Abigail Fillmore

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Unlike most wealthy, privileged first ladies who preceded her, Abigail Powers grew up in poverty after her father’s death. Abigail was teaching school in Sempronius, New York, when Millard Fillmore became one of her students. She shared and encouraged his aspirations in law and politics. After their marriage, Abigail made the unconventional decision to continue to teach school until her oldest child was born. As First Lady, Abigail favored intimate entertainment in the Yellow Oval Room on the second floor of the White House, where she housed the first White House library. Shortly after President Franklin Pierce’s inauguration, Abigail died of pneumonia. For the first time, Congress adjourned in mourning for a former First Lady.

 

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