First Ladies and Gentlemen of Massachusetts
 | This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. (March 2025) |
| First Lady of Massachusetts | |
|---|---|
 Seal of the State of Massachusetts | |
.jpg) | |
| Residence | Massachusetts State House, Boston |
| Inaugural holder | Dorothy Quincy |
| Formation | October 25, 1780[b] |
The style of First Lady or First Gentleman of Massachusetts (alternatively "first partner") is the honorary position given to the spouse or significant other of the Governor of Massachusetts. If not counting for the spouses of acting governors, to date all of the state's first spouses have been first ladies. The role is currently being filled by Joanna Lydgate, the partner of current governor Maura Healey. Since Healey and Lydgate are not married, Lydgate has adopted the title "first partner".
List
[edit]- Status
Denotes acting first spouse
| Name | Took office | Left office | Spouse of |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dorothy Quincy | 1780 | 1785 | John Hancock |
| Elizabeth Erving | 1785 | 1787 | James Bowdoin |
| Dorothy Quincy | 1787 | 1793 | John Hancock |
| Elizabeth Wells | 1793 | 1797 | Samuel Adams |
| Elizabeth Hyslop | 1797 | 1799 | Increase Sumner |
| Sarah Hooker | 1800 | 1807 | Caleb Strong |
| Martha Langdon | 1807 | 1808 | James Sullivan |
| Rebecca Gore | 1809 | 1810 | Christopher Gore |
| Ann Gerry | 1810 | 1812 | Elbridge Gerry |
| Sarah Hooker | 1812 | 1816 | Caleb Strong |
| Lucy Smith | 1816 | 1823 | John Brooks |
| Caroline Langdon | 1823 | 1825 | William Eustis |
| Penelope Winslow Sever | 1825 | 1834 | Levi Lincoln Jr. |
| Eliza Bancroft Davis | 1834 | 1835 | John Davis |
| Charlotte Gray Brooks | 1836 | 1840 | Edward Everett |
| Charlotte Morton | 1840 | 1841 | Marcus Morton |
| Eliza Bancroft Davis | 1841 | 1843 | John Davis |
| Charlotte Morton | 1843 | 1844 | Marcus Morton |
| Harriet Briggs | 1844 | 1851 | George N. Briggs |
| Sarah Thayer | 1851 | 1853 | George S. Boutwell |
| Sarah Parker Allen | 1853 | 1854 | John H. Clifford |
| Marianne Cornelia Giles | 1854 | 1855 | Emory Washburn |
| Helen Cobb | 1855 | 1858 | Henry Gardner |
| Mary Theredosia Palmer | 1858 | 1861 | Nathaniel P. Banks |
| Eliza Jane Hersey | 1861 | 1866 | John Albion Andrew |
| Elvira Hazard Bullock | 1866 | 1869 | Alexander Bullock |
| Mary Bucklin | 1869 | 1872 | William Claflin |
| Hannah Sweetser | 1872 | 1874 | William B. Washburn |
| Louisa Augusta Beecher | 1875 | 1876 | William Gaston |
| Angle Erickson Powell | 1876 | 1879 | Alexander H. Rice |
| Isabella Hayden | 1879 | 1880 | Thomas Talbot |
| Mary Glover | 1880 | 1882 | John Davis Long |
| Vacant[c] | 1882 | 1883 | |
| Vacant[d] | 1883 | 1884 | Benjamin Butler |
| Susan Simonds | 1884 | 1887 | George D. Robinson |
| Anna Coffin Ray | 1887 | 1890 | Oliver Ames |
| Angie Moore Peck | 1890 | 1891 | John Q. A. Brackett |
| Margaret Manning Swan | 1891 | 1894 | William E. Russell |
| Isabella Nesmith | 1894 | 1896 | Frederic T. Greenhalge |
| Edith Prescott | 1896 | 1900 | Roger Wolcott |
| Josephine B. Crane | 1900 | 1903 | Winthrop M. Crane |
| Clara Elizabeth Smith | 1903 | 1905 | John L. Bates |
| Alice Keneston Moodie[e] | 1905 | 1906 | William Lewis Douglas |
| Charlotte Howe Johnson | 1906 | 1909 | Curtis Guild Jr. |
| Nannie Bristow | 1909 | 1911 | Eben Sumner Draper |
| Lilla Rollins Sturtevant | 1911 | 1914 | Eugene Foss |
| Vacant[f] | 1914 | 1916 | David I. Walsh |
| Ella Esther Thompson | 1916 | 1919 | Samuel W. McCall |
| Grace Coolidge | 1919 | 1921 | Calvin Coolidge |
| Mary Young | 1921 | 1925 | Channing H. Cox |
| Viola Theresa Davenport | 1925 | 1929 | Alvan T. Fuller |
| Eleanor Hamilton Wallace | 1929 | 1931 | Frank G. Allen |
| Harriet Zelda Tyson | 1931 | 1935 | Joseph B. Ely |
| Vacant[g] | 1935 | 1937 | James Michael Curley |
| Marion Hurley | 1937 | 1939 | Charles F. Hurley |
| Alice Wesselhoeft | 1939 | 1945 | Leverett Saltonstall |
| Helen Noonan | 1945 | 1947 | Maurice J. Tobin |
| Rebecca Crowninshield Browne | 1947 | 1949 | Robert F. Bradford |
| Marie Dever[h] | 1949 | 1953 | Paul A. Dever |
| Marie Pratt | 1953 | 1957 | Christian Herter |
| Kay Furcolo | 1957 | 1961 | Foster Furcolo |
| Barbara Welch Gibbons | 1963 | 1965 | Endicott Peabody |
| Giovannina Benedetto | 1965 | 1969 | John A. Volpe |
| Jessie Sargent | 1969 | 1975 | Francis Sargent |
| Kitty Dukakis | 1975 | 1979 | Michael Dukakis |
| Jody King | 1979 | 1983 | Edward J. King |
| Kitty Dukakis | 1983 | 1991 | Michael Dukakis |
| Susan Roosevelt Weld | 1991 | 1997 | Bill Weld |
| Jan Garnett | 1997 | 2001 | Paul Cellucci |
| Chuck Hunt | 2001 | 2003 | Jane Swift |
| Ann Romney | 2003 | 2007 | Mitt Romney |
| Diane Patrick | 2007 | 2015 | Deval Patrick |
| Lauren Schadt | 2015 | 2023 | Charlie Baker |
| Joanna Lydgate ("first partner")[a] | 2023 | Incumbent | Maura Healey |
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ a b Governor Maura Healey has never married, though her partner Joanna Lydgate has assumed the role under the style "first partner"[1]
- ^ not counting spouses of colonial governors
- ^ Mary Glover, spouse of John Davis Long, died in office, in 1882
- ^ At the time of his governorship, Benjamin Butler was a widower. His spouse Sarah Hildreth Butler died in 1876
- ^ Presumably; William Lewis Douglas was known to have had two wives, the second being Alice Keneston Moodie. It is not clear who his wife at the time of his governorship was.
- ^ David I. Walsh never married
- ^ James Michael Curley was a widower at the time of his governorship. He remarried afterwards.
- ^ Paul A. Dever never married and thus the role of First Lady was fullfiled by his sister Marie[2]
References
[edit]- ^ "Gov. Maura Healey's partner Joanna Lydgate takes on traditional role". Boston 25 News. June 4, 2024.
- ^ "Marie Dever". Boston Globe. February 14, 1959.