Although Abigail Fillmore was a quiet and obscure first
lady, she had one redeeming quality that should be noted as her accomplishment
in the history of the White House, the establishment of the White House
Library. Abigail was a lifelong teacher and had a lifelong appreciation for literature.
Once the library was completed, it became a standard reception room for
visiting dignitaries and political meetings within the White House. Because she
was so well educated, President Fillmore called upon her knowledge often to
discuss and obtain her opinion on state affairs. Although she was labeled First
Lady of the White House, she rarely handled any hostess jobs during her tenure,
instead, leaving those duties to her daughter, Mary Abigail Fillmore.
Even though Abigail disliked the social aspect of being
First Lady, she did enjoy being about to invite her favorite authors to the
White House for personal interactions and discussions. Although she was a good
conversationalist, she disliked conversing with many in Washington, as she
considered them as nothing more than cave dwellers with no real intellect to
speak of. However, she did enjoy the cultural aspects of Washington, D.C. such
as the art exhibits and concerts, which she attended regularly. The only other
improvement Abigail contributed to the White House was the expansion of the
heating system, as she found the White House cold and damp. She also had a new
kitchen stove installed to replace the use of a fire pit for cooking meals. Abigail
was of frail health and as a result, didn’t receive much historical attention as
First Lady. Unfortunately, she died young at the age of 55 in 1853.
Elizabeth Kilbride is a Writer and Editor with forty years of
experience in writing with 12 of those years in the online content sphere.
Graduating with an Associate of Arts from Pheonix University, then a degree in
Mass Communication and Cyber Analysis from Phoenix University, then on to
Walden University for her master’s in criminology with emphasis on Cybercrime
and Identity Theft and is currently studying for her Ph.D. degree in
Criminology, her portfolio includes coverage of politics, current affairs,
elections, history, and true crime. In her spare time, Elizabeth is also a
gourmet cook, life coach, and avid artist, proficient in watercolor, acrylic,
pen and ink Gouache, and pastels. As a political operative having worked on
over 300 campaigns during her career, Elizabeth has turned many life events
into books and movie scripts while using history to weave interesting
storylines. She also runs 6 various blogs from art to life coaching, to food,
to writing, and opinion or history pieces each week.
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