Ellen Wilson First Spouse Gold Coin

Ellen Louise Axson Wilson served as first lady from 1913 to 1914. Born on May 15, 1860, in Savannah, Georgia, her father was a Presbyterian minister.

Ellen met her future husband Woodrow Wilson when she was just an infant and he was six years old. Woodrow’s father was also a Presbyterian minister. Ellen and Woodrow met again in 1883 when he was a lawyer in Atlanta, and they married two years later.

Woodrow Wilson and his wife arrived at the White House in 1913. Ellen then installed her own art studio there. She was an accomplished artist who sketched and painted landscapes and portraits. Her artwork was displayed in shows even while she was first lady.

Ellen supported various causes such as improving slums in Washington. She worked to see that laws against child labor were created and that education projects in Appalachia were begun. She died in 1914 of Bright’s Disease (a kidney disease) after not quite a year and a half as first lady.

Reverse Design

Ellen Wilson is probably best known for setting up the famous rose garden at the White House. The garden was her idea and she played a big part in overseeing its creation.