Margaret Taylor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| First Lady of the United States | |
| In role March 4, 1849 – July 9, 1850 | |
| President | Zachary Taylor |
| Preceded by | Sarah Polk |
| Succeeded by | Abigail Fillmore |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Margaret Mackall Smith September 21, 1788 Calvert County, Maryland, U.S. |
| Died | August 14, 1852 (aged 63) Pascagoula, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Resting place | Zachary Taylor National Cemetery |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 6, including Sarah Knox, Mary Elizabeth, and Richard Taylor |
Margaret Mackall Taylor (née Smith; September 21, 1788 – August 14, 1852) was the first lady of the United States from 1849 to 1850 as the wife of President Zachary Taylor. She married Zachary in 1810 and lived as an army wife, accompanying her husband to his postings in the American frontier. She had six children, two of whom died in childhood while the remaining four were sent to boarding schools in the eastern United States. After a brief period of stable domestic life in the 1840s, her husband was elected President of the United States to her dismay in 1848. She managed the White House from the upstairs residence while she delegated her responsibilities as White House hostess to her daughter. She was highly reclusive throughout her tenure as first lady, which ended abruptly with her husband's death in 1850. She lived in obscurity until her death two years later.