First Lady Lucretia R. Garfield Autographs, Memorabilia & Collectibles

On November 11, 1858, 26-year-old Lucretia Rudolph married 26-year-old James Garfield in Hiram, Ohio. They had five sons and two daughters. Although stricken with malaria herself, Mrs. Garfield rushed back to Washington after her husband was shot and cared for him during his three month fight for life with a dedication which impressed the nation. Mrs. Garfield survived her assassinated husband by more than 36 years. After his death on September 19, 1881, Congress appropriated Mrs. Garfield (and the widows of Presidents Tyler and Polk) an annual pension of $50,000. Five Garfield children lived to maturity: three lawyers, an architect, and the wife of an investment banker. Lucretia Garfield outlived her husband by 36 years, always writing on mourning paper as shown here. "Turgenief" is a frequently alternate spelling of Ivan Turgenev; Mrs. Garfield has probably ordered a book by the Russian novelist and playwright.