This portrait of Dolley Madison might be the first photo of a first lady

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https://www.npr.org/2024/07/10/nx-s1-5034050/dolley-madison-photo-portrait-gallery-first-lady-daguerreotype

(2 min. audio at link)

This portrait of Dolley Madison might be the first photo of a first lady

JULY 10, 2024 5:02 AM ET
By Alana Wise



This circa 1846 daguerreotype of Dolley Madison, made by John Plumbe Jr., was purchased for $456,000 at auction in June.
Sotheby's


The National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., has acquired an image of Dolley Madison, believed to be the first photograph of a U.S. first lady.

The circa 1846 daguerreotype was purchased for $456,000 at auction in June, and it depicts Madison in her later years, at some point in her 70s.

Madison, who was the wife of James Madison, the fourth U.S. president, is considered by some as the first presidential spouse to embody the modern idea of a first lady, according to Ann Shumard, gallery curator.

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[Oopsie Daisy]

1. Very cool. What a treasure!!

I wonder which First Lady was the first to be photographed while she was actively our First Lady.