First Ladies of the United States: Lucretia Garfield

Lucretia (Crete) Rudolph was born on April 19, 1832, in Garrettsville, Ohio, to Zebulon and Arabella Mason Rudolph. Sickly as a child, she was an avid reader. In 1850, she entered Western Reserve Eclectic Institute, and she pursued a career in teaching upon graduation.

Crete met James A. Garfield as a fellow student at the Eclectic Institute and corresponded during the years he was away at Williams College. Their courtship was happiest when restricted to letters; in person they often quarreled, and throughout their engagement James pursued other women (a practice that would continue well into their marriage). Even so, they were married on November 11, 1858. In 1859, James was elected to the Ohio Senate, but the onset of the Civil War called him into service for the Union. He was an effective military leader and rose through the ranks. The Garfields’ first child, Eliza, was born on July 3, 1860. In 1862, an illness required James to return to Ohio to recuperate. The birth of their second child in October 1863, Harry Augustus, was followed by Eliza's death from diphtheria three months later. In all, the Garfields had seven children, five of whom survived infancy...