Born: 1864
Died: 1947

At 21, Frances “Frankie” Folsom became the youngest First Lady in history when she married the 48-year-old President, Grover Cleveland, in a White House ceremony. She had known him all her life. Her father had been Grover’s law partner in Buffalo, NY. He died when Frankie was 11 and Grover became an unofficial guardian to Frankie and her mother. By the time Frankie entered Wells College, Grover, by then President, wrote and sent weekly flowers. Upon her graduation, they became secretly engaged and wed following her tour of Europe. Despite the age difference, they were by all accounts well matched.

America loved its beautiful First Lady. Women copied her hairstyle and clothes, and clever merchandisers used her face to sell their products. She started receptions on Saturdays so working women could attend, and promoted women’s higher education. When Grover lost reelection to Benjamin Harrison in 1889, Frankie predicted they’d be back in the White House in four years time. She was right. In the interim, she bore her first child, a daughter who died at 12. Her next two girls arrived during Grover’s second stint in office — highlights in an otherwise difficult term. The Clevelands retired to Princeton, NJ where they completed their family with two sons. Five years after Grover died, Frankie married an archeology professor.

Twenty-Second President & Twenty-Fourth President
Grover Cleveland

Born: 1837, Caldwell, NJ
Died: 1908

A prominent lawyer in Buffalo, New York, Grover Cleveland was elected Mayor of that city in 1881. He earned a reputation for honesty and fairness, and went on to become state Governor. Cleveland’s opposition to political corruption, at a time when the Republicans were still strongly associated with the spoils system, helped to win him the Democratic Presidential nomination in 1884. He was elected despite revelations that the unmarried Cleveland was supporting an illegitimate son.

Soon after his inauguration, Cleveland became the first President to wed in the White House. In his first term, he signed the Interstate Commerce Act, improved the civil service, denied fraudulent pension claims, set aside illegal land grants to the railroads, and tried to lower the national tariff. The tariff issue dominated the 1888 Presidential campaign and while Cleveland won the popular vote, Benjamin Harrison received the electoral victory.

Cleveland returned to the White House in 1892, after defeating Harrison in a rematch. Faced with a nationwide depression, Cleveland focused on monetary policy rather than on direct assistance to the needy. This plus the hard line he took against striking rail workers, caused his party to back Williams Jennings Bryan in 1896.

Twenty-Second & Twenty-Fourth President
Democrat