**Special warning: If you plan to listen to this with little ones, please run through it first yourself.
Due to the very nature of our subject matter, there is unavoidable and graphic violence, though brief, in this episode!
Get out your best china and polish that silver! Don a feathered turban, and settle in for a chat about a woman who was not only one of the greatest hostesses in the history of party throwing, but a woman who was an extraordinary networker, before networking was cool. Not just another first lady…the first, First Lady.
In this episode we shine the spotlight on a woman who lived in one, Dolley Payne Todd Madison.
Dolley after shedding her Quaker garb
Dolley Payne was not born of high society, but into a simple Quaker family in North Carolina in 1768. Dolley- her given name- true!- was the third of eight children born to John and Mary Payne. The family moved when Dolley was young, first to Virginia and then to Philadelphia.
This tall, dark haired, blue eyed beauty married a Quaker lawyer, John Todd when she was 21. The couple had two sons. Tragically, John and the youngest son ( who was only 3 months at the time) died of yellow fever when Dolley is 25. This event unleashes the rest of her life that plays out like a classy, well mannered, dynamic soap opera!
<em> <strong>(Click here for more fabulous shownotes!)</strong> </em>!
Dearest Friends,
Greetings from this side of the page and mic.
The woman that we discuss in this episode lived a life of devotion and sacrifice during an exciting, yet turbulent, period of American History. By all accounts she was an intelligent wife, mother, patriot, home fire-tender, Second Lady, First Lady and oh, yes, mother of the sixth president of the United States. As if that were not enough, she was a self-educated, letter writing machine!
A young Abigail Smith Adams
Abigail Smith was born in November 1, 1744, the second of four children to William and Elizabeth Quincy Smith in Weymouth, MA. Her father was a Congregationalist minister and her mother’s family was rooted in politics- Abigail’s grandfather held the position of Speaker for Massachusetts for 40 years. Abigail’s life was lived out during the formative, and historically thrilling, early years of the United States.
It’s easy to get lost in all the Quincys, Smiths and Johns in her life, we’ll admit that. But wade through them because this remarkably resilient and faith driven woman lived a rather difficult life of sacrifice as she strove for the greater good. Even if all you know at this point is that she was the wife of one of the early presidents, and something about “remember the ladies!”- you should put on your thinking caps. This woman was an intellectual powerhouse! PLUS, her marriage was one based in a very real romance, intellectual stimulation and mutual respect. We all can learn a lot from her.
<em> <strong>(Click here for more fabulous shownotes!)</strong> </em>!
Once upon a time, in ancient Egypt, a princess was born. But before her happily ever after, she had to live a challenging life of servitude, duty, and a deep belief in her own character. The long life of the woman that we discuss in this episode not only crosses cultural, territorial and social lines but in terms of fashion, she has quite a shoe collection to help her dance through all time.
History!
Royalty!
Drama!
True Love!
SHOES!
Surely, you see why we picked this woman as our first fictional character?
Cinderella, the iconic persecuted heroine, began life as the oral tale of Rhodopis, in ancient Egypt about 500 BC. Given her nickname for the color her fair skinned cheeks turned in the desert sun, she was a Greek slave brought to Egypt in this rags to riches tale. Her special rose colored dance slippers were given to her by her Master, and spirited away by the god Horus, in the form of a falcon, to be deposited in the lap of Pharaoh, her future groom.
<em> <strong>(Click here for more fabulous shownotes!)</strong> </em>!
Channel your inner pioneer. Think tall plains grasses, humble and hardworking people who knew what it meant to carve a life out of the rugged terrain. The woman we talk about this week is remembered for romanticizing her childhood and for sporting a really, sweet bonnet. But her reality was not all about fiddle playing and homesteading- it was a difficult life. One that was full of failure, and some controversy, on the road to literary success .
Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder was born in 1867, the second child of Charles and Caroline. Her childhood began in Wisconsin and then took off as the family was led by her Pa’s roaming spirit around the then just establishing Midwestern states. It was a hard life of danger and self-reliance, but also an exciting life of new frontiers and conquering the unknown.
The history of Laura’s early life is outlined in the beloved nine-book, Little House series. One of the books, Farmer Boy, is a recounting of the early years of her husband, Almonzo Wilder. The last book in the series , The First Four Years, gives an idea of what early married life was like for the couple. But these books are fictionalized accounts written for children. They talk of the hardships of the times in a most simple fashion, and major heartache is omitted entirely.
We launch our podcast with a woman who has been long misunderstood. She is most remembered for two things, and one is completely inaccurate. That’s right, total tabloid fodder that morphed into historical “fact”.
Maria Antoine Josepha Joanna, born into Austrian royalty was a girl with a fine pedigree, stunning looks, graceful carriage and a pleasant demeanor. The path of her life was created by her mother (whose wasn’t, right?) who took great pride and long thought into marrying off her children not necessarily for love, but for political reasons. Her youngest daughter would be plunged into an extraordinary life in a foreign land first as the Dauphine of France, then as Queen, mother, style icon,and eventually, political prisoner and symbol .
But this isn’t a Disney Princess story. It was one of patience, sacrifice, duty and planning, and –quite frankly- it wasn’t all big fashion, cake and champagne. That was the image, not the reality. In some regards, the history of Marie Antoinette was not only a result of her upbringing and the political climate, but she was also a victim of the social media of her time ( and yeah, ultimately, the guillotine. Ouch.) <em> <strong>(Click here for more fabulous shownotes!)</strong> </em>!
