemistry and physics at Farmer's College. It was in Cincinnati that young Caroline met one of her father's students and her future husband, Benjamin Harrison. The two began a courtship that would last nearly a decade before their marriage in 1853.

Education and romance[link]

In 1849, the Scotts moved back to Oxford, where Dr. Scott became the first president of the Oxford Female Institute in the former Temperance Tavern, which he had purchased in 1841. Mrs. Scott joined the school as its matron and the Head of Home Economics and Caroline enrolled as a student, studying English literature, theater, art, and painting. In her senior year, she joined the faculty as an Assistant in Piano Music. She graduated with a degree in music in 1853 and subsequently moved to Carrollton, Kentucky to teach music. Suffering from the effects of pneumonia, she returned to Ohio soon afterwards.

Benjamin, or "Ben" as he was known, had studied under Caroline's father at Farmer's College near Cincinnati for nearly two years. In 1850, a year after the Scotts had returned to Oxford, Ben transferred to Miami University, partially for its strong academic reputation and partially to be near Caroline. Though their personalities were markedly different (Ben's serious and solemn, Caroline's humorous and lighthearted), the two fell in love. Caroline often took Ben dancing against the wishes of his father, a strict Presbyterian whose church frowned upon such activities. In 1852, during Benjamin's senior year at Miami, the couple became engaged. They decided to postpone the wedding while Benjamin studied law in the law office of Storer & Gwynne in Cincinnati and she finished school.

Marriage and family[link]

Benjamin and Caroline were married on October 20, 1853 at her house, with her father officiating. The newlyweds honeymooned at North Bend, Ohio. They lived at the Harrison family's home for some time while they saved money and finally settled in Indianapolis, Indiana, after Benjamin completed his law studies a year later.

The first few years of marriage were a struggle. The couple rarely spent time time together as Benjamin spent his time working to establish his law practice. Caroline became pregnant, and because Benjamin worked such long hours, she returned to Oxford to stay with her parents during the pregnancy. In 1854, their first child, Russell, was born, and she moved back to Indianapolis. Not long after her return, a fire consumed their house and everything they owned. The family managed to recover financially after Benjamin took a job handling cases for a local law firm whose founder had decided to run for office. In 1858, Caroline gave birth to a daughter, Mary Scott. In 1861 she gave birth to a second daughter who died shortly afterwards.

The Civil War[link]

At the onset of the Civil War, both Benjamin and Caroline sought to help in the war effort. Caroline joined local groups such as the Ladies Patriotic Association and the Ladies Sanitary Committee, which helped care for wounded soldiers. At the same time, she joined the church choir and raised her two children.

In 1862, Benjamin was commissioned as a colonel in the Union Army and raised a regiment of over 1,000 men from Indiana. During the day, he trained his men, and at night he studied military strategy. In 1865, he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general. After the war, he returned home to a hero's welcome and spent the next decade practicing law and getting involved in politics.

Wife of a politician[link]

Benjamin ran for governor of Indiana in 1876 and lost. Five years later, in 1881, he was elected to the United States Senate. He and the family moved to Washington, D.C.. Caroline had suffered from poor health ever since her bout with pneumonia years earlier, and thus was unable to participate in social events in the capital. However, she supported charities and headed the Garfield Hospital Aid Society.

In 1888, Benjamin was nominated by the Republican Party as its presidential candidate, and that November defeated incumbent Grover Cleveland.

First lady of the United States[link]

Official White House portrait

During the administration the Harrisons' daughter, Mary Harrison McKee, her two children, and other relatives lived at the White House. The First Lady tried in vain to have the overcrowded mansion enlarged and managed to assure an extensive renovation with up-to-date improvements. As First Lady, Mrs. Harrison secured $35,000 in appropriatations from Congress to renovate the White House. She purged the mansion of its growing rodent and insect population, laid new floors, installed new plumbing, painted and wallpapered, and added more bathrooms. In 1891 she installed electricity but was so frightened of it that she refused to handle the switches; instead, she left the lights on all night until the engineer came in to turn them off in the morning.

In 1889 she put up the first Christmas tree in the White House. She also introduced the custom of using orchids as the official floral decoration at state receptions. A talented artist herself, she conducted china-painting classes in the White House. She served as the first president-general of the Daughters of the American Revolution. She worked for local charities as well.

With other ladies of progressive views, she helped raise funds for the Johns Hopkins University Medical School on condition that it admit women.^[1]

The centennial of President Washington's inauguration in 1889 heightened the nation's interest in its heroic past, and in 1890 she lent her prestige as First Lady to the founding the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR) and served as its first President General. She took a special interest in the history of the White House, and the mature dignity with which she carried out her duties contrasted with the fun-loving spirit that had charmed Ben Harrison when they met as teenagers.

Illness and death[link]

Mrs. Harrison was noted for her elegant White House receptions and dinners. In late 1891, however, she began to battle tuberculosis. At first, Mrs. Harrison tried to continue to fulfill her social obligations; but after her condition worsened, she traveled to spend the summer of 1892 in the Adirondack Mountains, in what had become an increasingly forlorn attempt to fight the disease. After her condition became terminal, she returned to the White House, where she died on October 25, 1892. After preliminary services in the East Room, her body was returned home for a final funeral at her church in Indianapolis.

After the period of official mourning ended, Mrs. McKee took up the duties of hostess for her father during the last months of his term. In 1896, Benjamin Harrison married his late wife's widowed niece and former secretary, Mary Scott Lord Dimmick.

Children[link]

The Harrisons had a son and a daughter:

• Russell Benjamin Harrison (1854–1936) - engineer, soldier, lawyer, state legislator. Born in Oxford, Ohio, he graduated with degree in mechanical engineering from Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, in 1877, and after brief employment with an Indianapolis gas company, was appointed assistant assayer at the U.S. Mint in New Orleans and later assayer at Helena, Montana. In 1884, he married May Saunders, daughter of Senator Alvin Saunders of Nebraska. A man of varied interests, he also raised livestock and published the "Helena Daily Journal". He served as private secretary to his father during Harrison's term as president. Subsequently he was president of a streetcar company in Terre Haute, Indiana. During the Spanish-American War, he rose from major to lieutenant colonel of U.S. volunteers. At its conclusion, he prematurely hoisted the American flag over Morro Castle, Cuba, in violation of the surrender terms and thereby drew an official reprimand. He nevertheless was appointed inspector general for Santiago Territory and provost martial for Puerto Rico. Discharged from the army in 1900, he became a lawyer and served as Mexico's legal representative in the U.S. for many years. He also served in both houses of the Indiana state legislature.
• Mary "Mamie" Scott Harrison-McKee (1858–1930). Born in Indianapolis, she in 1884 married J. Robert McKee, later a founder and vice president of General Electric Company. She was assistant hostess at the White House during the Harrison administration.

References[link]

• Original text based on White House biography

External links[link]

Biography portal

• Caroline Harrison at Find a Grave

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