Martha Dandridge Custis Washington (1731-1802) is a revered icon in American history. Our first First Lady was, of course, married to George Washington, the commander of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War and the first President of the U.S. As First Lady, Martha established many of the traditions and precedents that have come to define the role to this day.
Martha Dandridge was born on June 2, 1731, at Chestnut Grove, a tobacco plantation in New Kent County, Virginia. She was the oldest of eight children of John Dandridge (1700-1756), a Virginia planter, militia officer, and county clerk who immigrated from England,