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List of first ladies of the United States facts for kids

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First Lady of the
United States of America
Melania Trump’s Official White House Portrait (2025).jpg
Incumbent
Melania Trump

since January 20, 2025
Style Madam First Lady
Residence White House
Inaugural holder Martha Washington
Website First Ladies

The First Lady of the United States is a special role in the White House. This position is usually held by the wife of the president of the United States. Sometimes, other women have filled this role. This happens if a president is not married or if his wife cannot do the duties.

Being the First Lady is not an elected job. It does not come with official duties or a salary. However, the First Lady attends many important events. She often joins the president or represents him. Traditionally, First Ladies do not work outside the White House. But some, like Eleanor Roosevelt and Jill Biden, have kept their jobs. Eleanor Roosevelt gave her earnings to charity.

The First Lady has her own team. This team helps with White House events. It includes a social secretary, chief of staff, and press secretary. The Office of the First Lady plans all social gatherings. It is part of the Executive Office of the President.

There have been 55 First Ladies in total. This includes 44 official First Ladies and 11 acting ones. Some presidents had more than one First Lady. This is why there are 47 "first ladyships." After Donald Trump's inauguration on January 20, 2025, Melania Trump became the 44th official First Lady.

There are four living former First Ladies today. They are Hillary Clinton, Laura Bush, Michelle Obama, and Jill Biden. The most recent First Lady to pass away was Rosalynn Carter. The very first First Lady was Martha Washington. Some presidents, like John Tyler and Woodrow Wilson, had two official First Ladies. They remarried while they were president.

Some women are considered First Ladies even if they died before their husbands became president. These include Martha Wayles Skelton and Rachel Jackson. Harriet Lane, the niece of President James Buchanan, also served as First Lady. She is the only non-wife to be officially recognized.

Living First Ladies

Here are the living First Ladies as of February 2025, from oldest to youngest:

List of First Ladies

This list includes all women who have served as First Lady. This is true whether they were married to the president or not. The White House and the White House Historical Association recognize them. The list is sorted by the name they were commonly known by.

No. Portrait Name Time in Office President
1 Portrait of Martha Washington Martha Washington April 30, 1789

March 4, 1797
George Washington
2 Portrait painting of Abigail Adams Abigail Adams March 4, 1797

March 4, 1801
John Adams
3 Portrait painting of Martha Jefferson Martha Jefferson March 4, 1801

March 4, 1809
Thomas Jefferson
Father
4 Portrait painting of Dolly Madison Dolley Madison March 4, 1809

March 4, 1817
James Madison
5 Portrait painting of Elizabeth Monroe Elizabeth Monroe March 4, 1817

March 4, 1825
James Monroe
6 Portrait engraving of Louisa Adams Louisa Adams March 4, 1825

March 4, 1829
John Quincy Adams
7 Emily Donelson (cropped).jpg Emily Donelson March 4, 1829

November 26, 1834
Andrew Jackson
Niece-in-law
Sarah Yorke Jackson (1) (cropped).jpg Sarah Jackson November 26, 1834

March 4, 1837
Andrew Jackson
Daughter-in-law
8 Vacant March 4, 1837

November 27, 1838
Vacant Martin Van Buren
Widower
Portrait painting of Angelica Singleton Van Buren Sarah Van Buren November 27, 1838

March 4, 1841
Martin Van Buren
Daughter-in-law
9 Portrait painting of Anna Tuthill Harrison Anna Harrison March 4, 1841

April 4, 1841
William Henry Harrison
Portrait painting of Jane Irwin Harrison Jane Harrison March 4, 1841

April 4, 1841
William Henry Harrison
Daughter-in-law
10 Portrait painting of Letitia Tyler Letitia Tyler April 4, 1841

September 10, 1842
John Tyler
Portrait painting of Priscilla Cooper Tyler Priscilla Tyler September 10, 1842

June 26, 1844
John Tyler
Daughter-in-law
Portrait painting of Julia Tyler Julia Tyler June 26, 1844

March 4, 1845
John Tyler
Married while president
11 Portrait painting of Sarah Polk Sarah Polk March 4, 1845

March 4, 1849
James K. Polk
12 Portrait painting of Margaret Taylor Margaret "Peggy" Taylor March 4, 1849

July 9, 1850
Zachary Taylor
13 Portrait painting of Abigail Fillmore Abigail Fillmore July 9, 1850

March 4, 1853
Millard Fillmore
14 Engraving of Jane Pierce Jane Pierce March 4, 1853

March 4, 1857
Franklin Pierce
15 Portrait photograph of Harriet Lane Harriet Lane March 4, 1857

March 4, 1861
James Buchanan
Niece
16 Portrait photograph of Mary Lincoln Mary Lincoln March 4, 1861

April 15, 1865
Abraham Lincoln
17 Portrait engraving of Eliza Johnson Eliza Johnson April 15, 1865

March 4, 1869
Andrew Johnson
18 Portrait photograph of Julia Grant Julia Grant March 4, 1869

March 4, 1877
Ulysses S. Grant
19 Portrait photograph of Lucy Hayes Lucy Hayes March 4, 1877

March 4, 1881
Rutherford B. Hayes
20 Portrait photograph of Lucretia Garfield Lucretia Garfield March 4, 1881

September 19, 1881
James A. Garfield
21 Portrait of Mary Arthur McElroy Mary McElroy September 19, 1881

March 4, 1885
Chester A. Arthur
Sister
22 Portrait of Rose Cleveland Rose Cleveland March 4, 1885

June 2, 1886
Grover Cleveland
Sister
Portrait of Frances Cleveland Frances Cleveland June 2, 1886

March 4, 1889
Grover Cleveland<
Married while president
23 Portrait of Caroline Harrison Caroline Harrison March 4, 1889

October 25, 1892
Benjamin Harrison
Portrait of Mary Harrison McKee Mary Harrison McKee October 25, 1892

March 4, 1893
Benjamin Harrison
Daughter
24 Portrait of Frances Cleveland Frances Cleveland March 4, 1893

March 4, 1897
Grover Cleveland
25 Portrait of Ida McKinley Ida McKinley March 4, 1897

September 14, 1901
William McKinley
26 Portrait of Edith Roosevelt Edith Roosevelt September 14, 1901

March 4, 1909
Theodore Roosevelt
27 Portrait of Helen Taft Helen "Nellie" Taft March 4, 1909

March 4, 1913
William H. Taft
28 Portrait of Ellen Wilson Ellen Wilson March 4, 1913

August 6, 1914
Woodrow Wilson
Portrait of Margaret Woodrow Wilson Margaret Wilson August 6, 1914

December 18, 1915
Woodrow Wilson
Daughter
Portrait of Edith Wilson Edith Wilson December 18, 1915

March 4, 1921
Woodrow Wilson
Married while president
29 Portrait of Florence Harding Florence Harding March 4, 1921

August 2, 1923
Warren G. Harding
30 Grace Coolidge Grace Coolidge August 2, 1923

March 4, 1929
Calvin Coolidge
31 Portrait of Lou Hoover Lou Hoover March 4, 1929

March 4, 1933
Herbert Hoover
32 Portrait of Eleanor Roosevelt Eleanor Roosevelt March 4, 1933

April 12, 1945
Franklin D. Roosevelt
33 Portrait of Bess Truman Elizabeth "Bess" Truman April 12, 1945

January 20, 1953
Harry S. Truman
34 Portrait of Mamie Eisenhower Mary "Mamie" Eisenhower January 20, 1953

January 20, 1961
Dwight D. Eisenhower
35 Portrait Of Jaqueline Kennedy Jacqueline "Jackie" Kennedy January 20, 1961

November 22, 1963
John F. Kennedy
36 Portrait of Lady Bird Johnson Claudia "Lady Bird" Johnson November 22, 1963

January 20, 1969
Lyndon B. Johnson
37 Portrait of Pat Nixon Thelma "Pat" Nixon January 20, 1969

August 9, 1974
Richard Nixon
38 Portrait of Betty Ford Elizabeth "Betty" Ford August 9, 1974

January 20, 1977
Gerald Ford
39 Portrait of Rosalynn Carter Rosalynn Carter January 20, 1977

January 20, 1981
Jimmy Carter
40 Portrait of Nancy Reagan Nancy Reagan January 20, 1981

January 20, 1989
Ronald Reagan
41 Portrait of Barbara Bush Barbara Bush January 20, 1989

January 20, 1993
George H. W. Bush
42 Portrait of Hillary Rodham Clinton Hillary Clinton January 20, 1993

January 20, 2001
Bill Clinton
43 Portrait of Laura Bush Laura Bush January 20, 2001

January 20, 2009
George W. Bush
44 Portrait of Michelle Obama Michelle Obama January 20, 2009

January 20, 2017
Barack Obama
45 Photograph of Melania Trump Melania Trump January 20, 2017

January 20, 2021
Donald Trump
46 First Lady Jill Biden official portrait.jpg Jill Biden January 20, 2021

January 20, 2025
Joe Biden
47 Melania Trump’s Official White House Portrait (2025) (much further cropped).jpg Melania Trump January 20, 2025

Present
Donald Trump

Images for kids

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Anexo:Primeras damas de los Estados Unidos para niños

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